THEATRE REVIEW: "Kita y Fernanda" at Mo`olelo Performing Arts Company

“Kita y Fernanda” a Spellbinding Success:

Four Phenomenal Actresses.  Two Languages.  One Powerful Play.

By Donnie Matsuda

While there are no visible lines drawn anywhere on the Mo`olelo stage, “Kita y Fernanda,” the final play in the socially-conscious theatre company’s 2012 season, has a lot to say about living life on two different sides of a border.   

Gabriela Trigo and Cynthia Bastidas.  Photo by Crissy Pascual.

Perhaps it is no coincidence, then, that the play begins in a large crowd – a Chicago rally for immigrant rights – in which we meet the title characters of the play, Kita and Fernanda, as adult 30-somethings just trying to “fit in” to the American way of life while still fighting for the rights of those outsiders on the “other” sides of our national borders.  After decades apart, these two women finally see each other, or at least they think they see each other, but ultimately get lost in the crowd and don’t connect.  On the surface, it seems like a trite way to begin a poignant play about two girls’ sweeping bicultural journey from childhood friends to more cynical, knowing adults.  But when we finally see how this remarkable journey finally ends, in a gripping final scene that will tear at your heart and leave you in tears, it all makes complete sense.   

Olivia Espinosa and Cynthia Bastidas.  Photo by Crissy Pascual.

While Kita and Fernanda appear to share quite a bit – they are both Mexican nationals living in the U.S. with mothers who don’t speak a word of English – we begin to see they couldn’t be more different.  As we constantly flashback from the modern-day rally to various scenes in their childhood, we get more than just a few glimpses into the many borders that divide them.  Fernanda (a dynamic Gabriela Trigo) is the privileged daughter of a rich Mexican family living in McAllen, Texas, who believes in the power of learning English, the importance of fitting in, and the essential commodity of blinged-out Barbie dolls.  While she and her overly medicated and agoraphobic mother Doña (a polished and poised Melba Novoa) are legal immigrants, they remain trapped as prisoners in their lavish Texas mansion – a simple plywood box set by scenic designer David F. Weiner – without any connection to the outside, English-speaking world.  Their only link to humanity is through their live-in maid, a poor, undocumented immigrant named Concha (a warm Olivia Espinosa, who does triple duty as hilarious Valley girl Jessica and stoned out beach bum Chela) and her daughter, Kita (a courageous Cynthia Bastidas).  Kita, of course, is a fierce firecracker who is proud of her hard-working, Spanish-speaking heritage and pooh-poohs the Barbies in favor of Cabbage Patch dolls.

Through the course of their difficult and divided friendship, Kita and Fernanda do share a number of funny and heartfelt moments.  That’s largely due to the perfectly poignant writing of playwright Tanya Saracho, who knows how to capture the essence of her four characters with equal parts humor and humanity.  True, there is a significant amount of dialogue in Spanish (about a third of the play, with one entire scene exclusively “en Español”), but thanks to Seema Sueko and Robert Castro’s smart and sensitive direction, it is easy to surrender to the Spanish and still understand exactly what is going on.  And, if there are still some scenes that leave you a little lost, well, that is part of the playwright’s point: to put us in the shoes of the outsider and make us feel the uneasiness and confusion of being a non-English speaking minority in America.

Cynthia Bastidas and Gabriela Trigo.  Photo by Crissy Pascual.

At the end of the play, there’s a lot to think about.  And in Mo`olelo’s beautifully crafted and brilliantly acted production, there’s also a lot to admire and enjoy.  “Kita y Fernanda” is an experience like no other: it is a whirlwind journey that will sweep you off your feet, tug relentlessly at your heartstrings, make you laugh out loud, and shake your moral and intellectual core.  It is a must-see for any theatre-goer who wants to be moved, inspired, and challenged.

Things to know before you go: Kita y Fernanda presented by Mo`olelo Performing Arts Company plays at The 10th Avenue Theatre through October 21, 2012.  Running time is 90 minutes with no intermission.  For more information or to purchase tickets, call (619) 342-7395 or visit www.moolelo.net.

THEATRE NEWS: Mo`olelo Announces 2013 Season

MO`OLELO ANNOUNCES 2013 SEASON

Award-winning theater company announces ninth season featuring A MOXIE co-production of Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye adapted by Lydia Diamond, Extraordinary Chambers by David Wiener, The Amish Project by Jessica Dickey

SAN DIEGO, CA (September 25, 2012)– Award Winning Mo`olelo Performing Arts Company is pleased to announce its 2013 season of three plays: The Bluest Eye adapted by Lydia Diamond, playwright of Stick Fly, from the novel by Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison in co-production with MOXIE Theatre; Extraordinary Chambers by David Wiener, winner of the LA drama critics circle Ted Schmitt Award and Seattle’s A Contemporary Theatre’s 2010 New Play Award, and The Amish Project by Jessica Dickey said by the New York Times to be “a remarkable piece of writing”.

This season marks Mo`olelo’s second three-play season and the beginning of Executive Artistic Director Seema Sueko’s 16 month in-depth mentorship with Molly Smith, Artistic Director of Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater in Washington DC, thanks to her receiving the Theatre Communications Group’s (TCG) prestigious inaugural “Leadership U(niversity) One-On-One Grant, a $75,000 award. Jessica Bird, former San Diego REP Casting Director & Artistic Associate and local director, will serve as Interim General and Producing Manager during Sueko’s working sabbatical.

Mo`olelo’s 2013 Season will open with a Mo`olelo-MOXIE Theatre co-production of Lydia Diamond’s adaption of Toni Morrison’s novel The Bluest Eye (February 2-March 3, 2013), marking the first collaboration of two of San Diego’s top women-led theaters. The Bluest Eye tells the story of one year in the life of a young black girl in 1940s Ohio. Eleven-year-old Pecola Breedlove wants nothing more than to be loved by her family and schoolmates. Left to fend for herself, she blames her dark skin and prays for blue eyes, sure that love will follow. From the playwright of Mo`olelo's 2011 production of Stick Fly, The Bluest Eye paints a portrait of the legacy of racism on a young girl’s psyche.

The summer months will bring Executive Artistic Director Seema Sueko back to the west coast to direct David Weiner’s award-winning Extraordinary Chambers (June 6-30, 2013) starring Greg Watanabe from Mo`olelo’s Yellow Face and How I Got that Story casts. Extraordinary Chambers is the story of an American couple who travel to Cambodia for an innocent business trip, but become personally entangled with Khmer Rouge victims and survivors. The genocide, complicity, survival, and greed collide in this play that shines a light on the Cambodian experience and asks how far are we willing to go to survive?

The season will end with Jessica Dickey’s tale of forgiveness, The Amish Project (September 26- October 20, 2013), with the directorial debut of Jessica Bird, Mo`olelo’s Interim General & Producing Manager. The Amish Project is an extraordinary, fictional, one-woman play inspired by the 2006 Nickel Mines shooting in Pennsylvania. In the wake of a mass shooting in an Amish schoolhouse, the Amish community immediately reached out to the shooter’s family with compassion when others did not. The play explores the tightrope intersection of grief, rage, and forgiveness, and asks which path do you take?

“This is an exciting time at Mo`olelo,” shared Ms. Sueko. “As we step into the ninth year at Mo`olelo, we’re embarking on an exciting journey of growth, national recognition and anticipation for our 10th anniversary in 2014.”  “The plays selected for 2013 all possess a beautiful poetic quality, drawing us close as they expose the danger and beauty of humanity,” added Ms. Bird.

Tickets to Mo`olelo’s 2013 Season are currently available by subscription only. Subscription prices range from $45 - $90 and may be purchased online by visiting http://moolelo.net/2013-season/ or by calling 619-342-7395.
 

THEATRE NEWS: MO`OLELO ANNOUNCES INTERIM GENERAL AND PRODUCING MANAGER

Jessica Bird, Seema Sueko, and Samantha Howell.  Photo courtesy of Samantha Howell.

SAN DIEGO, CA (September 6, 2012) – Award winning Mo`olelo Performing Arts Company announces the appointment of Jessica Bird to serve as Interim General and Producing Manager during Executive Artistic Director Seema Sueko’s upcoming working sabbatical. Bird, who will begin at Mo`olelo on September 10, served as Casting Director and Artistic Associate at San Diego Repertory Theatre and brings a wealth of experience including production, directing, administration, teaching and stage management at many local theaters. She recently co-wrote and directed the one woman show Women in the Mirror, A Dancer’s Journey.  Bird holds a B.A. in Theater and Music from Point Loma Nazarene University and is beginning her Master’s in Non-Profit Leadership and Management at the University of San Diego.

Sueko’s sabbatical is thanks to her receiving the Theatre Communications Group’s (TCG) prestigious inaugural “Leadership U(niversity) One-On-One  Grant, a $75,000 award that will provide her with a 16 month in-depth mentorship with Molly Smith, Artistic Director of Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater in Washington DC beginning in December 2012.

During the next four months, Sueko will train Bird on Mo`olelo operations. Though Bird will be responsible for the overall day to day management of Mo`olelo while Sueko is in DC, they will continue to stay in contact throughout Sueko’s sabbatical, working together as a team to ensure smooth continuity of theater operations. The grant program will be completed in 2014 which is the 10th anniversary of Mo`olelo.

Mo`olelo began a three play series starting this year and will continue three productions each year, with Sueko returning to San Diego for a period in 2013 to direct the second play of the season.  The company's final production of 2012 will be Tanya Saracho's "Kita y Fernanda" directed by Robert Castro and Seema Sueko, which begins performances on September 27.  

THEATRE REVIEW: "HOW I GOT THAT STORY" at Mo`olelo Performing Arts Company

A Quirky War "Story"

Mo`olelo’s dynamic acting duo brings the raw emotion and heightened absurdity of war to life in Amlin Gray’s darkly satiric play

By Donnie Matsuda

While How I Got That Story was originally written and produced in 1979, its tongue-in-cheek commentary about the atrocities of war and the brazen reporters who cover it remains starkly relevant today.

As America welcomes home veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan and attempts to reintegrate them back into civilian life, many questions are raised about the futility of war, the human impact of battle, and the loss of soul and sanity of those involved in the conflict. It is exactly these kinds of questions that Amlin Gray deftly dances around in his quirky, black comedy How I Got That Story, currently being well revived by the socially-conscious and politically-engaged Mo`olelo Performing Arts Company.

(L-R): Brian Bielawski and Greg Watanabe. Photo by Crissy Pascual at Infinite Media Works.

Story follows a naïve newspaper reporter from Dubuque (a captivating Brian Bielawski) as he travels to a fictional country called Am-bo Land (a literary representation of Vietnam) to cover the war. It is there that his beliefs of journalistic integrity and objectivity are challenged when he encounters the complexity and chaos that is “The Historical Event” (a mesmerizing, tour-de-force turn by Greg Watanabe), a hodge-podge of 21 distinct characters that the reporter meets while on assignment all wrapped into one zany, comedic, over-the-top role. In the end, the reporter is deeply damaged by all that he experiences on the frontlines of battle, and as a result, he becomes a pathetic victim of a country he hasn’t made and a war he doesn’t understand. In the end, it is almost as if the playwright is secretly trying to say that in the Cold War-era it was actually Vietnam that conquered the U.S. instead of the other way around.

As the eager reporter, Brian Bielawski is incredibly convincing as the innocent, tape-recorder toting journalist who won’t give up until he’s interviewed just about everyone on the battlefield. However, as he is immersed deeper and deeper into the dark, war-torn world of Am-bo Land, his sensibility turns and he begins to unravel. As his character becomes increasingly fragmented and mentally unstable, Bielawski goes along for the crazy ride and plays the part as credibly as he can without resorting to too much melodrama. As written, his character must go a bit over the top with his navel-gazing narratives and angst-filled antics, but Bielawski does an admirable job of continually grounding his character with real reactions and heartfelt emotion.

The true scene stealer of this production, however, is Greg Watanabe, who proves to be the true piece de resistance of the play. Not only does he handle the razor sharp wit and physical comedy with great ease, but he is a thrilling vision as he seamlessly transforms from militant guerrilla fighter to slinky and seductive bar girl to macho Trans-Pan-Global executive to the ruthless and evil empress Madame Ing – all within the near blink of an eye and all without the aid of makeup or fancy costume changes. Given his masterful, mesmerizing performance here, I’ll bet there isn’t anyone out there that Greg can’t impersonate. And, if that weren’t enough, he also voices all the many sound effects in the show, from military planes flying overhead to Rolling Stones songs being played in a seedy nightclub.

(L-R): Greg Watanabe and Brian Bielawski. Photo by Crissy Pascual at Infinite Media Works.

To top it off, Seema Sueko directs her top-notch two-man cast with a sure hand and a sharp eye. Her strict attention to every detail pays off immensely as her pacing is brisk, her scenes are meticulously crafted, and her artistic vision is simply sublime. Sueko has gone to great lengths to understand the makings and motivations of war veterans and military journalists alike and her extensive research has more than paid off here. All in all, she fearlessly mines the play for all its worth and ultimately delivers a visceral and dramatic production that occasionally pops with explosions of dark comedy.

And the technical elements all meld together perfectly to create some sharp and edgy effects. David F. Weiner’s camouflage-inspired scenic design goes hand in hand with Stephen Terry’s dramatic, pin-point lighting and Jeannie Galioto’s casual costumes. Add to that George Ye’s offbeat atmospheric sound design and you have an oddball Am-bo Land that is as vibrant as it is quirky.

(L-R): Brian Bielawski and Greg Watanabe. Photo by Crissy Pascual at Infinite Media Works.

While How I Got That Story isn’t a perfectly crafted play, it is a very fitting choice for the always innovative and occasionally groundbreaking Mo`olelo.

At the very least, it is a timely piece of war-themed work and here, in the hands of a capable director and performed with verve by a dynamic acting duo, it proves to be a Story well worth telling.

Things to know before you go: How I Got That Story presented by Mo`olelo Performing Arts Company plays at The 10th Avenue Theatre through March 18, 2012. Running time is 2 hours with a 15 minute intermission. Performances are Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7:30pm, and Sundays at 2pm. Tickets are $22-$33 with discounts available for students, seniors, and members of AEA. For more information or to purchase tickets, call (619) 342-7395 or visit www.moolelo.net.

PART THREE OF THREE: An Interview With Seema Sueko, Co-Founder and Executive Artistic Director of Mo`olelo

PART THREE: LOOKING BACK AND LOOKING AHEAD

Which production in Mo`olelo’s seven year history are you most proud of? And what production in your upcoming eighth year are you most excited about?

I love all my children equally [laughs]. We did a play in 2006 called “Since Africa” which was about a lost boy of Sudan and his resettlement in the US. It was our third year of production and the play sold out before we even opened. It did very well and then The Old Globe decided to produce it in 2009 and I directed it there. So, that was a play that went from our tiny stage all the way to The Old Globe, and I’m very proud of that. I think that is one of our significant achievements.

I’m also really proud of our production of “Yellow Face.” A lot of things just came together nicely with that production. We were able to bring out David Henry Hwang (the playwright) and he really liked the production and has now become a good friend of the company.

Show posters for "Since Africa" in 2006 and "Yellow Face" in 2010. Poster art courtesy of Mo`olelo.

As for our eighth year, our next play “How I Got That Story” is what I’m most focused on right now. It’s a two man play and we’ve got two great actors. Brian Bielawski plays a reporter who is sent to a fictional land called Amboland, which is a representation of Vietnam, to cover the war. And while he’s there he meets the character played by Greg Watanabe called “The Historical Event,” which is about 20 different roles (male/female, young/old, American/Ambanese) portrayed by one actor. The play was written in 1979 but the issues are so relevant today, especially to a country that is still fighting a war in Afghanistan, evaluating in hindsight what happened in Iraq, and struggling to reintegrate combat veterans back into civilian life. So right now, at this very moment, I’m most excited about that.

Actors Greg Watanabe (in black) and Brian Bielawski (in gray) at the first read through of "How I Got That Story" on January 26, 2012. Photo courtesy of Mo`olelo.

In this economy, many theatres are either filing for bankruptcy or barely staying afloat financially. Yet Mo`olelo is thriving, having just come off one of the most successful years in its seven year history. What is the secret to success?

Financially, the toughest years for theatres were 2008 and 2009. The American Theatre Magazine, TCG, does these “taking the fiscal pulse” surveys and if I recall correctly, the percentages of companies that were doing better than their projected budgets was higher at the end of fiscal year 2011 then it had been in, say, 2009. So things are actually getting better.

Now there certainly are stories of companies that are experiencing hardships and filing for bankruptcy and closing their doors. Personally, and I don’t want this to be taken the wrong way, I don’t necessarily think that is a bad thing. When I was doing theatre in Chicago, we used to say “a theatre company is born and a theatre company dies every day in Chicago…and it’s a beautiful thing.” What it means is that there is constant artistic energy coming into the city and then a lot of those artists find their footing and they get work at larger companies, so the companies no longer have their purpose of showcasing those artists and they dissolve. Organizations shouldn’t exist simply for the organization’s sake. If they aren’t serving a mission and they aren’t serving a community, then why have the organization? And certainly, if Mo`olelo ever gets to the point where we’re irrelevant, then by all means, we need to dissolve. And don’t mourn. It doesn’t erase what the organization and the company has achieved in the past. That will live on in the memories, the hearts, and the minds of audiences who experienced it.

Now back to your question….the secret to success. If there’s one thing I’m really good at it is surrounding myself with people who are far smarter than me. Surrounding myself with really, really good people. At Mo`olelo, we have been blessed with a terrific Board of Trustees, many very talented theatre artists, and community organization partners who know their communities much better than we do. The hard work, dedication, and commitment of all these entities have helped us succeed.

The Queen of Green: Seema at the Miramar Recycling Center. As one way of innovating the field, Mo`olelo started a "greening" initiative in 2007. The company has developed a "Green Theatre Choices Toolkit" which is currently being implemented by theatres around the world. Photo by K. C. Alfred.

Where do you hope to see Mo`olelo in 10-15 years from now?

What would that be…like 2022? There are four main things that we currently do: we produce plays, we do consensus organizing (essentially building relationships and building audiences), we run arts education programs, and we innovate the field (basically finding ways to improve the field).

You know, Rocco Landesman, Chairman of the NEA, made a statement last year that sent our industry in a tizzy when he said, “We have a supply and demand problem. There are too many theatres out there. Demand isn’t going to increase, so clearly supply needs to decrease.” I think our consensus organizing process actually increases demand for theatre: it has been a very successful way to engage audiences that don’t traditionally attend the theatre and thus increase demand for theatre. So we’re trying to codify it and we want to disseminate that to the field.

And this last thing of innovating the field is the thing that a lot of our audiences may not be aware of, but I think it’s the thing that gets us on the national radar because we’re not just about producing plays. We’re about producing plays that are reflective of our community and we’re committed to innovating the field.

So all that to say 10-15 years from now, I hope we are still innovating the field. I don’t know what those innovations will be, but that would be the goal: that we’re finding ways to do what it is theatre is best at, but doing it better.

For more information about Seema Sueko and Mo`olelo Performing Arts Company, visit: http://moolelo.net/

PART TWO OF THREE: An Interview With Seema Sueko, Co-Founder and Executive Artistic Director of Mo`olelo

Seema Sueko (at right) with Linda Libby (at left) in Mo`olelo's inaugural production of "Remains" in 2004. Photo by Ken Jacques.

PART TWO: PLAYS, PLAYS, PLAYS

How would you describe the journey Mo`olelo has taken from then to today?

On one hand, our business model has always been “slowly, slowly catch your monkey.” It’s a Colonial British phrase and the idea behind that is…well…slowly, slowly and you’ll catch your monkey! [laughs] I think the traditional way to launch a theatre company is to announce there’s a new theatre company and then launch a full season – three plays, four plays, you know. At Mo`olelo, we only did one play a year for the first three years and then two plays a year since 2007, and only now are we going to three plays a year. And the idea behind that was very deliberate. One was we wanted to pay Equity wages to everybody, so even if you’re non-union, you still get the Equity wage. That meant we needed time to fundraise. And then we needed time after each production to learn from it. We also needed time to build an audience. And all of that takes a lot of time. So, our business model has been, “don’t do it until you’re capable of doing it.” We’ve never had a deficit, we’ve never been in debt, and our philosophy has always been to do what you can and learn from it.

On the other hand, I’ve been really surprised at what we’ve been able to achieve in the past seven years. Last year was a really good year for us. But, there are a lot of people (our Board, our volunteers) who have been working very hard to get us to where we are at. To kind of think about that and be thrilled about the national recognition we’ve received, it feels great. When I started Mo`olelo years ago I never imagined we would have achieved those things…ever. [laughs]

How do you find new plays to produce? Where do these plays come from?

A variety of places. We have an open submission process and it is all explained on our website. While anybody can submit plays to us, there are some specific criteria that we look for. First, the play must offer us the opportunity to engage communities that don’t traditionally attend the theatre. Second, the play must offer the opportunity for significant roles for actors of color. Third is can the play work with high school audiences. And the fourth is …do we like it.

I’m also in contact with a lot of other artistic directors around the country and occasionally we share scripts with one another. Mixed Blood in Minneapolis and Interact in Philadelphia are two theatres that have been around for 25 plus years, but their missions are similar to ours in terms of being very socially conscious in the nature of plays that they pick. So we do a lot of that kind of sharing.

And, the play we’re doing next, “How I Got That Story,” was brought to my attention by a local actor, John Tessmer. So we get plays from a variety of sources.

Mo`olelo's first ever full season of three plays launches this year. Show art courtesy of Mo`olelo.

How many play submissions do you get on average? And do you read them all?

That’s a really good question. I would say each month we get maybe 3-5 just on blind submissions. And I’ll read at least the first ten pages as well as the synopsis of all of them. Unfortunately, if it doesn’t fit our first two criteria, then I probably won’t read the rest of the play. ….unless it is really catching, and then I will and I will pass it on to somebody else. If it does fit those first two criteria then I’ll continue on and read the rest of the play and see whether it’s a good match for us or not.

And for your fourth criteria….how would you describe your ideal play?

That’s hard. It might be easier to say why some plays don’t make it.

Because we pay every actor a union wage, we can’t do plays that have very large casts. And because our plays are focused on what I call “outsider” stories, a sense of authenticity in the voice of that story is really important. I like plays that have multiple perspectives in them because we might be reaching out to communities that are directly reflected in the play, but then it is interesting when communities that are in opposition to that community are also reflected in the play. Ultimately, our goal is to bring diversity together and bridge across various divides.

Seema Sueko (at left) accepts the Actors' Equity Association Ivy Bethune Award in 2011, which "celebrates individuals and organizations in the performing arts that have taken an active stand to make a difference toward a more representational, multicultural community by helping build a foundation for diversity within the industry." Photo by Ed Krieger.