Teatro Campesino: La Esquinita, USA at Puerto Rican Traveling Theater

Photo: POCHO1

Pregones Theater and Puerto Rican Traveling Theater join El Teatro Campesino’s 50^th anniversary celebration by presenting their critically acclaimed production La Esquinita, USA on its Off-Broadway stage. Rubén C. González, of El Teatro Campesino, skillfully carries this political one man show swiftly swinging between lighthearted whimsical instants to deep introspective, often painfully real depictions of a leftover surviving community that has lost its main economic driving force.  La Esquinita, USA is a feature event of Pregones/PRTT’s Plataforma: The Bronx-Broadway Showcase for Latino Theater. Written and performed by Rubén C. González, and directed by Kinan Valdez. The limited, one-weekend run from December 11-13 will take place at the Puerto Rican Traveling Theater, 304 West, 47^th Street, in Manhattan.  Tickets are now on sale for $15 at www.pregonesprtt.org or by phone at (718) 585-1202.

SYNOPSIS:  La Esquinita, USA is the latest installment of the Mad Mexican’s solo performances by Rubén C. González. This time around he is not so mad and the world is better for it. Now, the ZEN Mexican takes us on a passage through a once booming town, La Esquinita, USA, now forgotten. This story is told by the omniscient narrator LENCHO and experienced through the eyes of 18 year old DANIEL, a young man who is at the peak of his Crystal Meth high while standing at the threshold between Light and Darkness. The main source of employment, The Thompson Tire Factory has gone to China, leaving the town’s infrastructure in disarray. False idols of hope are the only source of relief and the citizens of this dilapidated town are left scavenging for what little remains. What happens to a town when promises from Big Business are broken? What happens to its people?

THE ARTISTS:  El Teatro Campesino (ETC), founded in 1965, began the company creating and performing “actos” or short skits on flatbed trucks and in union halls, under the internationally acclaimed director Luis Valdez. Today, ETC continues to play a vital role in the contemporary Latino theater scene across the nation. For La Esquinita, USA, ETC has combined the extraordinary talents of writer/performer Rubén C. González with those of director Kinan Valdéz, to produce a remarkable production that has been heralded by critics as “dramatic, tense with bursts of hilarity, tightly paced and enhanced with impeccable soundscape and lighting”.

DATES:         December 11-13, 2015 / Nights – Friday, December 11 and Saturday, December 12 at 8:00 PM / Matine, Sunday, December 13 at 3:00 PM

LOCATION:     Puerto Rican Traveling Theater, 304 West 47^th Street, Manhattan

TICKETS:        All tickets $15 / Online at WWW.PREGONESPRTT.ORG / By phone at (718) 585-1202