blu
March 1 - March 11 | Forum Theatre
Written by Virginia Grise. Directed by Cambria Herrera.
About the Show
blu is about whether a family living in a barrio can stay together and choose life, hope, and each other despite gang, military, and domestic violence. A young mother, Soledad, wrestles with what family can mean in the face of death and divorce. Her two-spirit partner reminds her of ancient traditions of reclamation and her 14-year-old daughter creates new realities through dreams of resurrection, offering Soledad a way forward. blu is a poetic re-telling of the eternal struggle between desire and war, violence and peace, and the sun and the moon... Join us for a performance underneath the telephone wires with a live DJ curating oldies, hip-hop, salsa, reggaeton, spoken word, and indigenous dance as we ask, “Why do we keep killing each other and our own dreams?”
Content Warnings
Domestic violence, gun violence, gang violence, strong language, rape, death, abortion, suicide, incarceration, cannabis use, and the Iraq war.
This production will include the use of haze, herbal cigarette smoke, gunshot sounds, and strobing lights.
Thursday, March 2 @ 4 p.m.
Where the Horizon Meets the Earth: An Artist Talk
Virginia Grise will discuss the evolution of her career as a theatre artist, from blu to her most current project, Riding the Currents of the Wilding Wind, inspired by Helena Maria Viramontes' epic novel Their Dogs Came with Them. The talk will include excerots of her work and her methodological and artistic practices for creating ecologies of care in the face of state violence, how we dream when our communities are under attack, how we create spaces for movement, joy and celebration amidst all of it - to study together and think together, work and collaborate together, imagine and create together. Join Grise at the Cross Cultural Center Comunidad Room on Thursday, March 2 @ 4 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Friday, March 3 & Saturday March, 11 @ 5:00 p.m.
Stars Through The Smog: A blu Preshow Showcase
Do not miss the Preshow Showcase prior to blu performances on Friday, March 3 and Saturday, March 11 at the Che Cafe at 5 p.m.
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The Cast
Soledad: Gabriella Marie Johnson
Blu: Jacob Ayala
Eme: Ángel Nieves
Hailstorm: Lisette Velandia
Gemini: Karla Leon
Lunatico: J. Nuñez
Ensemble: Mayra Carrillo, Danniel Urena, Lula Britos
Assistant Director: Steve Llamas
Assistant Director: Lula Britos
Production Stage Manager: Karina Ortega
Assistant Stage Manager: Gillian Lelchuk
Assistant Stage Manager: Lily Fitzsimmons
Production Assistant: Josh Paez
Lighting Designer: Elba Emicente
Assistant Lighting Designer: Vida Huang
Scenic and Projection Designer: Michael Wogulis
Assistant Scenic and Projection Designer: Maia Stevenson
Assistant Scenic and Projection Designer: Anjolie Ochalek
Costume Designer: Grace Wong
Assistant Costume Designer: Anabel Olguin
Sound Designer: Padra Crisafulli
Assistant Sound Designer: Roselle-Angeline Castro
Choreographer: Ulises Aguirre
Choreographer: Gabriella Johnson
Choreographer: Danniel Urena
Choreographer / EDI Advocate: Jade Power-Sotomayer
Production Manager: Michael Francis
Associate Production Manager: Laura Manning
Technical Director: Daniel Capiro
Props Shop Supervisor: Jeni Cheung
Costume Shop Supervisor: Jan Mah
Electrics Supervisor: Mike Doyle
Audio & Video Supervisor: Steve Negrete
Director's Note
This is a play for anyone who:
Lost someone too soon
Or repeated the mistakes of their parents…
Or taught their mistakes to their kids
Or fought to be alone
Or was taken from their family
Or struggled to dream of a better day
Or hurt the ones they love
Or loved the ones who hurt them...
This play is for everyone.
It’s also a special love letter for the queer and hurting brown kids. To those of us who don’t feel we can fully fit in at home or at school, at our grandma’s house or our friend’s house. For those of us who have seen our brothers stolen to prison or war and our siblings, tías, or mothers abused. For those of us who have done our best to make sense of our future in the face of unjust violence that plagues our community.
I see you, love you, and this play is my prayer for you. A prayer that one day we will re-write the story and the violence will end.
I maintain this hope that the violence will end because I’ve become close to the Mexica story of the moon: Coyolxauqui. She is a warrior who was violently killed by her brother, Huitziolopochtli, when she dared to protest his reign of war. He cut off all her limbs. She bleeds to this day. But when he tossed her off the mountain into the lake, she resurrected and became the Moon. She gloriously dances across every night sky, always in motion, watching over us. She reminds me, that in the face of any violence: we can rise with glory.
About the Director
Cambria Herrera is a Xicanx MFA Directing candidate. All of their work rises from their core inspiration: queer and female artists of color from the past and present. In Portland, Oregon they co-founded and facilitated The AGE Theatre Collective and mentorship program to empower the resiliency of female and non-binary theatre artists of color. Recent credits include: Fandango for Butterflies (And Coyotes) at La Jolla Playhouse (Associate Director) Fifty Boxes of Earth at UCSD (Director), In The Red and Brown Water at UCSD (Director), a queer adaptation of Twelfth Night at UCSD (Director), World Premiere Adaptation of King Arthur at Long Beach Opera (Assistant Director), Yellow, Yellow, Yellow at Red Balloon Theatre Collective (Director and Co-producer), Romeo and Juliet at Penguin Productions (Director), Peter/Wendy at Bag&Baggage Productions (Tiger Lily), and As One at Portland Opera (Assistant Director).