La Jolla Playhouse announces the cast and creative team for its production of En Garde Arts’ Fandango for Butterflies (and Coyotes), by Andrea Thome, original music by Sinuhé Padilla, directed by José Zayas, running August 30 – September 25 in the Mandell Weiss Forum. For tickets and information, please visit LaJollaPlayhouse.org.
The cast features Carlo Albán as “Rogelio,” Jen Anaya as “Mariposa,” Danny Ray Caraballo as “Elvin,” Silvia Dionicio as “Rafaela,” Frances Ines Rodriguez as “Pili,” Roberto Tolentino as “Johan,” along with Lead Musician Sinuhé Padilla, Musician Tania Mesa and understudy Celeste Lanuza.
The creative team includes: Andrea Thome, Playwright; José Zayas, Director; Sinuhé Padilla, Original Music/Music Direction/Spanish Song Lyrics/Zapateado Choreography; Johnny Moreno, Scenic & Projection Design; Fabian Fidel Aguilar, Costume Design; Lucrecia Briceno, Lighting Design; Marcelo Añez, Sound Design; Alexandra Beller, Movement Direction; Elsie Stark/ Stark Naked Productions, Original Casting; Carolina Arboleda, Production Stage Manager.
Fandangos are vibrant gatherings in which music and dance bring stories of a community to life. For a group of immigrants gathering in a community center on the eve of a city-wide ICE raid, this night’s fandango serves a vital purpose: to resurrect the culture they left behind. Inspired by interviews with immigrants from Latin America – many of whom made a dangerous journey to the United States – Fandango for Butterflies (and Coyotes) is a celebration of the resiliency and camaraderie that can be built as strangers become friends, friends become family, and the music plays on. This “rapturous” new play is a “sensitive portrait of the in-between: characters balancing the small joys of everyday life with the fear of uncertainty” (The New York Times).
“We are delighted to welcome back Anne Hamburger to the Playhouse with En Garde Arts’ acclaimed production of Fandango for Butterflies (and Coyotes). This warm and joyous show is a celebration of indomitable immigrant communities – people enthusiastically gathering to sing and share stories, even in the midst of a threat that lingers just outside their walls – underscoring humanity’s intrinsic need for connection,” said Christopher Ashley, the Rich Family Artistic Director of La Jolla Playhouse.
Fandango for Butterflies (and Coyotes) is performed in English and Spanish, with live supertitles making it fully accessible to speakers of both languages. Additionally, following each performance, audiences are invited to participate in an informal fandango celebration with cast members outside the theatre.
Throughout the week of September 27 – October 2, La Jolla Playhouse and En Garde Arts will present a series of free community performances of Fandango for Butterflies (and Coyotes) in partnership with local community centers and schools in Chula Vista, San Ysidro, Escondido and Oceanside, among others.
Andrea Thome is a Chilean/Costa Rican-American playwright. Her play Pinkolandia received the Lark Play Development Center’s Launching New Plays fellowship and a rolling world premiere at INTAR, Austin’s Salvage Vanguard Theater, Two River Theater (NJ) and 16th Street Theater (Chicago). For the Public Theater, Thome created Troy with Public Works’ ACTivate Ensemble. Her plays include Undone (Queens College, Victory Gardens, Lark) and Worm Girl (Cherry Red Productions). Her play translations have been produced by the Public, CTG, La Jolla Playhouse and others. Thome co-directs FULANA, an all-Latina satire collective, and has directed the Lark’s Mexico-U.S. Playwright Exchange Program since 2006. She’s a 2017 resident with SPACE on Ryder Farm and Keen Company, and was a New Dramatists resident from 2009-2016.
Sinuhé Padilla is a Mexican musicologist, producer, composer and artistic director. As founder of Jarana Records, he has released productions for Sonia de los Santos, Adela y Lupita, Calpulli Mexican Dance Company, Mireya Ramos, Shae Fiol, Veronica Valerio, Sonando Sur, Bilingual Birdies, and Jarana Beat. He has directed Jarana Beat, winner of Best Folk Contemporary Band at the Mexican Music Awards 2015, and has received recognition from NYC for his contribution to Latin culture. He served as music writer and producer for National Geographic, Mundo (Firmes), Storyhunter TV, and The United Nations. Sinuhé leads fandangos across the country.
José Zayas has directed over 100 productions in NYC, as well as regionally and internationally. Credits include: The Magnetic Fields: 50 Song Memoir (BAM, Mass MoCa, US and European Tour), A Nonesuch Celebration (BAM), In the Name of Salome, Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter, The House of the Spirits (Repertorio Español). He has premiered work by Caridad Svich, Thomas Bradshaw, Duncan Sheik, Taylor Mac, Andrea Thome, Marco Antonio Rodriguez, Saviana Stanescu, Rob Urbinati, Catherine Filloux, Gerardo Cardenas, among others. Drama League Fellow, Lincoln Center’s Director’s Lab, SoHo Rep Writers/Director’s Lab, NEA/TCG Career Development Program for Directors, lifetime member of EST, Resident Director: Repertorio Español. Born in Puerto Rico, Zayas graduated from Harvard and Carnegie Mellon. www.josezayasdirector.com
En Garde Arts creates, produces and presents bold theatre experiences that reach across artistic, physical and social boundaries. They aim to increase empathy and open-mindedness by illuminating nuanced perspectives and unspoken truths behind the salient issues of our time. By bringing together artistic teams with non-arts partners from the outset, and merging seasoned theatre-goers with new audiences, En Garde Arts sparks dialogue among people not normally in conversation, both in New York and beyond.
La Jolla Playhouse is a place where artists and audiences come together to create what’s new and next in the American theatre, from Tony Award-winning productions, to imaginative programs for young audiences, to interactive experiences outside our theatre walls. Founded in 1947 by Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire and Mel Ferrer, the Playhouse is currently led by Tony Award winner Christopher Ashley, the Rich Family Artistic Director of La Jolla Playhouse, and Managing Director Debby Buchholz. The Playhouse is internationally renowned for the development of new works, including mounting 108 world premieres, commissioning 60 new works, and sending 33 productions to Broadway – among them the hit musical Come From Away – garnering a total of 38 Tony Awards, as well as the 1993 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre.
FACT SHEET
WHAT:
En Garde Arts’ Production of Fandango for Butterflies (and Coyotes)
By Andrea Thome
Original Music by Sinuhé Padilla
Directed by José Zayas
WHEN:
August 30 – September 25 (Press Opening: September 7)
Tue/Wed at 7:30pm; Thu/Fri/Sat at 8pm; Sun at 7pm; Sat/Sun at 2pm
September 27 – October 2: Production Tours San Diego Community
WHERE:
Forum Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse
2910 La Jolla Village Drive, La Jolla, CA 92037
WHO:
Sinuhé Padilla: Music Direction, Spanish Song Lyrics, Zapateado Choreography
Johnny Moreno, Scenic & Projection Design
Fabian Fidel Aguilar, Costume Design
Lucrecia Briceno, Lighting Design
Marcelo Añez, Sound Design
Alexandra Beller, Movement Direction
Elsie Stark/Stark Naked Productions, Original Casting
Carolina Arboleda, Production Stage Manager
Cast:
Carlo Albán Rogelio
Jen Anaya Mariposa
Danny Ray Caraballo Elvin
Silvia Dionicio Rafaela
Frances Ines Rodriguez Pili
Roberto Tolentino Johan
Sinuhé Padilla Lead Musician
Tania Mesa Musician
Celeste Lanuza Understudy
BACKGROUND: Fandangos are vibrant gatherings in which music and dance bring stories of a community to life. For a group of immigrants gathering in a community center on the eve of a city-wide ICE raid, this night’s fandango serves a vital purpose: to resurrect the culture they left behind. Inspired by interviews with immigrants from Latin America – many of whom made a dangerous journey to the United States – Fandango for Butterflies (and Coyotes) is a celebration of the resiliency and camaraderie that can be built as strangers become friends, friends become family, and the music plays on. This “rapturous” new play is a “sensitive portrait of the in-between: characters balancing the small joys of everyday life with the fear of uncertainty” (The New York Times).
SPONSORS: Mintz, La Cuisine Custom Catering, Univision
TICKETS: LaJollaPlayhouse.org; (858) 550-1010
