La Victima

Written by El Teatro de la Esperanza

Directed by Jose Luis Valenzuela

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The Latino Theater Company, in collaboration with students from the UCLA School of Theater Film and TV and East Los Angeles College Theater Arts Department, is going to the heart of our community with an urgent and timely production of one of the most relevant plays in the canon of Chicano Theater, La Victima. We are seeking community partners to showcase this crucial piece of theater to share with the people of Los Angeles for no admission fee.
 

Given the current national climate, the Latino Theater Company feels the responsibility to bring theater to the people--the community under attack, and fulfill their mission to create a place where the convergence of people, cultures, and ideas contribute to the future. Created in 1976 by the theater collective El Teatro De La Esperanza, La Victima could not be more relevant.
 

La Victima is a play that spans four decades, telling the tale of two families, the Villas and the Mendozas. The story begins during the Great Depression and continues through later troubled economic times that affect the Latinx community. We see how families leave their homes and come to the U.S.A. to relieve the suffering of chronic poverty, find employment, work hard, become educated, fall in love, get married, build new homes and better the lives of their loved ones. Their journeys into the U.S.A. are different, but they all come with the hope of a better life because no one risks their lives and the lives of their families unless what’s over the border is safer than home.

At this point in the history of the U.S., immigration is still a hot-button issue, with certain political factions calling for the repeal of the 14th Amendment, which guarantees citizenship rights to those born on U.S. soil. As the nation's Latinx community is attacked by ICE and scapegoated by the rhetoric of the president, it is crucial to oppose the historical and ongoing oppression of Latinx in the U.S.A. and set a precedent for the future. Jose Luis Valenzuela, Artistic Director of the Latino Theater Company and Distinguished Professor at UCLA, will direct the production in the trademark Latino Theater Company style, infusing serious material with humor, music and big dance numbers. The show will be performed by students from UCLA and East LA College.

From November 7 to December 8, the company will tour Los Angeles to bring our art to the heart of our community, opening our arms and welcoming you into the lives of these characters whose stories reflect our own hopes, fears, and insecurities. We invite you to consider partnering the Latino Theater Company so that we can continue to uphold the voices of our community.

Nov 7-10 at 8:00 PM: The LATC

Nov 14 at 8:00 PM: UCLA

Nov 15 at 8:00 PM: Orthopedic Medical Magnet*

Nov 16 at 8:00 PM: Occidental College 

Nov 17 at 4:00 PM: A Place Called Home 

Nov 21 at 8:00 PM: Mt. San Antonio College

Nov 23, at 6:00 PM: Roosevelt Hs*

Nov 24 at 4:00 PM: Belvedere Park 

Dec 4 at 4:00 PM: Whittier High School*

Dec 5 at 8:00 PM: USC

Dec 6 at 8:00 PM: San Fernando HS.

Dec 7 at 3:00 PM: East L.A. College

*Private Performances.

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