Katia Gomez (Photo by Ethan Bartley)
Reviewed by Martίn Hernández
Meraki Theatre at The Hudson Mainstage
Through May 9
RECOMMENDED
Katia Gomez, Sebastian Segura (Photo by Ethan Bartley)
“You don’t remember family with your head; they’re in your bones and in your blood,” one character laments in playwright César Velasco’s skittish but heartfelt debut play.
Their memories can also be found in more bizarre places when a Mexican American family in East Los Angeles is visited by the spirit of a dead relative on Dίa de Los Muertos. The supernatural sojourn exposes long-suppressed tensions and secrets, threatening to fracture a family still reeling from the deceased’s tragic and unexpected demise. In need of some thoughtful editing, Velasco’s work is nevertheless boosted by strong and touching performances from the ensemble under Alexander Wardach’s sturdy direction.
Two years after an auto accident took her twin brother Luisito’s life, the teen-aged Natalia (Angeline De Jesus) reveals to her visiting older cousin Diego (Sebastian Segura) that she can communicate with her dead sibling. Disbelieving at first, Diego is eventually convinced by Natalia’s fervor and her indisputable evidence, from flashing table lamps to random objects falling unassisted to the floor. While only able to get “yes” or “no” answers from Luisito — making it difficult for Natalis to finagle Luisito’s trademark soccer skills out of him — Natalia and Diego learn he cannot return to his spiritual home until he has settled a cryptic score in his former terrestrial one.
As Natalia and Diego struggle to help Luisito, Natalia’s parents remain unaware of the situation unfolding in their son’s old bedroom. Besides, they have problems of their own. Raul (Joseph Garcia), a successful but restless entrepreneur, wants to sell his business and open a riskier one, which angers his wife Alma (Katia Gomez.) Adding to their growing frustration are the diverse ways they cope with Luisito’s passing, with Raul seeming to adjust to it better than Alma. When Diego feels the presence of his own late father – Raul’s ne’er do well brother – and Natalia discloses Luisito’s presence to her parents, the familia’s psychic wounds are ripped wide open.
Velasco explores many themes endemic to Mexican culture, though few deeply. These include a devotion to Indigenous Mexican ethos, such as belief in the Aztec’s mythic underworld of mictlān and the veneration of La Virgen de Guadalupe, an indigenous version of the Virgin Mary. Patriarchy, alcoholism, and fidelity to family traditions are also grist for the mill. Some subplots, such as Raul’s insistence that his nephew Diego return to college, are initiated but never resolved.
Segura’s Diego and Garcia’s Raul both deliver enthusiastic but long-winded monologues that merit trims yet nonetheless offer credible chemistry in their conflicts with each other. De Jesus’s Natalia is a sincere jumble of emotions, bouncing from frustration with Luisito’s answers to compassion for his dilemma, and Gomez offers a touching turn as the troubled Alma, who clings to her grief even as her husband wants to move on from his own. The play is not without humor, displayed in Lusito digs at Diego and Natalia, and Raul’s tough but loving bouts with the others. Tyler Lorita’s meticulous set reflects the lived-in feel of a middle class Mexican American home while Devin Leo Harris’ lighting is effective in underscoring Luisito’s interaction with his disjointed but loving familia.
Meraki Theatre, The Hudson Mainstage, 6539 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood.; Fri.-Sat., 8 pm, Tues., May 5, 7 pm, Sat., May 9, 2:30 pm; thru May 9. https://www.onstage411.com/newsite/show/play_info.asp?show_id=8184&skin_show_id=32.8184Running time: Two hours and 20 minutes, plus 15 minute intermission
