Mariana DaSilva (Photo: Courtesy of The Actors’ Gang)
Reviewed by Isadora Swann
The Actors’ Gang
Through April 5
RECOMMENDED
Playwright Mariana Da Silva’s Ybor City, performed by the Actors’ Gang, certainly captures one’s attention. Set in 1932 it portrays elite social clubs in contrast with the dangerous working environments of a Cuban cigar factory. The show is a collage of international politics, familial tension, and layered characters, whose relationships create the web of the story. Starting in the first scene, one is lulled by the music, captured by the lights, and constantly curious about the characters. Guiding the audience through the mural of design and story elements are two narrators who speak with the cadence of an old friend and with great wisdom, pointing out how the historical inequities depicted in the production still stand today.
The Actors’ Gang is dedicated to new and unconventional work in hopes of enhancing the lives of incarcerated individuals. It is clear this piece is born of a sense of community. Da Silva’s raw and engrossing writing is translated with projected captions in Spanish and English. “Life only expands according to one’s courage to live it” she tells us, and rightly so.
The play follows Nena (Da Silva), a young Cuban immigrant as she defies the expectations that don’t serve her while holding on to the cultural traditions that do. It’s a fast-moving train of familial drama, forbidden romance, sexual innuendos, and heartbreaking tragedy. At first it seems like the playwright’s intent is to advocate for workers’ rights and unionization or female empowerment; later, it switches to the role of storytelling in society and/or the importance of literacy.
Da Silva’s directing embraces the dynamism of her writing, the scenic elements underscored with colorful lighting (Bosco Flanagan), group movement (Mary Grace McNally and Stephanie G. Galindo), and ever-changing projections that range from a sun/moon dictating the time of day, to ocean waves that splay across the backdrop (Cihan Sahin). The elements don’t blend together as well as they could have, and while it is a stimulating audience experience, it has its hits and its misses.
But with so much going on, when a comedic moment falls flat, the ball is quickly picked up by an excerpt from Don Quixote read by the factory-hired reader, or beautiful moments of song from musical director and performer Maga Shukar. There is also a lack of consistency within the ensemble as we shift from comedy to tragedy, but there are standout performances, including those of Megan Stogner and Raiza Licea, who bring vivacious energy and brilliant physicality.
The show ends with a much-needed cry for change, warranted by the injustices of history that have persisted for millennia and bleed into our lives today.
The Actors Gang, 9070 Venice Blvd, Culver City, CA 90232 / (310) 838-4264; Thurs.- Sat., 8pm. Select Sunday matinee’s; Through April 5th. https://theactorsgang.com. Runtime: 100 minutes.
