The historic Sierra Madre Playhouse, an intimate performing arts heart famous for its eclectic programming, presents the world premiere of ¡Pasaje!, an enchanting journey of self-discovery and household relationships. ¡Pasaje! runs from October 4 to November 3, 2024. The riveting coming-of-age story explores themes of identification, belonging, and neighborhood by means of the eyes of Andy on the eve of his 18th birthday. He discovers that all the things he believes in – his ethnicity, his household, his upbringing – are lies which were instructed to him since start. These lies lead Andy to South El Monte. There he meets an attractive dancer, Marcelina, and the neighborhood patriarch, Don Miguel. These two figures assist him unearth long-buried secrets and techniques, propelling him to a poignant revelation in regards to the Latin American diaspora and supreme acceptance of his true self. Ultimately, he discovers his household is each flawed and redemptive.
Deeply rooted in South El Monte close to East LA – each actually and figuratively – ¡Pasaje! honors Southern California’s vivid and numerous Latiné neighborhood. Written by San Gabriel Valley-native J. Quiroz, a first-generation Salvadoran American, ¡Pasaje! is a one-of-a-kind expertise that guarantees to be poignant, heartrending, and magical. It options music and lyrics by multi-GRAMMY winner Asdru Sierra, co-founder of LA’s famend Latin rock band, Ozomatli. The Sierra Madre Playhouse manufacturing is directed by Benjamin Perez, who was raised in Hacienda Heights (5 minutes from South El Monte). Perez acted in nationwide excursions of Within the Heights and Good Work If You Can Get It. He additionally directed a number of productions of Within the Heights in regional theatres. The music director is Greg Porée. Porée‘s credit embody working with Sonny & Cher, Diana Ross, Aretha Franklin and Earth, Wind & Fireplace, in addition to eight years on Dancing with Stars.
Solid Introduced
The 13-member solid of the two-act musical options Seth Keller within the function of Andy Martin and Kayla Christine Quiroz as Marcelina, Andy’s love curiosity. The solid additionally consists of Karol Avila (Hustler Uno), Daniel Moises (Hustler Dos), Sandra Dar (Angela Martin, Andy’s mom), Lisa Rodriguez (Beatriz Gonzalez), Noah Peralta (Guicho), Andrew M. Garcia (Ensemble/Andy Understudy), Pablo Milla (Ensemble/Hustler Dos Understudy), Ixchel Valiente (Ensemble/Marcelina Understudy), Itzel Ximena Gonzalez (Ensemble/Hustler Uno Understudy), Joshua Duron (Don Miguel), and Maximiliano Garcia (Freddy).
Genesis of ¡Pasaje!
The origin of ¡Pasaje! is, itself, a singular story. It was initially conceived in 2008 and commenced in 2011. A bunch of South El Monte Excessive Faculty drama college students and alumni got down to write a Mexican/Central American story reflecting their lives, individuals, neighborhood, and tradition, drawing inspiration from Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Tony Award-winning musical “Within the Heights,” a narrative about Miranda’s expertise in his neighborhood of Puerto Ricans and Dominicans. J. Quiroz was among the many authentic group of eight highschool college students and up to date graduates. In the summertime of 2011, they took up the problem and spent hours each Sunday on the South El Monte Senior Heart writing their script. They accomplished the preliminary draft that summer time.
Their plan was to introduce Broadway audiences to their Latiné neighborhood by means of the eyes of a non-Latiné teenager from out of state who knew little or no about his tradition. That character, Andy, was a younger man who had simply graduated from highschool and got here into their neighborhood searching for his dad.
Following the primary draft, Quiroz – who subsequently attended neighborhood school, the place he additional honed his writing expertise – continued because the lead author on the venture, making dozens of main revisions to the script over time with enter from others alongside the best way, together with many within the authentic pupil group. ¡Pasaje! is Quiroz’s first main manufacturing credit score.
Amongst others drawn into the ¡Pasaje! sphere was Ozomatli’s Asdru Sierra, who instantly grasped the essence of the musical when the writers/actors from South El Monte reached out to him about turning into concerned within the venture. Over pizza, the keenness and real curiosity of those younger individuals in regards to the Mexican/Central American neighborhood satisfied Sierra. He enthusiastically agreed to jot down the music, explaining, “I knew that the music needed to be genuine to Los Angeles and its numerous Latiné tradition. As a part of that neighborhood myself, I wished to signify the neighborhood and to be in service to the play’s story telling.” Sierra’s placing music embraces his trademark musical fashion and displays the characters’ ideas and feelings whereas giving the story of ¡Pasaje! a very authentic sound and scope. “There’s undoubtedly a head-nod issue to the play’s music,” Sierra notes.
Quiroz displays, “I used to be confronted with the problem of writing a present about ‘tradition.’ I used to be intimidated by the phrase till I noticed tradition actually refers to ‘household.’ We could all be raised in another way, however all of us perceive household. The great, the dangerous, and particularly the loopy, that’s household. I’m proud to have had that realization, and it has solely been confirmed because the ¡Pasaje! household grows. I’m honored to have the Sierra Madre Playhouse now a part of that household. I can’t wait to see the audiences turn out to be a part of that household.”
TICKETS AND INFORMATION
Sierra Madre Playhouse Presents
¡Pasaje!
Ebook by J. Quiroz; Music by Asdru Sierra. Director: Benjamin Perez. Music Director: Greg Poree. Choreographer: Tania Possick. Costume Designer: Diana Gomez.
Tickets to ¡Pasaje! ($12 – $45) are on sale now. For tickets and data, please name 626.355.4318 or go to www.sierramadreplayhouse.org.
Sierra Madre Playhouse is situated at 87 West Sierra Madre Boulevard, Sierra Madre, CA 91024.
CAST: Seth Keller (Andy Martin), Kayla Christine Quiroz (Marcelina), Karol Avila (Hustler Uno), Daniel Moises (Hustler Dos), Sandra Dar (Angela Martin), Lisa Rodriguez (Beatriz Gonzalez), Noah Peralta (Guicho), Andrew M. Garcia (Ensemble/Andy Understudy), Pablo Milla (Ensemble/Hustler Dos Understudy), Ixchel Valiente (Ensemble/Marcelina Understudy), Itzel Ximena Gonzalez (Ensemble/Hustler Uno Understudy), Joshua Duron (Don Miguel), Maximiliano Garcia (Freddy)
WHEN:
Friday, October 4, 8:00 PM
Saturday, October 5, 8:00 PM
Sunday, October 6, 4:00 PM
Friday, October 11, 8:00 PM
Saturday, October 12, 8:00 PM
Sunday, October 13, 4:00 PM
Friday, October 18, 8:00 PM
Saturday, October 19, 8:00 PM
Sunday, October 20, 4:00 PM
Friday, October 25, 8:00 PM
Saturday, October 26, 8:00 PM
Sunday, October 27, 4:00 PM
Friday, November 1, 8:00 PM
Saturday, November 2, 8:00 PM
Sunday, November 3, 4:00 PM
RUN TIME is roughly 2 hours with intermission.
ADVISORY: some language
SIERRA MADRE PLAYHOUSE, a vibrant Southern California cultural hub with a wealthy historical past spanning a century, energizes audiences and the neighborhood with distinctive theatrical productions and charming dwell performances. Hailed as a “jewel” (Pasadena Weekly) and “a landmark theater” (ABC7 Los Angeles), the performing arts heart has garnered great accolades for its assorted repertoire and thought-provoking training and outreach packages curated with social impression in thoughts. The Los Angeles Occasions proclaims, “That is theater from the center.”
As certainly one of San Gabriel Valley’s solely performing arts heart presenting a broad spectrum of efficiency genres, together with theater, music, dance, movie, comedy, and family-friendly productions that includes eminent native and nationwide skilled artists, the treasured creative beacon attracts audiences from throughout the Southland. The intimate 99-seat Sierra Madre Playhouse affords an up-close and private connection to performances that resonate deeply, incomes a number of Ovation Awards, NAACP Awards, and LA Occasions Critics’ Selection honors.
The Playhouse is nestled right into a historic constructing on the inviting Major Avenue of Sierra Madre, an enthralling village within the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. Retaining its distinctive movie show façade and immediately recognizable marquee, the construction has undergone quite a few transformations since opening in 1910, from furnishings emporium to silent film theatre to the creative establishment that now stands as a vibrant embodiment of the area’s wealthy cultural legacy. The Sierra Madre Playhouse fosters creativity that aspires to bridge divides and spark dialogue, all whereas celebrating the wealthy tapestry of the American expertise and the enduring pursuit of shared understanding.
