In a very serious and weighty production, Nuestras Voces staged the play "Shadow of a Man" by Cherie Moraga yesterday to an eager audience at Collis Common Ground.
The play, directed by Maria Simental '97, is the first production done by the troupe this fall.
Taking place in the Los Angeles home of the Rodriguez family, the play covers a period of about one year. Beginning in the Spring of 1969, the play follows the lives of 6 characters and deals with the numerous mores of a dysfunctional family.
Although the production featured a relatively young cast of mostly '98s, the actors were very realistic in their character interpretations.
The play opened with Lupe and Rosario watering plants in front of their home. Lupe is the youngest daughter in the Rodriguez household. Lupe was played by Natalie Garza '98.
Rosario, played by Sandra Martinez '99, is an unwed middle aged woman who has already experienced all that life has to offer. The character, Rosario, provided much of the comedic punchlines throughout the play.
Leticia, played by veteran actor Patricia Frausto '97, is your typical teen-aged daughter. Trying to find her true self and rebellious, she fights for the Chicano Revolution around her.
Hortensia, played by Uju Anya '98, is the wife who struggles to bring the family together while Manuel, played by Cesar Peralta '98, is doing his best to bring it further apart.
Anya and Peralta gave two very stellar performances in this production. Much of the staged chereography and action occur within the scenes featuring these two characters and most of the storyline revolves around their actitivites.
The play dealt with the story of a father who no longer feels he is needed within his family and his home.
He molests his child because she is the dearest one to him. "Lupe would never leave me," he says.
Manuel later kills himself because of his believed self-worthlessness. He is destructive to his family and finally to his own self.
"Shadow of a Man," a production for Spanish-speakers and "gringos" alike, was a play with a message.
"The play contained a very powerful message about the family particulary that of mother and father relations. Also, it was a very strong story for women, for self-empowerment," Simental said.
