Caravana
Synopsis
Edy, Leo, and Rowena leave Honduras on a caravan heading north to the United States. Each has their own reason for leaving (family reunification, poverty, violence). In order to fund their journey, they form a theater troupe and disguise themselves, dressing up like characters from Central American folklore. They also create a little boy puppet named Cipote (“kid” in Honduran slang). They cross into Guatemala, then Mexico, trying to “sound Mexican” so they don’t get caught and expelled by the authorities. They hop on the notorious train called La Bestia (The Beast) where Rowena falls off and miscarriages. Later, she tries to seek asylum, but is separated from the Cipote at the border. One by one, they all complete the crossing. What ensues is a comedy of errors where they are caught and deported, and finally settle in an inconstant state of neither here nor there.
Playwright
Carlos Morton
Playwright with over one hundred theatrical productions, both in the U.S. and abroad. His professional credits include the San Francisco Mime Troupe, the New York Shakespeare Festival, the Denver Center Theatre, La Companía Nacional de México, the Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre, and the Arizona Theatre Company. Collections of plays include The Many Deaths of Danny Rosales and Other Plays (1983), Johnny Tenorio and Other Plays (1992), The Fickle Finger of Lady Death (1996), Rancho Hollywood y otras obras del teatro chicano, (1999), Dreaming on a Sunday in the Alameda (2004), and Children of the Sun: Scenes for Latino Youth (2008). Morton has lived on the border between Mexico and the United States since 1981, teaching at universities in Texas, California, and Mexico and is currently Professor (Emeritus) at UC Santa Barbara.
Staged Reading Artistic Team
Barbara Bosch, Director
Acting and directing credits include Off and Off-Off Broadway at the Pearl Theatre, New York Theatre Workshop, HERE, Classic Stage, and Circle Rep. Regionally, she has worked at the Williamstown Theatre Festival, Old Globe, and Magic Theater, among others. Internationally, she has directed and taught in Poland, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Great Britain, Australia, and the Czech Republic. Barbara is Professor of Theater at Hunter College, CUNY.
Assistant
Rebeca Morton - Assistant Director and Assistant Stage Manager