Migdalia Cruz: Writing is life

One of the most exciting things for me this fall is the impressive line-up of talented Latinas--from playwrights to actors--that Chicago theaters are boasting. I'm sure you've heard about Mango Street hitting the stage, the Brown Girl Chronicles just finished a second run, our September feature Marilyn Camacho is debuting as a director, and finally, Migdalia Cruz, whose play El Grito del Bronx ran this summer at the Goodman will be back in town teaching a master playwriting class over at Chicago Dramatist on October 24th. Its poised to be a one-of-a-kind experience, Migdalia is combining movement and yoga along with writing exercises into her workshop.

In case you've wondered about penning your own play, I thought this a most appropriate time to reach into my vault and share an interview that I did with Migdalia earlier this summer.

Diana: I read somewhere that you were originally a math major. How did you go from math major to playwright?

Migdalia:I was also a History minor, and took a class about Beckett. I thought it was about the English historical figure "Thomas A Becket, but instead it was about Samuel Beckett. When I saw how beautifully and poetically Beckett rendered the most horrible of human conditions, I thought becoming a playwright could be an incredible gift. So I dropped the Calculus. When I get stuck on my plays, I sometimes add big numbers. I figure anything on paper is good. It also relaxes me. Strange, huh? Math stresses a lot of people, but not me. But once I faced the fact that writing was what would truly make me happy, I remembered that I had written my first play when I was six years old—a puppet play about Civil Rights. So I suppose I was really just acknowledging what I always knew in my heart. Math was fun, but writing was life.

Diana: What advice do you give to emerging women playwrights?

Migdalia: Respect your history, listen to your ancestors, tell the truth, and write your own story—or someone else will write it and get it all wrong.

Diana: Can you give us a sneak peek at some of the other plays you might be working on?

Migdalia: Hmmm...I'm not sure how much I should tell you— I have been working for a while on an adaptation of Petronius' Satyricon, which will include both reggaeton & the music of Nino Rota. And I have recently started thinking about a play about real Puerto Rican Pirates to whom I am related. Enough said.

'Finding a Method to Your Own Madness.' For more details contact: Megan from Chicago Dramatist at msmith@chicagodramatists.org, or call at 312-206-8959.

Interview by Diana Pando

Visual Interpretations of the Virgen of Guadalupe

Ever since she appeared to Juan Diego back in the 1531 folks can’t get enough of her. You see Lupe on t-shirts, key chains, calling cards, SUV’s and all kinds of other stuff. I’ve never gone to the Basilica in Mexico City to check out La Virgen de Guadalupe but maybe I will get a chance in December when I go visit family. A friend tells me they have a pedestrian conveyor belt that zips you right past her shrine and into the gift store.


Columbia College will be hosting the following event:

Latino Culture & Conversation: Visual Interpretations of the Virgin of Guadalupe

Tuesday, September 29, 12:30 p.m.

618 S. Michigan Avenue, 4th Floor Conference Room

The Virgin of Guadalupe has long been a cultural and religious icon throughout Latino America. Join Columbia College Chicago students, faculty, and staff as we discuss how her image has impacted Latino art and culture, including her influence in community murals, theater, and more.

Proyecto Latina: Ruby Yo! @ 35th St. Cafe

Join Proyecto Latina on Monday, September 21st @ 7 p.m. as we make our way to McKinley Park to the 35th Street Cafe to host our featured presenter, Marilyn Camacho a.k.a Ruby Yo!, hear your work on the open mic, and see what emerges from the chisme box!











Marilyn Camacho is hip-hop femcee, singer, and songwriter Ruby Yo! Her music is a mix of hip-hop, R&B, and Latin soul that rings familiar to her Puerto Rican roots. As Ruby Yo!, Camacho strives to fill the current void in hip-hop music, and ensure that the woman's voice is truly heard and represented in a respectable fashion that's true to the art form and its original purpose. You can catch Ruby Yo! performing at several open mics and events around the city. Check out Ruby Yo's! online: myspace and facebook. *











35th Street Café
1735 W. 35th Street Chicago, IL 60609

The Proyecto Latina venue sponsor for September is the 35th St. Cafe. Get there early for a hearty dinner, then grab coffee and desert and join us in the back room for the September edition of Proyecto Latina. Check 'em out on facebook.

*Marilyn Camacho's second artistic identity is as an actress, director, writer, co-founder and co-artistic director of UrbanTheater Company (UTC) in Chicago. UTC is a multi-cultural theater company rooted in the Latino community that is committed to the creation and exploration of urban-inspired works that convey, illuminate and empathize with the human experience. In UTC's 5 year history, she has either acted in or produced a number of UTC's shows, such as Short Eyes, The Sun Always Shines for the Cool, Runaways, and most recently Broken Thread. She is ecstatic about her current official directorial debut, directing UrbanTheater's/People's Theater co-production of Cuba and His Teddy Bear, which will run at the Batey Urbano in Humboldt Park's Paseo Boricua this upcoming fall.

Look for Camille & Esther @ Renegade this weekend

If you are making it out to the Renegade Craft Fair this weekend. Take note and make sure to swing by and check out the work that a couple of crafting Latinas from the Chicago area will be presenting.

"If you love what you do, why not live off of it?" Esther Ramirez, the artist behind Essimar Papel also wants her stationery products to be a household name one day. She's well on her way there, her line of hand made limited run cards can be found in 59 boutiques throughout the U.S. and Europe. Esther, 28, began her love affair with paper when she was a child and didn't get the fanciest notebooks during back-to-school shopping, she took it upon herself to begin collaging the covers with magazine and newspapers cut-outs. Paper is Esther's main arsenal, and her methods include hand pulled screen printing, hand dye cutting, hand mache, and collage . You can find her booth this weekend at the Renegade Craft fair where she will have an offering of items that include paper maché pins, handmade limited/in series cards, and papel picado.

Camille Canales, owner of La Otra Camilla, is making her Craft fair debut at Renegade this weekend. Camille, 25, moved to Chicago from Texas over five years ago and is a graduate from the School of the Art Institute. A painter and textile artist, she currently teaches screen-printing and embroidery at Lillstreet Art Center. “I love making things with my hands,” she explains and often takes on the challenge of recreating her paintings into a skilled embroidery piece. Although, her most recent collection of q-tip confetti prints—inspired by a dream—is a fun departure from labor intensive embroidery and embellishments she enjoys. Her booth this weekend will feature new paintings and drawings, along with craft items with select images from the art environments she creates, they include pillows, totes, scarves, and prints, as well as some kid wear and pet items.

Renegade Craft Fair in Chicago
September 12 and 13
11a.m. – 7p.m.
on Division St. between Damen Ave. and Paulina St.
Free

Feeling inspired? Renegade Craft Fair is currently taking applications for their holiday sale. Get details here.