Latino Theater Company Has Faith—Plus Hope and Charity

Based on my coverage, Larchmont Buzz readers may guess that I am a Latino Theater Company fangirl. The downtown group is impressively prolific, its shows consistently top-notch, and its support for the community is impressive.

Last fall, in the midst of producing three plays, the Latino Theater Company announced it had received $9 million in awards and grants to continue the work it has been doing for 37 years: telling the stories of the community.

Currently, LATC showcases three local community colleges in A Mexican Trilogy: FAITH, HOPE & CHARITY. The three plays were written by associate artistic director Evelina Fernández and directed by artistic director José Luis Valenzuela. They trace a single Mexican-American family across four generations and a century in a combined seven hours of heartfelt performances. From a Mexican village in 1918, to a remote mining town in Arizona, Phoenix and finally Los Angeles, the trilogy tells a layered and involving story about family traditions and assimilation, war, workers’ rights and religion.

Theater students from East Los Angeles College, Los Angeles Valley College, and Los Angeles City College star in the plays, which run through this weekend. Although the three plays are linked stylistically, thematically and by their characters, each also functions as a stand-alone work. Music of the eras is infused into the shows, both recorded and sung live, American and Mexican.

Students from East Los Angeles College star in Faith. students from Los Angeles Valley College in Hope and students from Los Angeles City College in Charity.

The shows are made possibly by the Latino Theater Company’s IMPACT initiative, created to expand the company’s artistic reach to diverse audiences. Students from the three participating schools, as well as six others, receive free access to shows, master classes and artist discussions, empowering them to be part of the artistic and social conversations in their communities.

Visit latinotheaterco.org for information about A Mexican Trilogy showtimes. Tickets are pay-what-you-can, available in $5 increments from $10–$50.The trilogy is at the Los Angeles Theatre Center, 514 S. Spring Street. Parking is $8 with box office validation at 545 S. Main St., behind the theater.

See a Spectrum News story about the group here.