Immersive and visionary, Chroma Art Film Festival returns for its second edition  

The second edition of Chroma Art Festival, described as a singular event that blends tactile and immersive installation art with digital elements, is at Superblue for two days, Saturday, Aug. 17 and Sunday, Aug. 18. (Photo courtesy of Chroma Art Film Festival)

The Chroma Art Film Festival (CAFF) returns for its second edition, proposing a fusion of immersive art and storytelling. Spearheaded by Miami’s Rainbow Oasiiis, the festival, on Saturday, Aug. 17 and Sunday, Aug. 18 at Superblue’s Allapattah location, promises an expanded and reimagined experience compared to its inaugural edition last year.

Reflecting on the inaugural festival, Shantelle Rodriguez, director of Superblue Miami, described its impact, noting that it received submissions from more than 400 filmmakers worldwide. “The first edition of the Chroma Art Film Festival exceeded our expectations, both in terms of participation and audience engagement,” says Rodriguez.

Known for its large-scale immersive installations, Superblue Miami is the ideal host for the Chroma Art Film Festival with the venue’s mission to support and present artists who push the boundaries aligning with the festival’s goals, according to Rodriguez.  “Superblue was founded to nurture future artists and emerging talent, which makes a program like Chroma integral to our core values.”

The upcoming edition will feature a redesigned layout, with 19 visual artists transforming the space to create a new environment exploration. Aileen Quintana (who goes by the artist name of Haiiileen) is the founder and director of Rainbow Oasiiis, the nonprofit foundation behind the festival. She describes Chroma as a singular event that blends tactile and immersive installation art with digital elements.

“The second edition,” she continues, “will feature high-level production skill sets from our directors and producers. Notably, Nick Rodriguez from Gravitate Production and James Tejada from Unreal Systems will bring their expertise from major festivals and arenas to create an immersive 360-degree experience.”

She says that the festival itself is a work of art describing it as “a conceptual artwork for the world to experience.”

The event’s format is designed to evolve annually. “Each year, we bring in new visual artists, formats, and layouts, making the festival as unique and fluid as the art it presents,” says Quintana.

The festival founder and director believes that the event is not just evolving but revolutionizing the experience for both festival-goers and artists alike. “Revolutionizing the festival experience means showcasing intellectually and narratively rich new concepts with high production value. Our programming and stylistic approaches are unique and we are thrilled to present them in our home base,” she says.

Rainbow Oasiiis’ mission is to create platforms where immersive installation art can thrive, allowing artists to develop their careers and audiences to engage with non-traditional forms of art, according to Quintana. “Chroma is our largest program, and it’s dedicated to intertwining immersive installation art with media and meta works (art that explores its own nature or the concept of art itself). It’s a space where storytelling and art objects coexist in a meta-physical space, providing artists with a dedicated platform to showcase their work,” she says.

The festival’s focus on the convergence of art and technology is exemplified by the work of artists like Fabiola Larios. An interdisciplinary artist from Mexico now based in Miami, Larios’s work explores themes of surveillance, obsolescence, and representation in the digital age.

For Chroma 2.0, Larios has created a piece that blends playfulness with critical commentary. “I like to talk about surveillance in my work, and I make technology cute by bedazzling surveillance cameras and TVs,” says Larios. Her piece is meant to provoke reflection on the duality of being watched, presenting surveillance as both comforting and intrusive. “By broadcasting live footage from the bedazzled camera to Disney Princess TVs, the audience confronts the reality of being watched in a cute way without the permanence of recorded footage,” she explains.

Larios’s work fits well within the broader narrative of the festival, which seeks to explore and challenge the role of technology in contemporary life. “I work with old technology, so I enjoy creating art for the festival because it allows me to explore and present an alternative narrative of what happens to technology as it ages,” adds Larios.

Filmmaker Bee Nix, another participant in Chroma 2.0, will present her piece “Suture.Blue,” which offers a deeply personal exploration of identity and connection. Nix, a new media artist, curator, and researcher based in Pittsburgh, works at the intersection of animation, game art, and experimental video. “I’ve rarely shown myself as myself in my animations, even though I use my form for most of them,” says Nix.

For “Suture.Blue,” she took a different approach, integrating her personal experience into the animation. “This piece felt very personal, so I thought I should present myself in it, even though it’s not something I usually do,” she explains. Through her work, Nix hopes to evoke a sense of connection among viewers, sparking emotional resonance that transcends the screen.

The collaboration between Superblue Miami and Rainbow Oasiiis has been pivotal in shaping the festival’s identity and ensuring its success, says Quintana.

“Superblue’s dedication to immersive installation art aligns perfectly with the festival’s goals,” she says.

For its second edition, the Chroma Art Film Festival wants to even further deepen its exploration of the intersection between art and technology, creating a platform for artists to push creative boundaries. And for those ready to join in the creative exploration, Chroma is already accepting submissions for its 2025 festival.

WHAT:  Chroma Art Film Festival

WHERE:  Superblue Miami, 1101 NW 23rd St., Miami

WHEN:  11 a.m. to 11 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 17 and Sunday, Aug. 18

COST:  $50, general admission (one day pass); $20, students (one day pass); $80, VIP (2-day screenings); $250, founder (2-day screenings, includes meet and greet and other extras); children under 2 admitted free.

INFORMATION: superblue.com or chromaartfilmfestival.org

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com.

Miami Filmmaker’s ‘Mountains’ Shot In Little Haiti Gets Nationwide Release

Shot in Little Haiti, Monica Sorelle’s “Mountains” gets its U.S. film debut at the Coral Gables Art Cinema on Friday, Aug. 16, where it will have a week-long run before getting a nationwide release. (Photo courtesy of Music Box Films)

After pounding the pavement and entering their film, “Mountains,” in festivals from Canada to New York to Miami (the Toronto Film Festival, New York’s Tribeca, and the Miami International Film Festival, among others), there is more on the horizon for Monica Sorelle, director and co-writer, and Robert Colom, producer and co-writer.

“Mountains,” shot on location in Miami’s Little Haiti neighborhood, has been picked up by Music Box Films, a distributor of international and independent films. It gets its United States theatrical debut on Friday, Aug. 16 at Coral Gables Art Cinema with a red carpet opening before a rollout that will continue across the United States. It also opens at O Cinema South Beach on Friday, Aug. 30.

“Mountains” looks at the gentrification of Little Haiti through the lens of an immigrant who works on a demolition crew that is tearing down neighborhood homes to make way for high rises and other modern developments.

Xavier (so authentically played by actor Atibon Nazaire) is working hard to realize the American dream. As he and his family, his wife Esperance (Sheila Anozier) and adult son Junior (Chris Renois, a stand-up comic from Miramar), outgrow their Little Haiti home, Xavier sets his sights on a new house nearby. Soon he realizes that his work and his dreams are on a collision course.

The film was born after Sorelle was selected in 2019, the first year of Miami’s Oolite Arts’ Cinematic Arts Residency. The idea of the residency is for local filmmakers to create their films without having to leave the area. Those selected receive a grant of $50,000 for the creation of the movie as well as access to other benefits of the residency.

“It gave us a lot of freedom to write the script,” says Sorelle, who met her co-writer when both were working on the production crew of the Oscar-winning-shot-in-Miami film “Moonlight.”

“Robert and I wrote (‘Mountains’) the whole first year of the residency. It was nice to be surrounded by a community in that way and to have access to mentors was really great.”

She says when the opportunity to make the film became a reality, it was more about creating it for herself. “I didn’t think anyone would want to see my little movie and so to have it validated outside of Miami has been a privilege.”

The movie is multi-layered – about the gentrification of neighborhoods originally made desirable by the very people who get pushed out of them, generational gaps between immigrants and their American-born children, race wars between cultures, and the universal feeling of being displaced.

Most of the dialogue in “Mountains” is in Creole with subtitles that aren’t intrusive but guide the moviegoer, which brings a closeness in the viewer’s relationship to the lives and experiences of Xavier and Esperance. “Language and how language is expressed was a really important part of the film,” says Sorelle.

Renois, appearing in his first feature film, says “Mountains” has helped him expand his career.

“I think I was part of the first generation that could openly be proud about their Haitian heritage,” says Renois, who plays Junior. “I’m familiar with the stories of the people who grew up in the late ’80s or early ’90s and the bullying that they had to take on in school or in places of work.”

In the film, Renois as Junior sneaks off nightly to a comedy club (the movie’s location is the real Villian Theater on NE 2nd Ave. in Little Haiti) where he’s able to unleash stories on stage shrouded in comedy about his immigrant parents. But Renois’ own comedy hadn’t previously touched on the Haitian experience.

“I stayed away from doing Haitian comedy, not because I was afraid of it – about letting people know I was Haitian – but because I didn’t want to put myself in a box. I had challenged myself to be broader in that regard. I think this move gave me the first opportunity to really explore that side of my life and since then I’ve been writing more about my own experience growing up in a Haitian household.”

Growing up Cuban in Miami for Colom also brought another element into the film – a scene where Xavier overhears his Cuban co-workers disparaging members of the demo crew who are Haitian.

“We were always kind of sharing what the Haitian experience versus the Cuban experience in Miami – the historical discrepancies between the two,” says Sorelle, who is Haitian-American but grew up in a different part of Miami other than Little Haiti. Her mother, however, worked in the neighborhood.

“My mother would talk about her interactions with her Cuban co-workers and Robert was very open to having that dialogue – critiquing the power dynamics in this city when it comes to these two immigrant groups and the underbelly of racism happening within the community.”

While there are so many layers in “Mountains,” the filmmakers say they made sure nothing was heavy handed. “We really tried to pack the film with everything that Monica and I criticize about the city every day and everything that we love about the city every day for the last 8 to 10 years of our friendship,” says Colom. “We tried to do it subtly, so we don’t try to make a meal out of any one of those situations. We are still critical to this place that we love and that we can be critical because we have such a close connection to it.”

With Music Box Films now as its partner and the film playing everywhere from Illinois to Iowa and West Hollywood to Brooklyn, N.Y., there is much moviegoers will relate to about the human condition.

“I do think that ‘Mountains’ is a film that the closer you are to it culturally the richer the experience of watching it is,” says Colom. “If you are from Miami, you understand it and to a certain degree and if you’re Haitian, you understand it to an even further degree. If you’re Hispanic, you may relate to it in a different way. And for millennials, and I believe it is what Chris was so wonderfully able to convey in his performance, who have immigrant parents, will also relate to it in yet another way. This is what makes the film feel so very personal.”

The title of the movie is also personal. “Proverbs are big in Haitian culture,” shares Sorelle. She’s placed a Haitian proverb – “Behind mountains, there are more mountains,” at the beginning of “Mountains.” The meaning has as many layers as the film itself.

She conveys her view of the many interpretations that can be taken from the proverb: The struggle of figuring things out, then more and more to figure out, a positive interpretation of what can lie behind a horizon, and the Sisyphean journey the working-class immigrant in America feels. “Where you try to roll this ball up the mountain, but there’s always something that knocks you down.”

WHAT: “Mountains,” a film by Monica Sorelle

WHERE: Coral Gables Art Cinema, 260 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables

WHEN: Opens Friday, Aug. 16, 3:30 p.m., regular screening, red carpet opening night event, 6:30 p.m., screening at 7:30 p.m., question and after session following the film, also Q&A following screening at 5:15 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 17 and 4:15 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 18.

COST: $21.75, opening night red-carpet event; $12.75, regular admission, $11, senior, student and military, $8 member price.

 INFORMATION: (786) 472-2249 or gablescinema.com.

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com

True Mirage Theater Buckles Up For ‘Ride the Cyclone’

The cast ofTrue Mirage Theater’s “Ride the Cyclone,” from left, Olivia Polo, Nadya Lopez, Darcy Hernandez-Gil, Raul Ramirez, and Paolo Pineda. The show opens Friday, Aug. 9 and runs weekends through Sunday, Aug. 18 at the Main Street Playhouse, Miami Lakes. (Photo courtesy of Maylix and Sofia Graterol)

Darcy Hernandez-Gil and Daniel Gil founded their local, small theater company in 2018 with one mission in mind they say: ” . . . To uplift local theater artists and present works that are new to the South Florida theater stage,” says Hernandez-Gil.

Last year, the company produced the world premiere of “Songs from the Brink” by Robyn Eli Brenner and Mackenzie Anderson, and “Hoo Hah!” by Armando Santana, both performed at Main Street Playhouse in Miami Lakes.

In 2023, the Gils’ children’s theater arm, Mini Mirage team put on a student performance of “Ride the Cyclone,” which Hernandez-Gil also directed. This time around, the cast is comprised of professional, adult actors making it the official South Florida professional premiere.

“It’s a hard show to describe to be honest, because there’s really nothing like it,” says the show’s director Hernandez-Gil.

“Ride the Cyclone” opens Friday, Aug. 9 and runs through Sunday, Aug. 18 at Main Street Playhouse, Miami Lakes.

On a recent Saturday, the cast of the Gils’ True Mirage Theater’s “Ride the Cyclone” gathered in a small black box theater, Artistic Vibes, in Pinecrest, surrounded by props and pizza boxes in the midst of a rehearsal break.

The original music by Canadian writers Brooke Maxwell and Jacob Richmond, first premiered in British Columbia in 2008 and over the years has found an online cult following on TikTok and social media. The premise centers on a group of teenagers, all part of a chamber choir, who go on a rollercoaster ride and die. They then awaken in purgatory and are offered the chance to return to Earth if they tell a compelling story — through song, of course.

“Through all that, we get to know every single character and what their dreams and aspirations were in life. It’s a very zany, out-there story,” says Hernandez-Gil. “But at its core, it’s really about appreciating what you had in life and not taking all the little things for granted.”

In addition to directing, Hernandez-Gil also stars in the production. She plays Constance, who she describes as the quiet one and the nicest girl in town.

“I never would think of myself as a Constance,” says the talkative and self-assured actor. “But there’s so much fun in being able to play with her character arc and starting low and ending with her true self coming out.”

While bringing the character to life is one challenge, Hernandez-Gil also has to navigate the challenges of being both on stage and on the sidelines.

“Two things have really helped me in this production. One is the fact that I did have the chance to direct the show before, so it’s all my choreography and all my direction and my vision. I still have all of that in my body and I’m now able to tailor it to this cast. And the second thing is I have someone in the show who is able to take my place on stage as a sort of body double when I need to step back and inspect the scene.”

Hernandez-Gil’s double-duty isn’t the only impressive aspect about the production. The music is surely to leave audiences enthralled.

“We’re seeing how it’s a show that attracts people of all ages, and I think that’s in large part due to the music,” says musical director Priscilla Blanco, the show’s musical director. “We have such a wide variety of arrangements; we have such a wide variety of genres.”

The 90-minute show features hip hop, jazz, pop, rock, folk, electronic, and even a moving ballad.

“It all fits really well to each character,” says Blanco. “Each individual song is tailored to fit the mood, to fit the personality of the character singing. It all serves the show really well.”

The show made its U.S debut at the Chicago Shakespeare Festival in 2015 and then headed for a 2016 run off Broadway. It then found a cult following online. But listening to the score without context might leave the listener confused on what exactly is happening – and why, according to the local producers.

“Once it’s all strung together, it makes so much sense,” says Hernandez-Gil. “The show really takes you on a roller coaster and by the end, you will hopefully have found this new appreciation for life.”

Blanco agrees: “Out of nowhere, it’s very heartwarming.”

WHAT: “Ride the Cyclone” by Brooke Maxwell and Jacob Richmond

 WHERE: Main Street Playhouse, 6812 Main St., Miami Lakes

 WHEN: 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays. Opens Friday, Aug. 9 through Sunday, Aug. 18.

 COST: $40, $30 for seniors, students, and veterans. Tickets at onthestage.tickets

 INFORMATION: (786) 484-4711 or truemiragetheater.com.

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com

Review: Area Stage Extends Its Redux Of Immersive ‘The Little Mermaid’

Delaney Benson is Ariel in Area Stage Company’s “The Little Mermaid” in South Miami through Sunday, Aug. 11, at the Shops at Sunset Place.  (Photo courtesy of  David Caserta).

They had the best seat in the house, the table in the center of Area Stage Company’s latest incarnation of its immersive “The Little Mermaid.” Two couples, an adult woman on one side, her head frequently titled on her seatmate’s shoulder and wiping tears from her eyes, while on the other side, a man dressed in a Disney fan costume, both entranced, mouthing every word of Ariel’s signature song, “Part of Your World.”

This is the mesmerizing effect of Area Stage Company’s immersive productions on an audience.

It’s the up-close performances – in this case actress Delaney Benson, the daughter of Jodi Benson, who was the original voice of Ariel in Disney’s 1989 animated movie. Benson right there in the middle of the table singing the signature ballad bringing tears to those seated so close to her. On another side of the room, a mother quickly jumped up from her benchseat to nab her toddler who wandered out to be part of the rousing ensemble in “Under the Sea.”

Area Stage Company has made it one of their hallmarks as of late to create these immersive productions – “Beauty and the Beast” in 2022, then its first go ’round of “The Little Mermaid” in 2023, and “Oliver” in 2024.

For this redux of Area Stage’s “The Little Mermaid,” they’ve set up the under-the-sea world – wooden benches and tables in an atmosphere that’s reminiscent of a pirate tavern and a schooner ship by set designer Frank J. Oliva – at South Miami’s Shops at Sunset Place. The company’s headquarters are in the open-air mall and they were able to secure a large empty space nearby and transform it into what they’ve dubbed The Little Mermaid Tavern.

After entering the space, guides lead you through what looks like an underground tunnel. It’s dark and illuminated by candles on the floor. Then they direct you to your seat. Depending on ticket price, seating is on the Top Deck, which are elevated benches, or in The Grotto, floor benches and tables for the up-close, immersive view.

Before the show starts, cast members mill around chatting, some playing instruments, and dressed in sailor costumes (costumes by Maria Banda-Rodaz and Sofia Ortega) while sometimes stopping at tables to give instructions – no programs, playbills, or folded hands on the tables, since they are essentially the stage — playing areas for the actors. And stay out of the way of the action.

The show itself has been cut from the previous run time of two and a half hours to 90 minutes with a 15-minute intermission. It’s just long enough.

For anyone who doesn’t know the story, here’s a quick recap. A mermaid who lives under the sea and the daughter of the King of the sea, wants to know what it’s like to live on land and be like humans. She wants to be finless. When she ventures to the top, she comes across a prince who has gone overboard and saves him. Her evil aunt, Ursula, who knows the mermaid’s desires comes up with a contract to have her meet the prince and become human. But there’s a catch, of course. He must kiss her within three days or she goes back underwater and remains under the grips of the sea witch for the remainder of her life.

Many of the inventive elements that Giancarlo Rodaz, the artistic director of Area Stage and the director and conceptualizer of the immersive productions, are still in place from his original “Mermaid.” The opinionated seagull, Scuttle, is a puppet, maneuvered this time and voiced by actress Laura Plyer. It’s the puppet that was built for Area Stage by a company who excels in puppetry, Phantom Limb of New York City.

Flounder, a fish and Ariel’s best pal, is played by actress Amanda Harris, who wears a sailor suit, carries a beach ball and sways as if floating in the water. King Triton is an oversize wall mount a la the Wizard of Oz with the talented John Luis Mazuelos voicing Triton. But unlike Oz, he’s not behind a curtain instead playing the part out in front. It’s an interesting choice by Rodaz and one of the many exciting pieces of action to watch.

Benson, who graduated in 2023 from Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music, was approached by Rodaz this year to join the cast, who was no doubt in awe that her mother was the original Ariel. Benson plays a more mature Ariel, which makes the mermaid less of a stubborn teenager and a more confident woman.

Henry Thrasher (a doppelganger to Justin Timberlake) is Prince Eric, whose stance and demeanor is every bit of royalty. He and Benson, though, are like two ships sailing separately; better chemistry would make the characters’ love story more convincing.

Imran Hylton as the high-energy crab, Sebastian, who works for Triton and is told to keep tabs on Ariel, whirls around the set. In his top hat, he brings a magician-like appeal to his character, popping up, sometimes unexpectedly, in all different places.

Reprising their role as Ursula is Jonathan Chisolm whose character is unmistakably inspired by Jon Waters’ Divine and imbued with a dastardly laugh. When Chisolm is at the center of the show, everything is larger than life. It’s a role they obviously relish.

The other cast members, all stand outs, include Ava Bean, Nicole Becker, Carlos Bravo, Matisse Carmack, Tico Chiriboga, Greta Hicks, Donesha Rose, Luke Surretsky, David Velasco, and Katie Duerr who is also listed in the program as associate music director.

A three-piece orchestra, hidden not far from the entrance, brings a full sound to the score: Michael Day is the conductor on piano, Liubov Ohrimenco on violin, and Tom McCormick, winds.

Choreographer Irma Becker had her work cut out for her creating movement in a non-traditional environment and the skill that she brings out in the cast should not go unnoticed. Also credited with movement are Lauren Gaspard and Luciano Cortes. Sound design by Abraham Oleksnianski recreates the swishes and splashes of the sea that are so incredibly real you may feel as if you are on a boat, and Joe Naftal’s constantly shifting lighting design  – bright for the cheery times then darker to bring out the menacing – sets every mood.

The show is a wonderful treat for the summer and has been extended through Aug. 11 after an initial closing date of Aug. 4. The high price of tickets may be a drawback for some families who might want to enjoy “The Little Mermaid.” With the large cast, the detailed set design, the location, and the drastic cuts to arts funding by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the price is understandable, just unfortunate.

WHAT: Area Stage in association with Loxen Productions presents Disney’s “The Little Mermaid”

WHERE: The Shops at Sunset Place, on the first floor in the northeast courtyard, 5701 Sunset Drive, Miami

WHEN: 7 p.m. Thursday-Sunday, 2 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, through Aug. 11

COST: $105, adult; $45, child, 12 and younger (immersive The Grotto), $85, adult, $45 child, 12 and younger, (Top Decks elevated seats), $50, adult, $30, (The Reef, corners further away from the action), all have extra $5 booking fee; $20 with no booking fee (obstructed view on stool with chance of free upgrade if available), only for 12 years of age and older.

INFORMATION: 305-666-2078 or www.areastage.org

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com.

Review: Actors’ Playhouse’s ‘Hundred Days’ Is The Theatrical Epitome of Brat Summer

From left, Mallory Newbrough, Melanie Vitaterna, Nate Promkul and Stephen G. Anthony in Actors’ Playhouse at the Miracle Mile Theatre’s production of “Hundred Days” through Sunday, Aug. 4 in Coral Gables. (Photo courtesy of Alberto Romeu)

It may take one hundred days to fully realize all that’s happening on the Balcony Theatre stage at the Miracle Theater with Actors’ Playhouse’s season closer. And while the unusual musical theater concept “Hundred Days” may not be for everyone, it is an experience that should not be missed.

The talented actors-musicians, the direction and production design behind the scenes, and the unique all together different approach of the piece is 90 minutes of theater that’s bar none energizing.

The show runs at Actors Playhouse through Sunday, Aug. 4.

With shades of the influences of “Once,” “Rent” and “Hedwig and the Angry Inch,” indie rock duo and real-life married couple Abigail and Shaun Bengson (played in the regional production by Mallory Newbrough and Nate Promkul), created the 17-song musical memoir about their falling in love and marrying after only three weeks.

The concert song cycle smartly weaves together the Bengsons’ original songs, dialogue, banter and plenty of breaking the fourth wall conversations with the audience. The book was written by Sarah Gancher.

[RELATED: Read the artburstmiami.com preview of “Hundred Days.”]

The setting is New York City, and the vibe is an underground Greenwich Village club. The design by the talented Jodi Dellaventura creates the onstage club atmosphere, a back wall of faux brick, plenty of black musical instrument and large road equipment cases that double as representational set pieces: the benches of a diner booth, a car, a bed in an emergency room, a doctor’s office exam table. The floor is decorated in assorted styles of throw rugs, typical of rock band stage décor.

The story is a personal exploration of a late twenties to early thirtysomething couple with universal themes aplenty, but pointedly here: What if you meet the love of your life and, due to the wounds of past circumstances, you question the chances to lasting happiness?

 

Newbrough as Abigail has the lion’s share of heavy lifting in “Hundred Days.” The singing is a lesson in vocal gymnastics, from punk rock to folk to blues and testing a vocalist’s range from low alto to a yodeling soprano, most notably acute in the gritty song “Three Legged Dog.” Newbrough is more than up for the task and proves why she is one of the most versatile and committed South Florida actors.

As the character, she’s a bundle of nervous energy, waiting for the doomsday downfall of her relationship, which hangs over her like a black cloud. Abigail’s fear is based on her past and on a dream that’s haunted her for years.

Behind the heavily made-up eyes – blue eyeshadow covering every inch of lid and thick false eyelashes – Newbrough as Abigail brings the audience into her neurosis in a constant series of “what if’s?”  Promkul, on the other side of the relationship, captures Shaun as a doe-eyed lovestruck but solid guy who needs to and does have the patience of a saint. Abigail at one point leaves him because her unfounded fear has become too much.

Promkul, who has become a regular on the South Florida theater scene (he was a stand out as son Gabe in the 2023 of “Next to Normal” at Zoetic Stage), shows his skill for depth of character but also the score counts on him to be the leader of the six-piece band. He’s more than able and, remembering that the music duo wrote the score, must have the guitar skill to be that believable front man. And that he does.

Director David Arisco has found in Newbrough and Promkul the perfect yin to each other’s yang and it’s entrancing to watch. There are multiple times to see this in action, but the most captivating is the scene where the two, seated at the edge of the stage, imagine their future, decade by decade, even into their 100s. Newbrough and Promkul’s natural free form in the dialogue is mesmerizing. The duo’s beautiful chemistry in the fourth song in the show, “I Will Wait For You,” where the composers have given the pair verses that wrap around each other, is a musical highlight. The entirely catchy title song “Hundred Days” is one that lingers and deserves a Spotify download for the drive home.

The remainder of the cast is made up of other double and triple threat talents who act and play musical instruments – Jenn Chandler is Collette, the cellist seated next to the drummer and unassuming. But, just at the right time, she injects a bit of advice through dialogue. Melanie Vitaterna as Barrie is the bad-ass right hand singer-accordion player to Newbrough’s Abigail. Stephen G. Anthony, once again shows that given any role he can bring something remarkable to it. Here he’s the adult in the room, bass player Reggie. And multi-instrumentalist Dennis Fuller is the solid drummer who also adds the necessary tick-tock beats that signal the passage of time.

Dominique Scott had his work cut out for him as music director but the musician in his own right (he’s releasing a new album of his own called “Rise” this year) brings authenticity to the music and, in working with the actors-musician, imbues in them that same authenticity.  The familiar onstage face at Actors’ Playhouse starred as Jerry Lee Lewis in the theater’s “Million Dollar Quartet” and “Million Dollar Quartet Christmas.”

Reidar Sorensen as sound designer had the tricky task of making sure that the lyrics didn’t get lost in music that, by its nature, could overpower. Sorensen’s keen ear and attention to detail makes everything crystal clear. Erik Nelson’s lighting fits the concert-club bill but brings in dramatic hot tension or soothing cool tones to match the storytelling. Ellis Tillman’s costume designs, especially for the rock chick look for Abigail – her short skirt recalling a Sex Pistols’ album cover with phrases such as “Politics of Dance,” “Love Hurts,” and “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright,” Anthony’s retro guitar T-shirt, and Vitaterna’s ripped leggings, with Promkul’s more subdued browns and greens, capture the essence of the characters.

The pair’s story isn’t remarkable and sometimes it can seem trite, but what wraps around this glorious production is an infectious energy that is undeniable. Just like the couple who dive into their fear feet first, “Hundred Days” asks its audience to leave expectations at the door and abandon notions of what musical theater should be. It’s a great way to jump on the bandwagon of the latest trend: “Hundred Days” is the theatrical epitome of “brat summer.”

WHAT: “Hundred Days” by Abigail and Shaun Bengson 

WHERE: Actors’ Playhouse at the Miracle Theater, 280 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables

 WHEN: Through Sunday, Aug. 4; 8 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday.

 COST: $40 for preview performances (July 17-18), $55 and $65 weekdays, $65 and $75 on weekends (seniors 65 and older, 10 percent off weekdays), $15 for students with valid ID for rush tickets available 15 minutes before weekday performances.

 INFORMATION: 305-444-9293 or actorsPlayhouse.org

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com.

 

Actors’ Playhouse Closes Season With ‘Hundred Days,’ A Theatrical Concert Experience

From left, Mallory Newbrough, Melanie Vitaterna, Nate Promkul, Dennis Fuller, Stephen G. Anthony and Jenn Chandler in “Hundred Days” opening at Actors’ Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre, Coral Gables, on Friday, July 19. (Photo courtesy of Alberto Romeu)

A crimson drum set takes up a large chunk of the stage area, marked off by yellow tape. A keyboard, accordion, an electric guitar, and an acoustic guitar are all set neatly by black chairs set up in a circle in the rehearsal space.

The cast of the upcoming “Hundred Days” musical, opening at Actors’ Playhouse at the Miracle Theatre on Friday, July 19, is preparing for a full run through. Their musical director, Dominique Scott, settles behind a black music stand, while their director (and the theater’s artistic director), David Arisco, takes a seat off to the side. One of the stars of the show, Mallory Newbrough, who plays lead vocalist Abigail Bengson, positions herself behind the center microphone stand.

Newbrough rolls her shoulders back and wraps both her hands over the mic. She gets a gleam in her eyes and the transition from Newbrough to Abigail is complete.

The six-person show is a unique theater experience. It’s an intimate concert meets Broadway musical meets cabaret. The story centers around a real-life couple, Abigail and Shaun Bengson, and the first one hundred days of their relationship. The pair, who met and were married three weeks later, wrote the musical together.

“When I heard the music, I knew that I wanted to do the show,” says Arisco. “This is a show that’s driven by the soundtrack, it’s driven by the score and by the music.”

When he was first organizing the 2023-24 season for the playhouse, Arisco knew he wanted to include “Hundred Days,” he just wasn’t sure how.

“There was something about the show that didn’t seem to fit into the season,” says the artistic director. “And then I had the summer slot, and I just had this crazy idea to try something new for the younger folks in Miami… I hate to use the word ‘eclectic,’ but this might be the most eclectic season we’ve ever done.”

“Hundred Days” is not like a traditional musical where the orchestra is hidden somewhere out of sight from the audience. Instead, the musicians are integrated within the performance and their instruments remain on stage the entire time. The production also requires a musical director with a skilled ear. Arisco knew exactly who he wanted: Scott.

“The first musical I ever did professionally was ‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’ directed by David Arisco,” he says, looking over at his mentor-turned-colleague sitting to his right. “Hundred Days” will be the fourth professional production with Actor’s Playhouse for Scott. “If you count all the shows I did as a teen here, it would be over a dozen,” he adds with a laugh.

Scott has plenty of experience arranging, producing, and starring in musicals. As a musician himself, his skillset was ideal to be musical director.

“Speaking musically, there’s like a very acoustic sound to the show,” says Scott. “But then there’s also an electronic sound as well. And what’s cool is that you’ll hear folk sounds but then you’ll also hear hip hop and trap sounds. This music is really unique. People will experience something that they can’t experience elsewhere.”

The music has had an impact on the performers, too, they say.

“I introduced myself via the music,” says Newbrough, who plays Abigail Bengson. “The soundtrack itself is quite narrative and tells a story on its own.”

About her character, Newbrough describes Abigail as someone who is haunted by her own demons. She’s an anxious person, which will be a trait that many in the audience will understand.

“I would say because Abigail is quite a complex character, she’s kind of plagued by her past. This baggage from the past makes future happiness with anyone seem impossible, and I think it’s something that’s relatable to a lot of people.”

In the end, “Hundred Days” is a love story. It touches on all sorts of emotions and anxieties tied to those first one hundred days of a fresh relationship, namely the fear that the relationship will end. In Abigail’s case, she thinks Shaun will die. Which begs the question that inspired the production: what would you do if you only have one hundred days to live?

“My answer, up to now, has always been ‘yes,’” says Scott. “Even though you know that the roller coaster is gonna end, you still get on it — for better or for worse.”

An inevitable ending shouldn’t stop anyone from a beginning. “Hundred Days” wants to encourage audiences to live life to the fullest because we never know how much time we’ve got.

Arisco, the show’s director, chimes in saying, “The message of the show is no matter how difficult the road is, and how many turns it takes, and how many times you want to run away from it, when you find that special someone, how do you make the most of it? How do you make the most of every moment you have together?”

WHAT: “Hundred Days” by Abigail and Shaun Bengson 

WHERE: Actors’ Playhouse at the Miracle Theater, 280 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables

 WHEN: Opens Friday, July 19 through Sunday, Aug. 4; 8 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday.

 COST: $40 for preview performances (July 17-18), $55 and $65 weekdays, $65 and $75 on weekends (seniors 65 and older, 10 percent off weekdays), $15 for students with valid ID for rush tickets available 15 minutes before weekday performances.

 INFORMATION: 305-444-9293 or actorsPlayhouse.org

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com.

Audiences Are Part of The Party In ‘Sweet 15 My Quinceañera’

Rene Lavan plays a deadbeat dad and Lauren Lopez is his resentful daughter in “Sweet 15 My Quinceañera!,” which opens in previews on Saturday, July 20 through Sunday, Sept. 22 at The Hub at Temple Beth Am,  Pinecrest. (Photo courtesy of Ivonne Photos)

After years of long-running success of the interactive off-Broadway play “Tony ‘N’ Tina’s Wedding,” that ran for 22 years and which brought audiences into the dysfunctional family Italian American wedding, it was only a matter of time before we got a Latino party play.

“Sweet 15 My Quinceañera” is the latest audience-immersive play to join the fold.  It’s Sonora’s Sweet 15 party, but she’s 22 years old. She didn’t have her “quince” after Miami family patriarch Eddy Valderrama, played by Rene Lavan, left his family when his daughter was just about to turn 15.

“She’s missed her quinceañera because her father gambled away all of his money and now, he wants to make it up to her,” says Lavan.

The show had a limited run in Miami last April, but now opens with a newly revised production at The Hub at Temple Beth Am, a 514-seat theater in Pinecrest, in previews on Saturday, July 20 and runs through Sunday, Sept. 22.

Written by Rick Najera, who wrote and starred in “Latinologues on Broadway,” which was directed by Cheech Marin of the duo “Cheech & Chong,” and played on Broadway at the Helen Hayes Theatre in 2005, Najera describes “Sweet 15 My Quinceañera” as a play about all kinds of celebrations.

“It celebrates family, it celebrates forgiveness, and it’s about seeing the human condition. It’s very funny, but there are real stories happening between the lines. I think it also has heart because it really is about my family. You’ll see aspects of my family throughout the play,” says Najera, who grew up as a Mexican American in San Diego, Calif., and says he could see Mexico from his house.

Lavan had worked with Najera in “Latinologues,” which began in Los Angeles, he says, in a 99-seat theater. “We decided to take that on tour together,” he says. The pair teamed up again when Lavan was cast in the Chicago try out of “Sweet 15 My Quinceañera” in 2023.

“The audiences there really liked it, so we said, ‘let’s regroup.’ We had already taken one show all the way to Broadway, so I said, ‘Let’s do ‘Sweet 15’ in my hometown of Miami.”

“Sweet 15 My Quinceañera” had a short run at Coral Gables wedding hall Renaissance in the Gables in April of 2024. They invited William “Willie” Fernandez, who is based in Miami, of Broadway Factor Productions, whose company (including Jim Kierstead and Deborah Ramirez) has produced Tony-nominated plays and also a movie shot in South Florida, “Borrowed,” which is now streaming on multiple platforms.

“Willie said, yes, we could take this all the way off Broadway, so that’s kind of the plan,” says Levan, who not only stars in the show but also became one of the producers during its Chicago run. The play also stars Ruben Rabasa, Melissa Ann Hubicsak, Lauren C. Lopez, Roberto Escobar, Randy Garcia, Margarita Coego, and Michael Ferreiro and is directed by Jesus Quintero.

“There are a lot of references to the stuff that we, as Latinos, well, the way we think and the way we approach things and so you get a glance into this . . . madness of a Cuban American family and then there is the boyfriend, he’s Jewish. So, you have the Jewish perspective from Sonora’s boyfriend. You also have things that strike a chord – like the type of entertainment, the dances, the songs, so you get the flavor of what it’s like to go to an actual quinceañera.”

Najera wrote the play for his daughter, Sonora, he says. “This play kind of came out of me becoming a father,” says Najera. He recalls talking on the phone when the person on the other end of the line heard his young daughter in the background. “He said, “You’re going to throw her a quinceañera, right?’ And I said, ‘Well, I don’t know.’ Anyway, she was too young then.”

But Najera says it got him thinking about the tradition. “Some people are into quinceañeras and some are not, some people send their kids to Europe or something else.” He started writing a show built around an idea whose family didn’t celebrate the tradition with her on her fifteenth birthday and then says he had to figure out why.

“And the father comes back seven years later to throw (the party) and it goes terribly wrong.”

Did Najera throw his daughter a quinceañera?

“No, I actually sent her to Europe instead. But I do like the idea of the ceremony. In fact, we have women who have come to the show wearing their tiaras from their own parties. And they will come up and tell us that it was one of the happiest memories of their lives. Some of them say that was the day that they realized that their family really loved them, and they were so honored. For us, as Latinos, it’s a very particular Latin custom,” says Najera.

In Najera’s show, to make things up to his daughter for not being there, Valderrama now wants to throw the most extravagant celebration that money can buy.

“That’s what the character that Rene plays learns. That he didn’t have to do this to show his daughter that he loved her. He just had to be around and to be in her life.”

Lavan says he’s had the time of his life playing Eddy Valderrama. “We break the fourth wall constantly. We’re in the audience. We involve the audience as Sonora’s court at the quinceañera, the audience becomes the celebrity guests that I’ve hired. It’s a very interactive show.”

And whether you’ve had a quinceañera or have never been to a Sweet 15, Lavan says the show is relatable to anyone.

“The play is in English, but we throw a couple of words in Spanish to give it our flavor. It strikes a chord with any audience because of the idea of either throwing a party above and beyond what they can afford – families who go above and beyond to celebrate any holiday.”

Through all the antics and over-the-top comedy in “Sweet 15,” Lavan says that Najera also makes sure that the message comes across.

“The message is about the meaning of family, about second chances, and about forgiveness,” says Lavan.

WHAT: “Sweet 15 My Quinceañera,” an interactive play by Rick Najera

WHERE: The Hub at Temple Beth Am, 5950 N. Kendall Drive, Pinecrest

WHEN: Preview Saturday, July 20, opening night, Sunday, July 21. Through Sunday, Sept. 22. Pre-show cocktails for purchase at 7 p.m., show at 8 p.m. Saturday; pre-show cocktails at 4 p.m., showtime at 5 p.m., Sunday.

COST: $54 and $64 including fees

INFORMATION:  305-667-6667 or www.sweet15show.com

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit source of dance, visual arts, music, and performing arts news. Sign up for our newsletter and never

Hispanic Theater Fest Of Miami Has Everything From Dramas To Mime To Musicals

Ecuador is represented this year by “Bruma” (“Haze”) by the Teatro del Cielo group, which takes the stage at the Koubek Center on July 12, 13 and 14 as part of the International Hispanic Theater Festival of Miami’s 38th edition. The festival runs through Sunday, Aug. 4 at four locations throughout the city. (Photo by Juan Xavier Borja/courtesy of Teatro del Cielo).

The International Hispanic Theater Festival of Miami (IHTF) opens its 38th edition on Thursday, July 11 at the Westchester Cultural Arts Center, in Tropical Park, with “Orgia,” a collection of intimate stories of abducted and battered women by the Spanish group La Rara.

“Orgia” is one of the 11 theater productions from Argentina, Ecuador, Mexico, Spain, the United States, Puerto Rico, Venezuela and Uruguay that will take to four stages in South Florida through Sunday, Aug. 4. Four of the plays will be performed with English supertitles: “Alan,”  “Barrabás, historia de un perro” (“Barabbas: Story of a Dog”); “Homenaje a los Alvarez Quintero” (“Tribute to the Álvarez Quintero”) and “Disonancia” (“Dissonance”).

For the second time in its almost four-decade history, IHTF includes a musical. “Alan,” from Spain, is based on real events about a trans boy who was harassed during his gender transition.

Also from Spain is “Homenaje a los Alvarez Quintero” (“Tribute to the Álvarez Quintero”), which walks audiences through the work of brothers Serafín and Joaquín Álvarez Quintero, famous Sevillian comedy authors, skits and zarzuela librettos from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The third play from Spain is for children. “Peneque, cien por cien valiente” (“Peneque, One Hundred Percent Brave”) is presented with no admission charge.

From Uruguay comes “Barrabás: historia de un perro,” the story of what happens when a two-year-old boy is attacked by the family dog ​​in the presence of his mother, who is unable to stop the attack. “It’s quite strong,” says Mario Ernesto Sánchez, the Festival director.

Sánchez runs down some of the other plays in the festival.

“From Argentina we bring a very different ‘Celestina.’ “From Ecuador is ‘Bruma’ (‘Haze’), with fantastic mimes; from Puerto Rico comes ‘Eter’, with a married couple as the protagonist; from Venezuela ‘La ira de Narciso’ (‘The Wrath of Narciso’), by Sergio Blanco, and (Teatro Avante) closes the Festival with a new work by the playwright Abel González Melo, ‘Disonancia,’ about some people that you find around in a Miami street after they were repressors in Cuba or in Venezuela.”

In addition to the Westchester Cultural Arts Center, there will be shows presented at the Adrienne Arsht Center’s Carnival Studio Theatre, Koubek Center Hall, and the Key Biscayne Community Center.

We asked Sánchez five questions about the festival.

You have said that to choose the plays you go as a scout to festivals such as FIBA ​​​​(Argentina) and Santiago a Mil (Chile), and that, in addition to what you manage to see during the year, you receive proposals and recommendations from colleagues and friends. How did it work this time?

The selection of works for the festival begins a year before. We have a board of a few people dedicated to reviewing all the applications and watching the videos. I prefer to see the work in person, because then, first-hand, I realize everything we need to invite the group to and also because I can appreciate the public’s reaction.

I am interested in observing the applause and comparing it with those that are lavished here in Miami, where it is already “unacceptable” to applaud while seated, and it is almost an obligation to shout “bravos” standing up with the most astonishing presumption.

Tell us about the main selection criteria.

There are several points, but first we must receive the required form that all companies or groups must send with the basic information of the work and all the artistic, administrative and technical needs. The main selection criteria are:

1. The work must be by an Ibero-American author, adaptation or descendant. This is very important, since our mission is to preserve our Hispanic culture. 2. (We consider) the artistic quality of the production, its message, the number of members, the ease of touring, obtaining a visa and other less important ones, such as not repeating works by the author in the same year.

What are the biggest setbacks you’ve faced this year?

Time is always the biggest setback. It’s as if the calendar passed us by without warning. Funds to achieve an adequate budget are also an obstacle. Many times, we are fragile and move forward trusting in “the generosity of strangers,” like Blanche Dubois, the character in “A Streetcar Named Desire.” For us, after 38 years, strangers are no longer strangers, we have gained the trust and friendship of many sponsors, colleagues and groups.

In Latin America, as in Spain, where there is a Ministry of Culture, public funds can be obtained for selected groups to participate in festivals. However, when the government in power stops supporting the arts and theater, companies have no choice but to remain in their country.

Finally, the biggest setback I have had to overcome in recent years has been being able to find a “stand-in”’ in every way, much younger than me. Somebody who knows, above all, how to accept the job with enthusiasm, interest, discipline and rigor for excellence, regardless of the hours it takes to achieve it.

Why did the Festival choose Juan Margallo and Petra Martínez to give them the Lifetime Dedication to the Arts Award?

This selection is as difficult and rigorous as the selection of the works. Through a panel led by Beatriz J. Rizk, director of our educational program, we choose one or more people who have dedicated their lives to the performing arts, as indicated in the title of the award.

Headed by late maestro Francisco Morín since 1989, the festival has awarded these recognitions to people who have more than deserved it. We already have 34 winners. The selection must be from Latin America, but so much time has passed that even if we don’t want to, the country is repeated, especially countries where theater is not a luxury, but a necessity. We have also selected celebrities from the United States’ Hispanic world.

Juan Margallo and Petra Martínez, talented creators, are also winners of the National Theater Award in Spain. They are considered one of the longest and most solid teams in Spanish theater. The festival invited them a few years ago and they brought “La Señora Doña Margarita,” by Roberto Athayde, directed by Margallo.

A new work by Abel González Melo and directed by you closes this festival. Can you give us a preview of the topic and a synopsis?

“Dissonance” takes place between two eras and two spaces, and its central theme is the mark that dictatorships, often arising under the guise of democratic revolutions, leave on societies and human beings. We analyze, through the tools that theater, thought and art give us, how totalitarian regimes develop mechanisms of violence, often overlapping and subtle, that violate and test the integrity of people.

WHAT: 38th International Hispanic Theater Festival of Miami featuring 11 shows and four with English supertitles

WHERE: Carnival Studio Theater at the Adrienne Arsht Center, 1300 Biscayne Boulevard, Miami; Westchester Cultural Arts Center, 7930 SW 40th St. (Tropical Park), Miami, Koubek Center Theater, 2705 SW 3rd St., Miami, and Key Biscayne Community Center, 10 Village Green Way, Key Biscayne.

WHEN: Various times. Thursday, July 11 to Sunday, Aug. 4

COST: $26.91, $29, $30, $32.10, $34. Free admission to “Peneque, One Hundred Percent Brave.”

INFORMATION: (305) 445-8877 or teatroavante.org/programa

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com. 

Review: From Hilarious To Heartfelt, City Theatre Strikes A Balance With 27th ‘Summer Shorts’

One of the featured plays in City Theatre’s “Summer Shorts: Flipping the Script,” “Swordfish Grilled (So I Don’t Get Sued”), with Nat Ordoñez and Therese Adelina was written by local playwright Maleeha Naseer. “Shorts” runs through Sunday, June 23. (Photo courtesy of Morgan Sophia Photography)

A prospective customer has an awkward encounter with an employee over a piercing, a teen learns of her neighbor’s sad past, and a biblical story is given the “what if?” treatment in “Summer Shorts Flipping the Script, playing through Sunday, June 23, inside the Carnival Studio Theater at the Adrienne Arsht Center in Miami.

“Summer Shorts” is City Theatre’s signature event, and “Flipping the Script” is its 27th edition of the short play program which is, for many, the official start of the summer theater season. Although past additions of “Summer Shorts” have featured many nationally well-known playwrights, this summer is all about locals and newbies.

Four of the playwrights, Brittany “bk” King, Maleeha Naseer, Nerissa Street, and Brandon Urrutia are from City Theatre’s Homegrown Playwrights Development Program. The other four, John Bavoso, Rhiannon Ling, R.D. Murphy, and Karissa Murrell Myers, are finalists in the Susan J. Westfall National Short Playwriting Contest. (Westfall is one of the founders of City Theatre, and, after guiding the company for years, is now on their board.) The result is eight short plays with new perspectives and diverse voices.

The terrific ensemble cast features Therese Adelina, Alex Alvarez, Toddra Brunson, Devon A. Dassaw, Chris Anthony Ferrer, Diana Garle, and Kimberly Vilbrun-Francois. Karina Batchelor, Sabrina Lynn Gore, JC Gutierrez, Carey Brianna Hart, and Stephen Trovillion are the five directors for “Summer Shorts, Flipping the Script” — Alvarez, Gore, and Trovillion have been part of the acting ensemble in past “Summer Shorts.”

[RELATED: Homegrown Playwrights Talk About Their Summer Shorts]

The plays run the gamut in plot and tone — from hilarity to heartbreak, from quirky to creepy — and feature situations both relatable and original, with fleshed-out characters, and great imagination.

“Manic Pixie Dream Girl Goes to Brunch,” written by Ling, directed by Gore, and featuring Adelina, Deesaw, Ferrera, and Garle, is set during a Zoom call. It is a funny and introspective look at the relationship between four college students as each of them tries to reconcile their high school persona with the person they’ve become.

Did you ever wonder what the walk home was like after Abraham lured his son Isaac to the mountain and didn’t sacrifice him to God? “An Awkward Conversation in the Shadow of Mount Moriah,” written by Bavoso, directed by Trovillion and featuring Alvarez as Abraham and Ferrer as Isaac, provides a hilarious yet touching answer to that question.

In “Leaving Jamaica,” written by Street, one of the local playwrights, is a funny yet poignant story of a student who struggles with leaving her island paradise, and her mother, who wants her to explore the world. Directed by Hart, the short play features Brunson, Vilbrun-Francois, and Francian Sonique,

Urrutia, another member of the Homegrown Playwrights, offers “Dickery Pokery” about a Claire’s jewelry store employee who is out of her element when a man comes in with a coupon and requests a different kind of piercing. Directed by Batchelor with Vilbrun-Francois and Alvarez, who are fantastic, make “Dickey Pokery the most hilarious short in the program.

“This Week in the Land of Democracy,” written by King, also a Homegrown Playwright, and directed by Gore, is about what happens when a student, played by Brunson, discovers that her professor has altered her virtual reality project and turned it into something sinister.

“Search for an Ending,” written by Myers and directed by Hart, is a funny and all-too-familiar tale of mansplaining by two male screenwriters, Dassaw and Ferrer, working on a movie with a female protagonist, yet neither bother to listen to the only woman in the room, played by Garle.

In the loveliest play in the program, “The Pros and Cons of Implosion” by Murphy and directed by Trovillion, Adelina plays an extremely smart college-bound car enthusiast who discovers some shocking information about a neighbor, played by Alvarez, when she tries to goad him into letting her restore his classic Volvo. Tissues are in order for this funny and heart-wrenching gem.

The laughs come in Spanish and English in “Swordfish Grilled (So I Don’t Get Sued)” written by local playwright Naseer and directed by Gutierrez. It’s a play tailor-made for  Miami audiences. Chaos and wackiness abound as the staff of a Kendall restaurant, Adelina, Deesaw, Ferrer, Garle, Nat Ordoñez, and Cristian Torres, prepare for an important corporate visit while dealing with an unusual situation in the ladies’ room.

The ensemble cast is adept at changing characters from one play to the next and displays a frenetic energy and enthusiasm. They are ably supported by a group of emerging artists, Ordoñez, Dorian Caty, Emily Coll, Amanda Leslie, Sheena O. Murray, Francian Sonique, and Cristian Torres. Each director has different challenges with the plays but creates a cohesive program.

The design elements are first-rate —a special shout-out to Ernesto K. Gonzalez for his sound design and also his clever song choices, which he chose in collaboration with the directing team and Margaret M. Ledford, City Theatre’s artistic director.

There are only a few more chances to catch “Summer Shorts Flipping the Script”, one of the best ways to have some smart, cool fun during the first official weekend of summer.

WHAT: “Summer Shorts: Flipping the Script”

 WHERE: Carnival Studio Theater in the Ziff Ballet Opera House at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 3 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday, through June 23. 

COST: $50 and $75 (student tickets $15 with ID)

INFORMATION:  305-949-6722 or arshtcenter.org

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit source of dance, visual arts, music, and performing arts news. Sign up for our newsletter and never miss a story.

Local Playwrights Flip the Script for City Theatre’s ‘Summer Shorts’

Toddra Brunson and Kimberly Vilbrun-Francois in a scene from Neressa Street’s play “Leaving Jamaica,” part of City Theatre’s “Summer Shorts: Flipping the Script,” with a preview night Thursday, June 6 and opening Friday, June 7 through Sunday, June 23. (Photo courtesy of Morgan Sophia Photography)

It’s a summer theater tradition. City Theatre at the Adrienne Arsht Center has been putting on its short play fest for more than two decades. This year, it’s flipping the script.

“This is the 27th annual Summer Shorts,” says Margaret M. Ledford, the artistic director of City Theatre.

Last year, City Theatre spotlighted eight local playwrights participating in its inaugural Homegrown writers’ development program. This year, “Summer Shorts: Flipping the Script” features four original plays from Homegrown, a City Theatre initiative where the selected quartet cohort collaborates with a master playwright in a year-long intensive. The other four plays were selected from the Susan J. Westfall National Short Playwrighting Contest. Westfall is a playwright and co-founder of City Theatre.

“Summer Shorts: Flipping the Script” has one preview night on Thursday, June 6 then opens on Friday, June 7 and runs through Sunday, June 23 inside the Adrienne Arsht Center’s Carnival Studio Theater, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami.

“City Theatre started with Susie, Stephanie Norman and Elna Wohl sitting around their table on Key Biscayne and at that point, and that was 1996, theater was dead in the summer. Miami was very seasonal. You came down for the winter and then you left,” says Ledford. “And so this was a great opportunity to employ a bunch of artists who wouldn’t be working otherwise. I think that totally changed the Miami landscape of what could be done in the summer, which I attribute 100 percent to these women.”

It was presented in association with the University of Miami’s Department of Theater Arts at the Jerry Herman Ring Theatre. The first program touted: “18 plays. 12 actors. 11 directors. 1 fantastic festival.”

“Now, we employ over 40 artists for summer shorts because it’s very important to us at City Theatre to help sustain the ecosystem of the South Florida artists’ community because they tend to leave. We really try to employ as many people as we can,” says Ledford.

The festival puts out a call for short plays, which has since developed into a national contest, where Ledford says they receive about 1,000 submissions each year. And now it has incorporated its Homegrown development program, which works to develop the voices of Miami-based writers from historically marginalized communities.

This year’s Homegrown playwrights began their training in October, according to Ledford. “They’ll develop a short play and a full-length play through us,” she says.

The local playwrights are Nerissa Street, Maleeha Naseer, Brandon Urrutia, and BK King.

What they all say they have in common is that they are “storytellers.”

“I started out as someone who just loves stories,” says Street, whose play “Leaving Jamaica” was inspired by what she says was a different kind of immigrant experience.

In 2021, she says she began a project called Building Black Utopias. “I was telling the story of joy and prosperity and healing that is experienced in historic Black neighborhoods in South Florida. What I started to find was that the stories they were telling about sending their children away for education . . . .mirrored the story of Caribbean immigrants who also sent their children away for better opportunities. In Jamaica, where I am from, it’s a kind of thing that’s done. Once a child graduates from school, they find their way off the island – many for education heading to the UK or Canada or the United States, they just leave home . . leaving the island by choice. At any point, they can hop on a plane and go back home. So, I thought about other immigrant stories where they don’t have that option; that for whatever reason they can’t go home.”

She says that the idea sparked to have her short play look through the lens of immigrants who are able to go back and forth, to go home.

Her play, Street says, is written in the genre of comedy of manners, a bit of a satire. “There is humor in it and because it’s a Jamaican play, the humor will be understood by the Jamaicans. As a non-Jamaican, you’ll get a slice of Jamaican life and a different lens into Jamaicans. And what has been really fun is having that conversation with everyone involved with the production.”

For Naseer, her inspiration for “Swordfish Grilled (So I Don’t Get Sued)” came from the restaurant where she works, which takes place at the fictional Swordfish Bistro in West Kendall.

“I work at a chain restaurant. There’s nothing I love more than listening to the things that happen in that place. Life is really colorful there and I thought that I should share that with an audience,” she says.

The 23-year-old who grew up in Miami says she, too, has always been interested in storytelling. “My father is from Pakistan and my mother is Cuban and one of the common grounds in my household was a love for movies. My mom loved to show my dad her movies and he loved showing her Bollywood and I loved watching all of it,” says Naseer. She says she remembers going to school and recounting tales of the Bollywood films to her friends. “I had to do it in a way to make it interesting, so I got very good at talking to people and I think that’s why I enjoy writing.”

While a student at Florida International University, Naseer wrote a one-woman show about Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto. “I have kept working on it over the years. Once I’ve established myself a bit more here in the South Florida theater scene, I’d like to do it again because I feel like this is a part of the country that needs that kind of exposure and who better to hear it from than somebody who speaks Spanish, too?”

King describes her play, “This Week in the Land of Democracy,” as an absurdist comedy. The plot is about two sisters whose pizza night takes a bizarre turn when an algorithm reveals uncomfortable truths.

“One is a computer programmer in her third year in college and she’s writing an algorithm that would show people the type of world they would live in or the type of person they would be if money wasn’t a concern. We meet her as she’s getting notes from her professor who is claiming that the project is too radical and he wants to change it and then the story kind of goes from there.”

She says she’s been working on it since early 2020 and it was initially meant to be a radio play. “Some friends I met on an app called Clubhouse, we were supposed to perform it together but then things went awry as they often do.”

King then turned to her friend Terrence “T.M.” Pride, the producing artistic director of Brévo Theatre, and they began working on it together, but she says, when she started in Homegrown, she thought it would be a good piece to “take in another direction.”

She says that playwrighting for her is an “apparatus” she uses for storytelling as well as photography, podcasting, and other mediums. “I see myself as an artist, not just as a playwright. I like to tell stories about the future, very much in the way of (American science fiction writer) Octavia E. Butler . . . Trying to figure out what our future could look like in the hands of people that really want to care about it and not just exploit it for its resources and people power.”

In Urrutia’s “Dickery Pokery,” a husband’s quest to bring his wife joy brings him to the local mall.

“It’s a fun little, short about a nice gentleman doing whatever he can bring love back into his life. The “doing whatever he can” is going to the local Claire’s to get what’s known as a “Prince Albert” penis piercing.

For Urrutia being in the Homegrown program has added another level to the work he says he is doing with the local theater company where he is artistic director and co-founder, Miami Lakes based LakeHouseRanchDotPng, where the focus is on original absurdist and experimental new work.

Like many of his creative endeavors, Urrutia says ideas can spring out of nowhere. In fact, the catchy title of his “Summer Shorts” comedy was just one of those moments.

“It came to me in the middle of the night. Funny, that’s all I remember,” he says.

The other playwrights and their plays in “Summer Shorts: Flipping the Script” are “Manic Pixie Dream Girl Goes to Brunch” by Rhiannon Ling, “Search for an Ending” by Karissa Murrell Myers, “An Awkward Conversation in the Shadow of Mount Moriah” by John Bavoso, and “Pros and Cons of Implosion” by R.D. Murphy.

Gladys Ramirez, City Theatre’s executive director, says the theme, “Flipping the Script” really can give audiences a hint as to what they are going to see.

“We’ve had themes in the past in terms of sets, for instance, but we started using these kinds of subtitles last year. “So ‘Flipping the Script’ are short plays that are unexpected, that are out of the norm, where you’re experiencing things that might surprise or challenge you. We think all of the plays in this lineup have a little bit of an unexpected take.”

WHAT: “Summer Shorts: Flipping the Script”

 WHERE: Carnival Studio Theater in the Ziff Ballet Opera House at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami

WHEN: Preview 7:30 p.m., Thursday, June 6, opening 7:30 p.m., Friday, June 7. Regular performances 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 3 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday, through June 23. Opening night party with live music and food for purchase on the Arsht Center’s Thompson Plaza for the Arts.

COST: $50 and $75 (student tickets $15 with ID)

INFORMATION:  305-949-6722 or arshtcenter.org

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit source of dance, visual arts, music, and performing arts news. Sign up for our newsletter and never miss a story.

Review: ‘Laughs In Spanish’ At GableStage Captures The Flavor Of Miami

Gaby Tortoledo as Estella and Mariana Mondragon as her daughter Mariana in GableStage’s “Laughs in Spanish” playing through June 23 at the theater at the Biltmore Hotel, Coral Gables. (Photo courtesy of Magnus Stark)

Although Miami native Alexis Scheer’s play, “Laughs in Spanish,” was born in Boston (she wrote it as her MFA playwrighting program thesis at Boston University), has played in Denver, Houston, and Milwaukee, seeing the show with a cast and a director who understand the nuances of Miami’s language and style, sets up a multi-layered playing field.

At GableStage, the actors obviously bring their own backgrounds to the piece – Colombian and Venezuelan roots, Cuban-American Miamians, and at the head of it all, Cuban-American director Victoria Collado, who producing artistic director Bari Newport had enlisted for the company’s early summer 2023 show, “Native Gardens.”

In Collado’s director’s notes, her thought process comes through: “This play celebrates our Miami . . where the best advice comes from your abuela, or your bubbe. The place where disco never died; it just evolved in Miami Sound Machine and House Music.”

“Laughs in Spanish” finds Wynwood art gallery owner, Mariana (Mariana Mondragón), on the verge of a nervous breakdown, when she discovers on the day of Art Basel, that someone has stolen star artist Marco Diaz’s artwork, the draw that would bring in the crème de la crème of the art world to her Studio Six gallery.

Her intern, Carolina or “Caro” (Marcela Paguaga) was the last person to leave the gallery and Mariana is pinning the disappearance on her incompetence. Meanwhile, Caro’s boyfriend, Juan (William Guevara), a Miami Police officer, is on hand to investigate. All he wants, however, is for his girlfriend, an MFA art student, to get the chance to show her paintings. Maybe this is the perfect time now that Mariana’s walls are empty.

To add more bedlam to the chaos, Mariana’s mother, Estella (Gaby Tortoledo), a Hollywood movie star has flown in from Los Angeles with her assistant Jenny (Magali Trench) to save the day. But sincerity is not Estella’s strong suit, and she hasn’t come to Miami entirely for her daughter; there’s something from her past that has called her back.

If there’s to be a criticism, Scheer has stuffed too many plotlines into her 80-minute play – Mariana’s resentment over her mother who was off being a movie star while she was growing up, a surprise situation that can change the relationship of Juan and Caro, and a hard-to-believe happenstance that Mariana and her mother’s assistant knew each other from boarding school. They now realize they always had feelings towards each other. The play tackles gender, celebrity, motherhood, and misogyny – it’s a lot in a show that plays like a sketch comedy.

But the high energy direction and the staging overcomes any shortcomings of the script. The winners in this show are the production values – the bright Welcome to Wynwood graffiti-esque paint on the base of the stage, the floor to ceiling colorful artworks of Miami-based Diana “Didi” Contreras, that also end up gracing the walls of the gallery after the heist.

“Everyone should always be a moment away from dancing,” instructs Scheer in her stage notes, and they are. During scene changes, the cast vogues to a soundtrack by Ernesto K. Gonzalez, who is on stage as the DJ and is also the sound designer for the show.

Gonzalez’s music mix had some in the audience recognizing sounds going back to their Miami roots: “Yes and,” “Atrevete,” “Da Burrito,” “What You Came For,” “Burbujas de Amor,” “Pulitio Chicken,” “Contigo,” “Oye,” “Dreaming of You,” and “Esa Morena.”

To her credit, while a specific culture is at the center of the play, Scheer never alienates, the story is universal, but it does help if you’re familiar with code-switching and Miami’s Spanglish that’s unlike anywhere else. Scheer instructs in the script: “The Miami natives in this play, all except Jenny, code-switch throughout the play…affecting their dialect, style, and vocabulary based on who they are speaking to. For example, anyone speaking to Jenny will unconsciously sound what we might understand as less-Hispanic.  . . . These characters never do it for comedic effect, it’s simply the way they live. (But I hope, at times, we can find it funny.)”

“Laughs in Spanish” is also steadfast in its focus on that it be the work of an ensemble. While movie maven, Estella, is the strongest character, director Collado sticks to working with the ensemble as a whole to make everything work. The ensemble of GableStage’s “Laughs in Spanish” was put to the test when the actress playing Caro (Paguaga) fell during a rehearsal and injured her ankle. Scenes had to be restaged since Paguaga had to use a walker with a seat and crutches. No changes were made in the script to accommodate the injury. Smart move; her hobbling around the stage fits into the rest of the zaniness. Hats off to Paguaga for the ability to make it seem effortless.

This is a show that can draw a younger demographic into the theater and GableStage with its additions of colorful contemporary art and a thumping soundtrack. Also, with the help of Miami radio icon Lucy López, GableStage’s production features another element where a Miami influencer takes the stage as the DJ for Saturday evening performances bringing in their followers, perhaps some that have never been to the theater. Under Newport’s leadership, GableStage has been noticeably taking chances and working to remain relevant. This play choice is indicative of that.

With “Laughs in Spanish,” they’ve selected a breezy summer closer, nothing too heavy, lotsa laughs, and plenty of eye candy.

WHAT: “Laughs in Spanish” by Alexis Scheer 

WHERE: GableStage in the Biltmore Hotel, 1200 Anastasia Ave., Coral Gables 

WHEN:  2 and 7:30 p.m., Wednesday; 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday through June 23. Streaming available at regular performance times beginning May 31 through June 23.

COST:  $45, $50, $60, $65, all with additional $10 service fee (discounts for students, teachers, artists, military and groups). $30 for streaming tickets.

INFORMATION:  305-445-1119 or gablestage.org

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com.