Assumption College Presents La Vida: A Night of Latin American Theatre

April, 2004—Assumption College’s Department of Foreign Languages will be presenting a celebration of Latin American theatre with La Vida, a series of five one-act plays that examine the role of humans on the world's stage. The performances will take place on Thursday, April 29 and Friday, April 30, 2004, at 6:00 p.m. in the Auditorium of La Maison Francaise.

The plays will include Los fantoches by Carlos Solorzano (1958), Coser y cantar by Dolores Prida (1981), El censo by Emilio Carballido (1957), Pantallas by Dolores Prida (1986) and Yo tambien hablo de la rosa by Emilio Carballido (1966). Each play will be presented in Spanish, with an English synopsis following.

Los Fantoches by Carlos Solórzano
This drama takes place in a workshop of life-size dolls made by an old man and his daughter, who "removes" the dolls at her leisure to "play" with them. Once the sun shines upon the dolls, they come to life and each one represents a different aspect of humanity: La joven, young girl who represents youthfulness; el viejito, the old man who represents the wisdom
of age; la mujer; the woman who represents the role of women; the artist who represents the creative side of humanity; and the Cabezón, who spends his time trying to understand life through intellectual thought. The Fantoches can only exist within their predestined characteristics given them by the Old Man who creates the dolls. Together, the Fantoches yearn
for freedom from the somber atmosphere of the workshop. They seem eager to be the next Fantoche chosen by the little girl who will release them into a greater freedom until....they discover what actually happens to the Fantoches led out of their isolated world away from the workshop. They try to find ways in which they can be free from the end the little girl imposes
upon each Fantoche. In the end, one Fantoche is taken because she tries to defy the destiny of all Fantoches.

Coser y Cantar by Dolores Prida
This play represents the bicultural division of the self. "This piece is really one long monologue. The two women are one and are playing a verbal, emotional game of ping pong. Throughout the action, except in the final confrontation, ELLA and SHE never look at each other, acting independently, pretending the other one does not really exist, although each continuously trespasses on each other's thoughts, feelings and behaviors." This is the description by the dramatist Dolores Prida.

El Censo by Emilio Carballido
The play opens in an unregistered sewing shop. A wealthy upper-class woman, Remedios, is being fitted for a new dress by two sisters, Herlinda and Dora. The third seamstress, Concha, represents the overworked and underpaid lowest class. Concha resents her position and strikes out at the sisters by trying to undermine the economic exchange between the sisters and Remedios. Although struggling to make ends meet, Herlinda and Dora are able to survive on their profits by not registering with the government, which would require them to pay taxes on their earnings. When a census-taker arrives at the door, the sisters panic and try all sorts of methods to get rid of her. Herlinda tries to bribe the census-taker with money with the hope that the shop's information will not end up in the department of tax collection. The census-taker is frustrated with the inability to acquire the information from the sister,s and we soon learn that she, too, is a victim of an economic depression and is only trying to make ends meet herself. Watch as they ultimately come up with a solution that benefits the characters.

Pantallas by Dolores Prida
Pantallas is a dark comedy that takes place during a nuclear war. The three characters, Elena, Mauricio and Roberto, are three soap opera actors struggling to deal with themselves, each other, their careers and the events of the outside world. Pantallas is a mixture of reality and the world of make believe that they create. Through acting and companionship the three are able to vent their frustrations and fears, while at the same time making us laugh.

Yo También Hablo de la Rosa by Emilio Carballido
Life...Can it be explained? Hidden within the bowels of society we find the marginalized class...the victims of a cruel and indifferent social beast. The child, the beggar, and the proletariat are all trying to construct their own space in which they can survive in a world through which they move, almost entirely, unperceived, until one event, one mistake changes everything. Come see how two children, in a carefree moment of life, cause us to question the role inherited by the abandoned classes of society.

The performances are open to the public, and tickets are $5.00 at the door. For more information, please contact the Department of Foreign Languages at (508) 767-7260.