cover photo by Dale Roesch
“…There is
more—much, much more—to José Rivera's new play, ADORATION OF THE OLD WOMAN. But
the play's internal engine—its life and humor and earthiness—is driven by the
shockingly profane, deeply poetic words of this spiritual old woman. Doña Belen
may be the most fascinating character in Rivera's fertile oeuvre….
…his plays are infused with the flavor we've come to associate with Latin
writing—the rich imagery and lyricism of Federico García Lorca, the earthy
sensuality and surrealism of Gabriel García Márquez. But Rivera's concerns are
universal. His characters may be brown-skinned, but his subject is the human
soul.
ADORATION OF THE OLD WOMEN is Rivera's most overtly political play
yet. It's a work that combines Rivera's heightened sense of language and
visually rich dreamscapes with a deeply felt probing of Puerto Rican
independence. It's part ghost story, part political debate. It's magical realism
meets a Puerto Rican Crossfire.
…if Rivera never really seems to make his—the decision about Puerto Rican
self-determination—he has left us with the evidence we need to make one for
ourselves. And in that he fulfills what the physician-turned-playwright Anton
Chekov said is the writer's chief responsibility: not providing a cure, but
correctly diagnosing the problem.
Joel Beers, Orange County Weekly
originally produced by La Jolla Playhouse
2 M, 3 F
I S B N 978-0-88145-430-7
$14.95
read the first scene or scenes on line