By Deysi Cuevas
Extra
CHICAGO — Set in a series of unknown terminals, seven performers share their stories that range from a loud couple who is stopped at an airport security checkpoint to the painful memory of a family member who went missing the same day as 400 others did in Mexico. These are some of the stories presented in Teatro Luna’s eighth original play, “Crossed,” meant to tackle the issues and stereotypes immigrants are faced with.
“[The play] deals with breaking down the idea that immigrant equals Mexican. A lot of people when you say the word ‘immigrant’ they think that they’re Mexican, particularly here in the U.S. so we have a story that defies that stereotype,” stated Miranda Gonzalez, director and founding ensemble member.
The stories, derived from the performers’ own occurrences as well as accounts collected from interviews and news reports, are pushed just enough to get the audience thinking about these issues but are treated with respect because some of those experiences are also shared by countless undocumented immigrants living in the U.S.
“We have a story about a little girl who [had spent] three days by herself because her mother had been deported and it was on the news so we wrote a piece because we were inspired by it,” said Gonzalez.
Alexandra Meda, executive director at Teatro Luna explains that the play was also influenced by their trip to Arizona when they presented a developing script at Arizona State University.
“It didn’t change our minds about the things we were talking about [but] it grounded the work in a different way … different from the reality of Latinos in Chicago and that was really fascinating,” said Meda.
The play also features a member that does not identify as Latina. Gonzalez states that the way …
Finish reading Teatro Luna’s new play ‘Crossed’ examines what it means to be an Immigrant in the U.S.
