VIDA to be 1st to perform in Indy theater festival

IU Spanish theater group Vision, Identity, Drama, and Art performed a one-act play in Indianapolis this past weekend. VIDA took the one-act “Las nuevas tamaleras” (The New Tamaleras) to IndyFringe Friday, a theater festival in Indianapolis.

The group was part of the festival’s first Hispanic Fringe Friday. The actors from “Las nuevas tamaleras” were the first actors to perform at IndyFringe’s new headquarters, a white church located on Saint Claire Street.

“We’re honored to be the first group to perform in this building,” VIDA founder Marda Rose said to the audience.

The VIDA group performed three Spanish language one-acts at the John Waldron Arts Center this year, including “Las nuevas tamaleras,” a crowd favorite. When Ryan Powell from the Fringe Committee asked them to perform for IndyFringe Friday, the group said yes.

“We were excited – really excited,” said senior and actor Portia Willy. “We hope people in the audience will pick up on the humor and catch the little nuances and details.”

Fringe marketing coordinator Justin Brady had the same idea.

“We try to provide new experiences for the Fringe crowd,” he said. “With the Hispanic population growing, we believe theater is an accessible way of exposing our audience to the culture and language.”

Director and visiting assistant professor Anne Witte said she believed “Las nuevas tamaleras” could draw in people with its universal message. Before the show, she said that although the one-act is traditionally performed at Christmas, its message of food and culture uniting people is engaging at any time of year.

“Las nuevas tamaleras” opens with two Mexican women in heaven. They are summoned to the kitchen of a modern-day woman, who is preparing tamales with two friends. The women from heaven guide the living women as they work the masa, or dough, and cook the roast to put the tamales together.  

Rose said she believed the play could appeal to many people.

“This one-act focuses on the importance of cultural memory and of knowing where you come from,” she said. “The play itself takes place in the kitchen where food and traditions bring people together, making us feel closer to our past and our family traditions. The audience can appreciate how roles and traditions have changed while maintaining their core importance.”

IU alumnus and audience member Michael Torres said he related to the play. As a second-generation Mexican-American, he said the play captured the essence of what making tamales during Christmas is about.

“They hit the traditional process of cooking tamales spot on,” he said. “This brought back fond memories of my mother and her sisters working together for hours to cook tamales. It’s the kind of feeling you can’t write about, but you can see it perfectly when it’s envisioned in a play.”