“This collaboration and inclusivity reminds us that art has no borders,” -- Rocio Zalba, director, Visitemos a la Abuela
Thursday, August 17th six ten-minute plays will be shown at Tapp’s Art Center each with approximately two and a half minutes of darkness to commemorate the total solar eclipse that will darken Columbia for the same amount of time on August 21st.
The Jasper Project invited six playwrights to create one of the unique plays to be performed at 7pm and 10pm with a free reception honoring the playwrights from 9-10pm.
Director Rocio Zalba will be directing the play Vistemos a la Abuela written by Julia Vargas. The play will be performed completely in Spanish by theatre troupe La Tropa including Lucy Jaimes, Ysaul Flores, and José Luis Gallardo. Zalba is a Spanish instructor at USC.
Zalba got involved in the Syzygy event when Ivan Segura of Palmetto Luna, a non-profit organization that works to create awareness of Latino art and culture in South Carolina, asked if she could direct the play.
“This collaboration and inclusivity reminds us that art has no borders,” says Zalba.
The characters comprise a family which the play focuses on. La Abuela is played by Jaimes. The father and son of the Grandmother, Pedro, is played by Flores. And the son of the father, Daniel is played by Gallardo.
“The play is about the human disconnection that occurs when we make technology the only means in which we connect to others,” says Zalba. “This is demonstrated through the discord that occurs within different generations in a family unit.”
Because of the themes of family and connection in the play, the audience can relate to the play regardless of their knowledge of Spanish.
The need to connect with others is universal,” says Zalba.
Zalba is most excited about directing the two minutes and forty-one seconds of darkness in the play.
“Since our play is in Spanish and our audience may be mainly composed of English speakers, we had to figure out a way to communicate with our audience what is happening on stage without much dialogue,” says Zalba.
A limited edition, bound volume of the nine poems and six plays will be available for purchase to commemorate this historic time in the state’s history and culture.
Tickets to see the six plays are $10 at 7pm and 10pm on August 17th at Tapp’s Art Center.
by Karie Grace Duncan
