April 12, 2012
“Sometimes I catch myself feeling emotions I would never feel back in my neighborhood. Stuff where you realize you are in the real world.” Sue Montoya plays Luz in Café Vida, a character whose shyness belies her strength. But unlike the character she plays, Sue thinks of herself as someone whose self-assurance is unmitigated. She…
April 3, 2012
I recently had the opportunity to interview Café Vida cast member Lynette Alfaro about Homeboy Industries and her involvement in the upcoming production. Lynette’s humble personality and gratefulness stood out as she told me about her long-time aspiration to be an artist and the path that eventually led her to the stage. She is clearly…
March 27, 2012
Café Vida is a wonderful play and important cultural project for Los Angeles. I am very excited to be a small part of this project since it truly is an example of “socially-engaged art” that links to the community—specifically the men and women who work at Homeboy Industries. Evidence of this is the fact that…
February 27, 2012
Growing up on a family farm in the San Joaquin Valley, I have intimately learned of what food production looks like: hard work, long hours, and sometimes little profits, but more importantly delicious summers. I have also known the paradoxes of our agricultural neighborhood witnessing both bounty on the land and need in our communities….
January 15, 2012
To control food is to control people. To destroy topsoil is to destroy the most elemental thing upon which we all depend. And to convince people that this system is the only way and that there is no other option is one of the most pressing myths before us that needs to be shattered. –…
January 6, 2012
We were deeply saddened this past December by the passing of César Rodriguez, a member of the Teatro Jornalero Sin Fronteras troupe. We would like to share a tribute from Teatro Jornalero Sin Froteras: When we met César, who was born in Jalisco, Mexico, on February 12, 1972, he was a day laborer at the…
November 6, 2011
In September, I moved to Los Angeles to work as a fellow with Cornerstone Theater Company. I have spent the past seven weeks producing Creative Seeds: An Exploration of Hunger, two weeks of programming dedicated to the investigation of hunger and food justice issues in Los Angeles. I have learned more about food than I…
September 1, 2011
I remember driving up CA-99, with fellow Institute student Mary by my side, attempting to answer questions about Cornerstone and what she should expect over the next four weeks. Having worked for Cornerstone in various capacities for close to four years, one would think I knew exactly what kind of situation I was walking into….
