In celebration of the Latino lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer experience, the second annual Brown & Out Theater Festival will premiere 10 short plays at CASA 0101 Theater in Boyle Heights this weekend.
The event, which opens today and runs through Oct. 21, features 10 actors from across Los Angeles County, including Blanca M. Melchor of Boyle Heights. On Oct. 11, the Latino Equality Alliance will commemorate National Coming Out Day with a post-performance Q&A, reception and fundraiser.
“The inspiration for this new play festival came from the need to provide a creative, safe space where LGBTQ Latino/as could share their many diverse stories out on the stage for ALL audiences to hear in an effort to reduce the stigmas and struggles associated with being Latino/a and LGBTQ,” producer Miguel Garcia said in a press release.
The 10 stories, while all centered around queer life and culture, range widely. Beyond gay romantic and familial relationships, “Three Rooms” explores the unfortunate chain reactions following a young man’s suicide. “The Morning After” is a two-part piece following a man and his hangover. “The Gay Ghost Whisperer” is delightfully self-explanatory. There’s even a Latino queer adaptation of “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.”
CASA 0101 collaborated with Jovenes, Inc., a Boyle Heights-based organization providing resources to homeless youth, to present the concluding play about the needs and experiences of homeless young people in L.A.
Brown & Out Theater Festival runs Sept. 28 to Oct. 21
Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m.; Sundays at 5 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 11 at 8 p.m. for National Coming Out Day
Casa 0101 Theater
2102 E. First St.
Los Angeles, CA 90033
For tickets, call (323) 263-7684
