Executive produced by Miguel Garcia, the festival will be held Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 5 PM from Sept. 28-Oct 21 in Boyle Heights, CA.
"The inspiration for this new play festival came from the need to provide a creative, safe space where LGBTQ Latino/Latinas 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/Latina and LGBTQ," said executive producer Garcia in a statement.
The 11 actors who portray multiple roles in the 11 new plays include Henry Alberto, Natalie Camunas, Hector A. Garcia, Evelyn Lorena, Blanca M. Melchor, Martin Morales, Miriam Peniche, MJ Silva, Andres Rey Solorzano, Andrew Villarreal and Patricia Zamorano.
The new works featured in the festival are Josefina López's The Gay Ghost Whisperer, directed by Hector Rodriguez; Miguel Garcia's The Foundation for a Better Gay Brown Life, directed by Nina Harada; Garcia's Three Rooms, directed by Harada; Monica Palacios' Miercoles Loves Luna, directed by Corky Dominguez; Jonathan Ceniceroz's Even the Rich Will Suffer, directed by Harada; Henry Alberto's Frankie and Johnny, directed by Dominguez; Natalie Camunas' A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving: The Untold Story, directed by Rodriguez; Evelyn Lorena's Follow The Rainbow, directed by Harada, April Ibarra's The Morning After, directed by Rodriguez, Mario J. Novoa's The Baby Cries, directed by Dominguez; and Forever Young, a devised theatre piece based on the writings of three LGBTQ young men from Jovenes, Inc., directed by Dominguez.
The BAOTF premiered Sept. 23, 2011, at Little Casa Theater as a new play development project produced by playwright/producer Garcia, under the mentorship of Casa 0101's founder and artistic director López. The New Casa 0101 Theater is located at 2102 East 1st Street (at St. Louis Street) in Boyle Heights, CA. For more information and tickets, call (323) 263-7684 or visit Casa0101.org.