Perdida | Crunchynotes

Perdida

A Mexican Folk Musical

Book & Lyrics by Kathleen Cahill
Music by Deborah Wicks La Puma
Published by Dramatic Publishing.

Synopsis

Based on Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale, Perdida is set in pre-Revolutionary Mexico, when powerful Dons ruled like kings. Shakespeare’s story of passion, jealousy and redemption is retold in the Latino style of magical realism, using classic musical forms of Mexico – Corridos, Sones, Canciones, Chilenas and Jarabes. A Conjunto of musicians and actors tell the story of Perdida in music, words and dance.

History

Perdida received a workshop in 1999 at TheatreWorks in Palo Alto, California under the direction of Alma Martinez. From 2001-2002 it received staged readings at Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia and was showcased at the John F. Kennedy Center’s Page to Stage festival under the direction of Jose Carrasquillo. In 2014 it premiered at Catholic University of America in Washington DC, directed by Elena Velasco.

LaPerdida_061 — Inez Dominguez del Corral, Catholic University of America. Photo by Chris Maddaloni.

Musical Numbers

Act I

1. THE SONG OF PERDIDA – Conjunto

2. EVERY LOVELY GIRL – Leopoldo, Arturo & Conjunto

3. NEW LIFE – Gabriela & Arturo

4. A REASONABLE MAN – Leopoldo

5. MILAGRO – Conjunto & Gabriela

6. THE LIFE OF THE LOWLY – Gonzalo & Conjunto

7. CONTENTA – Gabriela

8. FINALE ACT I – All

Act II

9. WONDER OF THE WORLD – Conjunto, Rafael & Perdida

10. LIFE OF THE LOWLY Reprise – Gonzalo & Conjunto

11. JOSÉ! – Arturo, Rafael & Conjunto

12. DANCING WITH THE DEAD – All

13. MAGIC INSIDE YOU – Perdida & Rafael

14. SONG OF PERDIDA (Rep) – Conjunto

15. ESCUCHA – Carlota

16. CONTENTA (Rep) – All

17. FINALE ACT II – All

Dillon Greenburg, Catholic University of America. Photo by Chris Maddaloni

Audio demo features the voice talents of Esperanza America (Time), Diana Burbano (Carlotta), Alexis Carra (Gabriela), Scott Graff (Don Arturo), Derek Manson (Don Leopoldo), Elia Saldana (Perdida), Andrew Ross Wynn (Gonzalo), and Nicolas Womack (Rafael).

Production Elements

LaPerdida_045 — Seth Rosenke, Kira Burri and Bobby Gallagher, Catholic University of America. Photo by Chris Maddaloni.

Cast: 4 women, 4 men, and the Conjunto of on-stage musicians and dancers

Female
DONA GABRIELA – wife to Leopoldo (Alto)
CARLOTTA – the Dona’s servant (Alto)
PERDIDA – Leopoldo and Gabriela’s lost child (Mezzo with Belt)
THE SPIRIT OF TIME – the story’s narrative balladeer (Alto)

Male
DON LEOPOLDO – (Baritone)
DON ARTURO – childhood friend of Leopoldo (Baritone)
GONZALO – Leopoldo’s servant (Tenor)
RAFAEL – Don Arturo’s son (Lyric Baritone)

LaPerdida_012 — Ciaran Farley, Catholic University of America. Photo by Chris Maddaloni.

Music: Classic Mexican Folk forms – Corridos, Sones, Canciones, Chilenas and Jarabes. The Conjunto of musician/singers are part of the narrative action: Guitars (traditional and vihuela), Guitarron, Trumpet, Violin, Percussion (marimba, ocarina, tambores, shakers) and optional Harp.
Musical Difficulty: Moderate
Technical Requirements: Minimal
Suggested Audience: Adults

Authors

KATHLEEN CAHILL (Book & Lyrics) – is a graduate in Musical Theatre at the Tisch School of the Arts. Her awards include three Edgerton Foundation Awards, the Jane Chambers Playwrighting Award, two Connecticut Commission on the Arts Playwrighting Awards, a Massachusetts Artists Foundation Award, a Rockefeller Grant, a National Endowment for the Arts New American Works Grant, and a Drama League Award. She was a DGF Travelling Master in 2019. Her play Charm (NNPN Showcase) was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize; her play The Persian Quarter was nominated for a Steinberg Award. (Both published by Dramatic Publishing.) Her produced musicals include Friendship of the Sea (North Shore Music Theatre) Dakota Sky (Olney Theatre) an opera, Clara, two opera/cabarets, A Tale of Two Cities: Paris and Berlin in the Twenties (Maryland Center for the Performing Arts), a comic opera cabaret, Fatal Song (most recently Utah Opera) a short opera, The Better Man, (Utah Opera) Perdida, the Winter’s Tale set in Mexico (Published by Dramatic Publishing.) Her plays include the comedy, Course 86B in the Catalogue (Salt Lake Acting Company) The Still Time (Georgia Rep/ Porchlight Theatre, Chicago) the comedy, Women Who Love Science Too Much (Porchlight Theatre and NPR Radio) Charm ( National New Play Network Festival, Salt Lake Acting Company premiere, Kitchen Dog Theatre, Dallas; Orlando Shakespeare; Taffety Punk, Washington D.C., New Hampshire Theatre Project, among others) The Persian Quarter ( Salt Lake Acting Company, Merrimack Rep.) Harbur Gate, an NNPN commission. (Salt Lake Acting Company, 16thstreet Theatre, Chicago.) Henry, Louise and Henri (one act) and The Robertassey at Women’s Playwrights Initiative, Ivoryton Playhouse, CT; The Robertassey was the featured play at the 2019 Seven Devil’s Playwrights Conference. Silent Dancer a groundbreaking dance/play premiered at the Salt Lake Acting Company in April 2019. A new musical, LATE, about the effects of gun violence on a small group of high school students, will be presented at Berklee College of Music in Boston in 2020 (Postponed due to coronavirus) and is currently a project with Moonbox Productions, Boston. Recent: Her play One Stone was a semi-finalist at the Gary Marshall New Play Festival, and the first prize winner in the Women’s Voices Festival at Mad Cow Theatre, Orlando. Madera Canyon is a finalist at the Cell Theatre, Albuquerque. She wrote the screenplay for the independent feature, Downtown Express.

DEBORAH WICKS LA PUMA (music) – see her bio page

Purchase

Buy the script from Dramatic Publishing.

For perusal materals and full audio demo contact us via the contact page.