Latest news with #LaPlaza
Telegraph
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Hamlet: Eight actors with Down's syndrome ‘play The Dane'
Luckily for them, some of the greatest modern actors of stage and screen – Derek Jacobi, Mark Rylance, Simon Russell Beale, Kenneth Branagh, Benedict Cumberbatch, David Tennant, Paapa Essiedu and Ben Whishaw – have never encountered what Uncle Monty in Withnail and I famously lamented was the most shattering experience in a young man's life: the crushing realisation that he will never 'play The Dane'. Yet that sense of acute thespian disillusionment which he so memorably articulated ('When that moment comes, one's ambition ceases') may not be foremost in the minds of Peruvian theatre company La Plaza's actors, all of whom have Down's syndrome and so face far greater challenges. Their highly lauded 're-invention' of Shakespeare's universally acclaimed tragedy arrives in London following a sell-out run at the Edinburgh International Festival last year. Under the aegis of director, writer and community stalwart Chela De Ferrari, this Hamlet involves eight actors performing key scenes from Shakespeare's magnum opus, while also sharing their thoughts, feelings, and frustrations, and all dextrously interwoven with apposite text from the original. In so doing, La Plaza skilfully combines the timeless rumination on life, death and existential angst with a passionate, profoundly moving and unexpectedly humorous meditation on otherness, liminality and what it means to be a perennial outsider, given how society often ignores, pities or mocks those with 47 chromosomes (as opposed to the standard 46) and habitually excludes, infantilises and patronises them. From the opening footage of a baby being born to mimicking Laurence Olivier perform his legendary film role and a video call with Shakespearean colossus Ian McKellen to get tips on how to play Hamlet, this production contains many transcendent truths. Whether asking what dreams they are allowed to have, asserting the desire 'to speak and be heard' or accepting the fact that they 'will never escape the gaze of others', this is a searing critique of societal attitudes to neurodivergence. Performed in Spanish with English surtitles, it is in turns humbling, audacious and – a much over-used but in this instance wholly merited epithet – gloriously life-affirming. A palpable sense of playfulness imbues the cast's performances. Uncompromising and unapologetic, Octavio Bernaza, Jaime Cruz, Lucas Demarchi, Manuel García, Diana Gutierrez, Cristina León Barandiarán, Ximena Rodríguez and Álvaro Toledo all shine brightly, passing the princely crown to each other with dignity and aplomb. The bare stage and minimal props only enhance the power and range of their acting. (The famous 'To be or not to be' soliloquy rapped with rage and rare insight.) So, banish any preconceptions. Infectiously exuberant, enriching and clever, this production serves as a reminder that Shakespeare is accessible to all, and Hamlet is for everyone. Uncle Monty would doubtless have wept with delight.
Los Angeles Times
13-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
LA Cocina de Gloria Molina sparks a cultural and culinary revolution
Sara P. Mijares grew up watching her mother make dishes like Cochinita Pibil, a slow-cooked pork dish with red achiote that originated in Yucatán. Unsure on how to make it, she stayed away from from the recipe until taking classes at LA Cocina de Gloria Molina. It was at that teaching kitchen in downtown L.A. where she met gourmet street food chefs Alex and Elvia Garcia of Evil Cooks — instructors and specialists in making recado negro, a mixture of chiles, onion, garlic, spices, tortillas and cacao that the class charred until it was black, then ground into a paste. 'I was always a little hesitant to try the black one,' said Mijares, referring to recado negro. 'I didn't quite understand it and that's one of the reasons I came today, to understand what went into it and unlock a little bit of the mystery.' So how was the recado negro mixed with pulled pork and served on a warm corn tortilla made fresh on LA Cocina's comal? 'It's quite special and delicious,' she said. 'I'm really glad I pushed out of my Yucatecan comfort zone to try it.' That's what LA Cocina is about. The 2,500-square-foot space, cultural center and recipe room is part of La Plaza de Cultura y Artes and named after the late political powerhouse instrumental in creating La Plaza, Gloria Molina. The community hub hosts local chefs, authors and community members for cooking classes, tastings and talks that celebrate the history and culture of Mexican and Mexican American cuisine. Local celebrity chefs like Danielle Duran Zecca of Amiga Amore and 'The Chori-man' Humberto Raygoza have taught classes. Events vary from a historical exploration of Afro-Latin cuisine presented by the Afro-Latino Education and Arts Collective and include cooking classes on making 'flower' tortillas with different varieties of corn and pressed flowers. 'One of the key components, alongside learning how to cook, and what makes a difference, is that we provide cultural notes in everything we do,' said Ximena Martin, La Plaza director of Programs and Culinary Arts. 'We make sure all our classes are presented by the community for the community.' Educating the public about Mexican and Mexican American authors, chefs and culinary history is only part of LA Cocina's mission in addition to preparing the next generation of chefs. The Culinary Youth Training Program is free to high school students and young adults ages 16 to 24. During a recent class, chef Wendy Centeno cut a red onion in half, then thinly sliced it for a cauliflower ceviche she was teaching a group to make. 'Have you been to a taquero and you get a really big piece of onion?' she asked. 'Who wants to eat that?' Students, who apply to be part of the bilingual program, learn everything from basic knife skills to poaching an egg to deboning a chicken. They come from Los Angeles and most of them know they want to cook but they don't know where to start, Centeno said. Jonathan Tirado, 19, likes to make sourdough bread and create dishes from whatever he has on hand at his Boyle Heights home. He thinks he might want to be a chef, which makes his mother happy that he's enrolled in the program that could lead to a career. 'My mom is probably going to disapprove of this, the cauliflower, but I'm going to have her try it anyway,' Tirado said. Centeno introduces culturally relevant dishes that may or may not be how students and their families are used to seeing them made. At the end of the course, students work with the Institute of Culinary Education. They write a resume and get invited to a networking event with local chefs, business owners and cooking schools to get career advice about the food industry and landing a job. The first time she saw one of her former students working at Porto's Bakery, Centeno said, she wanted to cry. 'Seeing them out there in the wild, we know we're doing something right,' the chef said. 'It's awesome.' LA Cocina, across the street from La Plaza in La Plaza Village, had its second anniversary in April by replacing the gift shop with Raíces Culinarias: A Recipe Reading Room. The space is filled with Mexican cookbooks donated by the family of the late journalist and author Barbara Hansen, the celebrated L.A. Times food writer who left her job at The Times in 2006 but continued writing articles for the paper through 2017. The cookbook collection inspired an exhibit curated by local food historian, podcaster and ArtBites founder Maite Gomez-Rejón about Mexican cookbook author Josefina Velázquez de León (1899-1968). De León was the first woman in Mexico to open a cooking school and offer correspondence courses to help women become part of the Mexican economy. 'Josefina was an amazing entrepreneur of her time,' Martin said. 'She started collecting recipes from local women and regional women and started her own publishing house.' The programs at LA Cocina offer the community much more than simply learning how to cook. For Centeno, it's the self-assuredness of the students that makes her especially proud. 'The most important thing we teach here is for them to have confidence,' she said. 'I want them to be able to walk into a kitchen and feel like, 'Yes, I know how to do whatever the chef wants me to do.''
