ON THE JOURNEY: 26 Miles is coming to a close...

If feels like the show just opened and here we are going into closing weekend! The excitement of Opening Night was incredible! We were ready & the response from the audience was thrilling. It's what we, as actors, work towards during rehearsals. We enjoy creating characters with a message & visual experience that will speak to the people sitting in the seats of the theatre, "sharing the human experience."

I sound very idealistic, but I am! I want people in those seats to enjoy a night of "live" acting & theatre, to forget for a brief moment, our daily worries & "see" first hand how others relate in similar ways to similar situations & revel in the fact that we are all connected in the same way we live, love, hurt, joy &... Fill in any word here about what it means to be a person with natural emotions. - To express another human's (the playwright, director & designer's) experience in this life on this place we call home!

That is why I can say the next two nights after Opening Night - I was sad! Our audiences were small in number. Yes, I can be grateful that people came & that should satisfy me, at least our message was heard, BUT it didn't. I selfishly wanted full houses for the following performances! I needed that energy to feed off. I needed people to hear me!

That is sometimes our dilemma, filling those seats, most especially when we have busy schedules with our family & friends & on top of that the Holiday season! It takes planning & effort to peel away from what we need to do & then there are the other elements we have to compete with like TV & the movies. Big spectacles that we most likely can't reproduce on stage unless you saw the 70 million dollar Spiderman on Broadway, which I did, but that's another story.

I think to myself what do I need to do to help bring in bodies to those seats? I invite my Friends & Family & most come, but what can I say to YOU, friendly Stranger, to encourage you to be here the next few performances/weekends or even for the next show at Rose Marine Theatre/Artes de la Rosa?

I was in New York when September 11th happened. And, in fact, in the middle of rehearsals for a show & when Opening Night came, we worried if we would have an audience. We were all in mourning. And who could ask people to come see a show at that time. But we did and we had an Audience! People came in droves to each performance! They needed to escape their sadness and reconnect to what we almost lost and did lose. They came to see theatre!

I encourage you to come see US, come see Theatre at its best! Come escape!

What else do I need to tell you to encourage you? Do I need to get on my knees?! Do I need to tell you a little more about myself so you can “see” why I do this? I am a recent Breast Cancer survivor; I have not been on the stage for a while because I was recovering AND going through a lot of other things, like a divorce, loss of a home, leaving New York, loss of my life as I knew it… and the only thing I wanted to do was to get back on stage, get back to my passion of sharing LIFE! That is what it means TO ACT for me… SHARING LIFE!

So here is my challenge to you… For those of you who may not want to spend the money during these times, I will gladly take some of my Christmas money and spend it on YOU as a MY GIFT TO YOU! Buy your tickets online at www.artesdelarosa.org and use the discount code DEANNA and I will pay $4 dollars of your ticket! THERE IS NO LIMIT to this if 150 of you want to come, I'll be paying $4 off each of your tickets!

That's my gift to you! Everyone deserves to see this amazing show at Rose Marine Theatre... I DARE YOU! Please come! We need YOU there! Come escape with us! it's a wonderful drive!

DeAnna Gonzales*
Actress
26 Miles
Artes de la Rosa

ON THE JOURNEY - 26 Miles; So Long Sabbatical

After a weeklong “sabbatical” from rehearsal, I am eager to get back to our "play" world. I missed it. As actors, directors & designers, I realize how close the cast becomes while "working" on a play. For the actor, it's about how individually close we become to our character's journey, story & words. There becomes a need to see them, to be with them rehearsal after rehearsal... To keep working towards our goal, as theatre artists, to enliven the words, characters & relationships on the page into a visual story that needs to be heard & shared. Our short break made that longing unbearable! We return to our work on Sunday & I just think about how exciting it will be to see everyone in the cast, to hear what new things we each have discovered or polished while we were away! What new elements for the play our Director has to share with us! After all, that is what theatre is about! Coming together to share our experiences & stories as human beings in a tangible way. We are on the precipice of achieving that goal for our audience & that is the most exciting part. Our lines are learned, our blocking studied & now our remaining rehearsals are about putting the last puzzle pieces together...

I can't wait!!

-DeAnna Gonzales
Actress, 26 Miles

On The Journey - 26 Miles; BREAK TIME

This blog is written at the beginning of an entire week off from rehearsals. While not completely unheard of (particularly as we approach the busy holiday season), I am not used to having such a large block of time of in the middle of the rehearsal process. It would be far too easy to relax, enjoy the extra free time in the evenings, and lose focus on the show. And that would be tragic.

Fortunately, the break is well-timed. We have already done the initial character work, the rough blocking, and a stumble through- the bones of the show are in place. We are not yet in the crunch time of tech week, where the acting has to be locked in to accommodate lighting, sound, and other production elements.

It is nice to let the show percolate in my head for awhile. Sometimes in rehearsal, when i am on stage and in the moment, it is hard to take a step back and look at the larger picture. Rather than trying to remember which line was supposed to cue a cross or deciding what inflection should be placed on a phrase, I can look at the grander themes of the show and its imagery- how individual scenes and/or characters support the overall goals of the production.

It is a great cast and I am enjoying working with everyone. Each actor brings a unique perspective, great talent, great motivation, and a willingness to provide input to develop the show. I find it hard to lock in a charcter or a scene early in the rehearsal process, because so much depends on the other actors around you. At this point, however, I am comfortable with each of them and so I am confident in the direction that the show is going and in how I need to go in order to best support the show.

And the good news is that there is still time to further develop each character and each scene. There is little worse than realizing late in the rehearsal process that something on stage doesn't work or could be done better, only to conclude that nothing can be done about it because there isn't enough rehearsal time left to address it and fix it.

Rather than look at this week as a vacation from the show, then, I am looking forward to being able organize and refocus all of the thoughts from the work of the last couple of weeks. As I am confident that the rest of the cast is doing the same, I am excited to see how the show has progressed and matured even in the absence of a formal rehearsal. I think that it will be amazing!

-David Johnson
Actor

26 Miles - On the Journey; A Family of Friends

As I ready myself for the eleventh rehearsal for 26 Miles, I have to take the time to smile at how different my character and I are. But also the similarities we share. But now I'm starting to see the similarities in how I connect with my fellow cast mates, and how my character Olivia is connects to the casts characters.

In rehearsals, I have take into account that I am the baby of the cast. In my character Olivia’s life, she is babied by her father, Aaron. The gentleman playing my father is David Johnson, who I’ve done shows with since I was quite young. So I almost do see David Johnson as a father figure. Playing his daughter isn’t so tough, and we had a parent-child connection faster than I thought we would. Oddly enough, in other shows we’ve performed in, we never played family members. So, now I’m glad to share the stage with such a talented actor like David, while playing his daughter.

I had only worked with DeAnna Gonzales once, and it was earlier in the year. I had never performed or even auditioned with her before. I stage managed The V-Monologues at Artes De La Rosa, and she performed the monologue “I was in the room." So the only connection I had with her, was mostly when I was telling her she had 5 minutes before she went on stage. Short, and small connections. I had only heard of how wonderful it was to work with her, on stage. In a way, this represents her character, Beatriz’s relationship with my character, Olivia. Beatriz is Olivia’s mom, but lost custody of her when Olivia was very young. They only had short, and small meetings after the custody battle. Suddenly, DeAnna auditions the same night I do for 26 Miles. We connect quickly, read well together, and chat the night away. Suddenly, Beatriz suddenly shows up at Olivia’s house at 4am, and takes her on a spontaneous trip across the nation. The two characters connect, and quickly want to know what they’ve missed out on. Now that I’m in this show with DeAnna, I find myself close to her, as if she is one of my long lost family members.

The newest connection in my life, and Olivia’s life, is Carlos Iruegas. Carlos plays the part of Manuel Torres, the boyfriend of Beatriz. Olivia has only seen him a few times, and has known him the shortest amount of time. I’ve only known Carlos for a couple of months, after seeing him play the role of the lawyer in A View From The Bridge. (another ADLR show, produced back in September). In 26 Miles, Olivia and Manuel share an unexpected friendship, and both have something to relate to; Beatriz. Both Carlos and I are going to the same college (Tarrant County College) and sometimes find ourselves running lines in between classes. I feel at times that Carlos and I have developed a brother and sister relationship.

So here we are. A family. I see rehearsals almost as family dinners sometimes. Having only three other cast mates with me in the show, we can get a little intimate. We all share personal stories, a lot of laughs, and a lot of support for each other. I feel like I’m with my second family. I have love for each family member, including our director Adam Adolfo. Even if we do sometimes drive each other crazy.

-Georgia Marshelle Phillips
The Baby Gringa

26 Miles - On the Journey; The Power of an Intimate Family

I've done dramas, comedies and musicals; I've been in casts ranging in size from small, medium, and very large. But with only four actors, this is the smallest cast that I have ever been part of! While there is something majestic and awesome about seeing a cast of dozens executing choreography in perfect synchronization, there is something intimate yet powerful about a small, tight knit cast. And this is what excites me about the upcoming production of 26 Miles by Quiara Alegria Hudes having its Fort Worth Premiere at Artes de la Rosa Cultural Center for the Arts.

It has been noted by others before me that 26 Miles is a story about journeys, families, identity, and belonging. Ironically, the same can be said of theater productions themselves. The actors each have a role to play - it must be authentic on an individual level but still fit within the overall fabric of the play; And through the journey of the rehearsal process, the actors become a family, even if only within the limited context of the show.

The nice thing about such an intimate cast is that time can be spent developing relationships between actors first, which then flows naturally into relationships between the actors' characters. This is a luxury not afforded to larger casts, where more time must go to crowd management - the shear effort required to keep so many elements in motion.

Even after only a few rehearsals, I think that this cast is becoming increasingly comfortable with each other. I am excited to see this projected onto the stage in the coming weeks. The audience will experience the onstage journey (and I think they will be rewarded for coming with us on that journey), but the cast and crew get the additional satisfaction of the joy of journey that is the production itself.

And this is shaping up to be a good one!

26 Miles - On the Journey;

I had a hard time working out what I wanted to say in today’s Blog. We are all very excited to be given an opportunity to show a story that a whole lot of people haven’t seen yet. And that is after all why we do this, because we love telling a story. This one will be especially touching to a lot of people. While we may not have many things in common with the main characters most of us have at some point in our live felt lost. That’s part of growing up sometimes, getting lost, and finding that place that you can call home again. See this story and you will see parts of your own story, regardless of what background you came from.

That is after all one of the reasons we see shows and movies. Not just to get away for a little while, but also because it helps us understand events in our own lives. It helps us look at our own past with a fresh set of eyes. Those old arguments and disagreements that you may have had in the past, which you thought you were over, well sometimes they can still haunt you. All our characters in our show have broken relationships. Seemingly shattered beyond repair, but life isn’t like glass. Stories like this one shows us that no matter what happens you always have hope to repair what was once broken. Come see the wonderful show, and let us tell you a story of hope, and of second chances. Who knows, afterwards you may see hope in something that you thought was broken.

Carlos Iruegas, Actor
26 Miles

26 Miles - On the Journey; Taking the LEAP

What can I say… I have recently had a tremendous life journey, one that was good and bad, but one that has taught me a lot about myself and how to approach the world around me. What person doesn’t go through these kinds of things in a lifetime? Most of us do! Well, I’ll admit, I’m still learning, but I’m a little closer… I’m learning to take LEAPS.

And that is how 26 Miles speaks to me. Both women in this play are discovering to be the women they want to be… Stretching their comfort level to take a LEAP: traveling across country and forcing themselves to relate to one another. They are finding HOME in the sense of being in a place where they can truly belong and it is realized in their relationship as Mother and Daughter, no longer estranged.

At first I thought I could not connect with the role of Beatriz, the mother. Why not? I’m a Mother and we are about the same age. But that was just it… I could and it wasn’t just about being a Mother! It was about taking a leap of Faith. I am just like her. Maybe not in the exact situation but I’m learning to recover from past choices, whether made on my own or not. And Beatriz realized she needed to take a leap to make a change. And that is how we can all relate to this story. So I am taking a leap in this role, hoping I can organically portray her emotional journey to becoming the woman she wants to be!

-DeAnna Gonzales, Actress
"Beatriz" in 26 Miles

26 MILES - ON THE JOURNEY; And now a word from our token gringa...

And now a word from our token gringa..

When Artes De La Rosa announced their 2011-2012 season, I wanted to know what the December play was all about! I had read A View From The Bridge before, being an Arthur Miller fan. But I had only heard a little bit about Quiara Alegria Hudes’ play, 26 Miles. Not being a latina, I usually throw the chance of being in another ADLR show, to the back of my mind. I've always enjoyed the way ADLR takes pride in their culture, in beautiful and classic plays (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, View From The Bridge, The V-Monologues). Give the audience something they don't expect! But I'll tell you one thing.. It’s hard to find a theatre company that takes pride in Black Dutch/Cherokee Indian heritage!

Being a dance instructor for ADLR, 26 Miles kept my interest, seeing the season announcement on every brochure, poster, program, etc.. Something was calling me to read the script, and audition.

My best friend, who also works for ADLR, Rob Bosquez gave me a copy of the script one night at Stage West (A theatre also in Fort Worth). We also both work at SW in the Ol Vic’ Cafe. I sat down immediately, during my shift, and read the first few pages. I sipped on my ice cold diet dr pepper, snacked on veggie straws, in a dimly lit dinning area, and got lost in Hudes’ beautifully written piece. As my eyes traveled to the pages, the sentence that stuck with me, was the first in the script. It was a character description of Olivia. It read, OLIVIA: 15, looks white. Looks WHITE?! Did I read that right?! Well, I just might have a chance here..

Months later, I find myself at auditions, after reading the script dozens of times again. I read for Olivia, with a few ladies reading for the mother, Beatriz. A few days later, I read the email Adam sent offering me the role of Olivia, and all I could think was.. Well, they don’t call me the token gringa at ADLR, for NOTHING!

Half of the script, of 26 Miles, has to do with culture. It's important that the audience connects each character with where each character grew up. They all share different traditions, types of speech, manners.. And it all comes from their culture. I understand why Hudes' emphasizes why Olivia must look white, in the character description. She describes Beatriz as "Cuban, Dark Skin". It's very specifically written for each character's race.

It really is an honor to work with Adam Adolfo once again on the Rose Marine Stage. ADLR is great to work for, and they have never seriously offended me. Except for that one time the staff said my show proposition, "Cupcake; The Musical", wouldn't be a success. No hurt feelings, though.


-Georgia Marshelle Phillips
The Black Dutch, Cherokee, Gringa.

Let the Journey Begin - it'll only take 26 MILES

So I woke up this morning...and there was a chill in the world... a crispness to the breeze... an aroma in the air... it's the feeling of change, more acurately it's the feeling of the change that comes with a long journey.

This journey will take us 26 MILES into the heart of a story from a Latina Jewish Woman as she shares the trials and tribulations of mother daughter relationships! Quiara Alegria Hudes is the Pulitzer Prize Nominated Playwright of the Tony Award Winning Musical IN THE HIEGHTS. Her intimate and passionate family comedy 26 MILES captures a very special realtionship that will be presented on stage at The Rose Marine Theater by Artes de la Rosa. The story is simple...

The custody battle left them estranged for eight years. The road trip will take them two thousand miles across the country. This family comedy follows an opinionated Cuban mother and her shy Jewish daughter as this pair reunite to escape their reality, chasing their dreams, reminding us that the best souvenirs on the road of life are the relationships we make along the way...

We're very excited to be presenting this play this Holiday Season in its FORT WORTH PREMIERE... it's an escape from the sugar plum fairies and Christmas Carols around the city, but still of that celebratory family life style! It's a story for Mothers and Daughters to celebrate and get lost in. Last evening, the cast settled around a table with a couple of pizzas to meet eachother for the first time and read this phenomneal play aloud. As the words came out of their mouths, the air in the office began to crackle and a sense came that a very special story was begining on what will be for the cast and myself a very special journey. A journey that will ask us a very simple question...

HOW FAR DO YOU HAVE TO DRIVE TO FIND YOURSELF? 26 MILES.

Please meet the cast of the FORT WORTH PREMIERE of Quiara Alegria Hudes 26 MILES.

Starring as the fiery Cuban mother Beatriz, DeAnna Gonzales makes her Artes de la Rosa debut. Returning to the Rose Marine stage in the role of the sensitive misunderstood Jewish/Cuban daughter is Georgia Marshelle Phillips. Rounding out the cast as Father Aaron & StepFather Manuel respectively are Carlos Iruegas and David Johnson. Mr. Iruegas was last seen in Artes de la Rosa’s A View From The Bridge while Mr. Johnson is making his first appearance on the Rose Marine stage. Artes de la Rosa’s Artistic Director Adam Adolfo will direct & design this production with Lighting Design by Juan Gonzalez and Stage Management by Oliver Luke.


Photo of the Cast of 26 Miles after their First Rehearsal!

Over the next few weeks you'll get the opporutnity to meet the members of the cast as they blog for you their journey through the rehearsal process. If you have questions you'd like them to answer please feel free to comment here or on our Facebook and we'll make sure they answer those questions for you!

So, we've got a full tank of gas, a mixed cd of great songs, and our map... let the journey begin.

-Adam Adolfo
Artistic Director
Artes de la Rosa