JOSEFINA LOPEZ, Founding Artistic Director and EMMANUEL DELEAGE, Executive Director Proudly Announce CASA 0101 Theater’s 25th Anniversary Season Kicking Off With The World Premiere of MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMEN ON THE VERGE)
Four One-Act Plays In Celebration of Women’s “HER”story Month
Written By: Lindsey Haley, Mariana Herrera, Maria G. Martinez & Raquel Salinas
Directed By: Olivia Chumacero, Jacqueline Guido, Karla Ojeda & Vilma Villela
Starring: Alejandro Bravo, Tricia Cruz, Tina D’Marco, Alejandra Flores, Carmelita Maldonado, Gisel Murillo, Ariana Raygoza, Saul Rodriguez, Raquel Salinas, Jasia Topete & Myrna Velasco
Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. and Sundays at 3:00 p.m.
Four-Week Run: February 28 – March 23, 2025
GLORIA MOLINA AUDITORIUM AT CASA 0101 THEATER 2102 EAST FIRST STREET (AT ST. LOUIS STREET) LOS ANGELES, CA 90033
Los Angeles, CA (February 21, 2025) – Josefina López, Founding Artistic Director and Emmanuel Deleage, Executive Director proudly announce the 25th Anniversary Season of CASA 0101 Theater will kick off with the World Premiere of MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMEN ON THE VERGE), Four One-Act Plays in celebration of Women’s “HER”story Month, to be presented on Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m., and on Sundays at 3:00 p.m. for a Four-Week run, February 28 – March 23, 2025 in the Gloria Molina Auditorium at CASA 0101 Theater, 2102 East First Street (at St. Louis Street), in the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles, CA 90033.
MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMEN ON THE VERGE) brings together four one-act plays that explore love, friendship, ambition and the unexpected turns in life. From former Pachucas reigniting an old rivalry (Pleito) (Flight), to best friends sweating through menopause and tough choices (The Fan Club), to a woman whose dreams of writing are sidelined by caregiving (La Noche de Anoche) (Last Night), to a holiday gathering that unravels a lifetime of addiction (La Mano de Dios) (The Hand of God).
Playwrights include: Lindsey Haley, Mariana Herrera, Maria G. Martinez and Raquel Salinas. Directors include: Olivia Chumacero, Jacqueline Guido, Karla Ojeda and Vilma Villela. Actors include: Alejandro Bravo, Tricia Cruz, Tina D’Marco, Alejandra Flores, Carmelita Maldonado, Gisel Murillo, Ariana Raygoza, Saul Rodriguez, Raquel Salinas, Jasia Topete and
Myrna Velasco.
Josefina López, Founding Artistic Director of CASA 0101 Theater, said: “I started CASA 0101 Theater 25 years ago with a student loan from UCLA with the hope of establishing a safe and welcoming artistic space to nurture the talents of aspiring Latino and women writers to provide them with hands on experience and opportunities to develop their craft, so that they could go out into the world to create their own destinies. And now, 25 years later, I believe we have accomplished that goal, and we aspire to continue doing the same in the years that lie ahead.”
Emmanuel Deleage, Executive Director of CASA 0101 Theater, said: “Since our humble beginnings as an all-volunteer organization running out a storefront venue our little theater that could has flourished and grown into a leading arts venue on Los Angeles’ East Side dedicated to providing vital arts, cultural, and educations programs in theatre, digital filmmaking, art and dance – to Boyle Heights. Over the last 25 years, we have presented over 125 productions, many of which were World Premieres.”
Other productions in CASA 0101 Theater’s 25th Anniversary Season, (subject to change), will include: Visions and Voices, in association with CASA 0101 Theater Present Homeboy The Musical, A Staged Reading, April 3 – 6, 2025; Tuesdays With Morrie written by Jeffrey Hatcher and Mitch Albom, to be presented April 18 – May 11, 2025; Macha Theatre Company in association with CASA 0101 Theater Present FRIDA – Stroke of Passion – The Immersive Experience, written by Odalys Nanin, to be presented May 16, 17 and 18, 2025; En Mi Jardín: The Corazon Chronicles, One Day Reading To Be Announced; Macha Theatre Company in association with CASA 0101 Theater Present My Return to Cuba by Odalys Nanin, to be presented August 15 – 31, 2025; the World Premiere of Fernando Mania Forever, A Collection of Short Plays, including one written by Josefina López, Celebrating The Life and Legacy of Los Angeles Dodgers Pitcher, Fernando Valenzuela, to be presented September 12 – 28, 2025; the World Premiere of Electrico, a new play by Josefina López directed by Corky Dominguez, to be presented October 10 – November 2, 2025; and the musical, The Prince of Egypt, with Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, Orchestral Score by Hans Zimmer and Book by Philip LaZebnick, to be presented November 21 – December 21, 2025.
More About MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMEN ON THE VERGE)
Kicking off CASA 0101 Theater’s 25th Anniversary Season will be the World Premiere MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMEN ON THE VERGE), in which four Chicana playwrights present four original one-act plays. They are:
Pleito (Flight) is written by Lindsey Haley (of Santa Monica) directed by Vilma Villela (of Panorama City) starring Carmelita Maldonaldo (of El Sereno) as Lupita Delgado, Myrna Velasco (of Santa Clarita) as Pauline, Jasia Topete (of Highland Park) as Jasmine, Saul Rodriguez (of Pico Rivera) as Mr. Montes, Alexandra Flores (of Montebello) as Mrs. Sanchez, Tricia Cruz (of Koreatown) as Mrs. Ramirez, Tina D’Marco (of Alhambra) as La Red and Alejandro Bravo (of Culver City) as Mr. DeLeon. In Pleito former Pachucas and fierce Chicana seniors reunite to settle a decades-old feud over love, loyalty and a saxophonist who stole more than just a heart. As old wounds resurface, one thing is clear – some rivalries never fade, they just get bolder. Lindsey Haley said, “While taking playwriting classes at CASA 0101 Theater, Josefina López asked me if I had been a Chola, to which I responded, ‘yes.’ Josefina then gave me an idea about writing a play about Senior Cholas fighting with their walker and cane. I ran with the idea and set the conflict of the play in 1965 when the two women were 18-years-old Pachucas, a precursor to Cholas. Decades later, the women are now residents of an Assisted Living Home and are now forced to face the betrayal of the man they fell in love with and how he changed the trajectory of their lives.”
The Fan Club is written by Mariana Herrera (of El Sereno), directed by Karla Ojeda (of East Los Angeles) and starring Gisele Murillo (of Long Beach) as Sonia Gomez, Alejandro Bravo (of Culver City) as Marco, Myrna Velasco (of Santa Clarita) as Anna, Carmelita Maldonaldo (of El Sereno) as Terry, Tricia Cruz (of Koreatown) as Diana and Saul Rodriguez (of Pico Rivera) as Raul. In The Fan Club Sonia’s friends ascertain that the myriad of symptoms Sonia experiences may be signaling the onset of perimenopause. Sonia must decide if she will grow her business or stay in a relationship. Mariana Herrera said: “I was inspired to write about menopause when I arrived at a restaurant and noticed that all my friends were all fanning themselves simultaneously and discovered that they were all experienceing hot flashes. I thought it would be funny to write about their experiences.”
La Noche de Anoche (Last Night) is written by Maria G. Martinez (of Pico Rivera) directed by Jacquline Guido (of Whittier) starring Carmelita Maldonado (of El Sereno) as Maria, Alejandra Flores (of Montebello) as Luz and Ariana Raygoza (of Highland Park) as Vanessa. La Noche de Anoche is the story of Maria who retires early to pursue her dreams of becoming a writer. Maria’s dreams are derailed when she becomes a full-time caregiver for her mother, Luz. The physical and emotional demands of caregiving come to a head when Vanessa, Maria’s daughter, visits and witnesses the changes in the family dynamics including the isolation of her mother, the absence of her father and the physical and emotional deterioration of her mother. Maria’s resistance to remedy the situation addresses her overwhelming stress and anxiety that many caregivers experience.” Maria G. Martinez said, “My personal experience taking care of my mother was my inspiration in writing this play.”
In La Mano De Dios (The Hand of God), a one-person show, written by and starring Raquel Salinas (of the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles), directed Olivia Chumacero (of Los Angeles), a middle-aged woman attends a Christmas family gathering and finds no one at home. The play takes the audience along the protagonist’s journey of alcohol addiction, beginning with her experiences as an innocent teenager who takes her first drink, to the continuous and unexpected appearance of miniature tequila bottles that appear through a lifetime. Raquel Salinas said she began writing the piece in CASA 0101 Theater’s writing workshop for Chicanas, Cholas y Chisme and it is now a one-act play.”
Tickets for the Four-Week Run of MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMAN ON THE VERGE), to be presented from February 28 – March 23, 2025 are $25.00 per person for General Admission; $22.00 per person for Students and Seniors 60+ and $20 per person for Boyle Heights residents and Groups of 10 of more. The official press opening night of the play for reviewers will be on Friday, February 28, 2025 at 8:00 p.m.; press are also welcome to review any performances thereafter during the run of the show. To view a Sneak Preview of the show, please visit: https://youtu.be/-em7Bit6tXI
This show has a PG-13 recommendation for strong language and mature themes. Advance reservations are highly recommended. For tickets, please call the CASA 0101 Theater Box Office at 323-263-7684, E-mail tickets@casa0101.org, or buy online at www.casa0101.org Join the conversation on Facebook @CASA0101Theater; on Twitter @CASA0101 and on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/user/casa0101theater
Free Parking is available on several streets surrounding the theatre. Limited Free Parking is also available at the Boyle Heights City Hall Parking Lot located at 2130 East First Street (at Chicago Street) by entering the lot from Chicago Street.
Concurrently during the run of the show, MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMAN ON THE VERGE), a FREE Art Exhibit entitled, ABSTRACT TO CONCRETE: BARRIO EXPRESSIONS, examining the relations between abstract and concrete contemporary Barrio art, will be available to be viewed in the Jean Deleage Art Gallery, located in the lobby of CASA 0101 Theater. Curated by Jimmy Centeno, the exhibit will feature the work of five artists including: Richard Valdes, Arturo Urista, Carlos Rojas, Fernando Barragan and Jimmy Centeno. The exhibit will open on Saturday, March 1, 2025 with an Opening Reception from 3:00 – 6:00 p.m. The exhibit can be viewed prior to performances of MUJERES ON THE VERGE, and during Art Gallery Hours, which are Tuesdays through Fridays from 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
The production team for MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMAN ON THE VERGE) includes: Josefina López (of the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles, CA), Founding Artistic Director, CASA 0101 Theater; Emmanuel Deleage (of Silver Lake, CA), Producer and Executive Director, CASA 0101 Theater; Edward Padilla (of the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles, CA) Casting Director and CASA 0101 Theater Board Member; Raquel Salinas (of the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles) Playwright; Mariana Herrera (of El Sereno, CA) Playwright; Maria G. Martinez (of Pico Rivera, CA) Playwright; Lindsey Haley (of Santa Monica, CA) Playwright; Olivia Chumacero (of Los Angeles, CA) Director; Karla Ojeda (of East Los Angeles, CA) Director; Jacqueline Guido (of Whittier, CA) Director; Vilma Villela (of Panorama City, CA), Director; Alejandro Parra (of Burbank, CA) Lighting Designer; Audrey Szot (of Pico Robinson, CA) Set Designer/Prop Master; Mari Mercado (of East Los Angeles, CA) Costume Designer; Angelica Ornelas (of North Hollywood, CA) Stage Manager and Sound Designer; Doreen Sanchez (of Hollywood, CA) Assistant Stage Manager; Lorena M. Ortega (of Huntington Beach, CA) CASA 0101 Theater Director of Outreach and Productions; Mark Kraus (of Los Angeles, CA), CASA 0101 Theater Development Director; Itzel Ocampo (of Alhambra, CA) Graphic Artist and CASA 0101 Theater Marketing and Operations Manager; Miguel Delgado (of Huntington Park, CA) CASA 0101 Theater Technical Director; Gabriela López de Dennis, Soap Studio Inc. (of Los Angeles, CA) Program; Jorge Villanueva (of the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles, CA) Facilities Manager; Oscar Basulto (of the Boyle Heights of Los Angeles, CA) Box Office Manager; Al Aguilar (of Los Angeles, CA) Production Assistant; Rudy Torres (of Los Angeles, CA) Production Photographer and Steve Moyer Public Relations (of Los Angeles, CA), Press Representative.
CASA 0101 Theater is supported in part by: Los Angeles County Department of Arts & Culture, National Latinx Theater Initiative, Herb Alpert Foundation, Perenchio Foundation, The City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs and U.S. Bank.
About The Founders of CASA 0101 Theater:
Josefina López (Founding Artistic Director of CASA 0101 Theater/Writer/Director/Producer/Performer/Author/Activist/Shaman) (of the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles, CA) is best known for authoring the play and co-authoring the 2002 SUNDANCE AWARD WINNING film Real Women Have Curves. López started her writing career at 17 and has had over 130 productions produced of her many plays throughout the country. She has been working as a professional screenwriter in Hollywood for over 30 years with countless development deals and screenplay assignments. She has worked with many established producers like Norman Lear (“All In the Family”) and Michael McDonald (“American Crime”) to bring Latinos to television.
Born in San Luis Potosi, Mexico on March 19, 1969, Josefina López was five-years-old when she and her family migrated to the United States and settled in the East Los Angeles neighborhood of Boyle Heights. López was undocumented for 13 years before she received Amnesty in 1987 and eventually became a U.S. Citizen in 1995. She is a graduate of Columbia College Chicago, has an MFA in Screenwriting from UCLA’s School of Film/Television & Theater, as well as a Diplome de Cuisine from Le Cordon Bleu, Paris, France. She has also attended the New School of Cooking in Culver City, CA where she studied cuisine with a California touch and making pastries, as well as at the Gourmandise Cooking School in Santa Monica, where she studied chocolate making, bread making, pasta making and pastries
As the Founding Artistic Director of CASA 0101 Theater in the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles, CA, her commitment is to present plays that celebrate and shatter the myths and stereotypes of Women and Latinos and she teaches playwriting, screenwriting, and producing to a new generation of Latinos and women artists.
López is the recipient of numerous awards and accolades, including a formal recognition from U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer’s 7th Annual “Women Making History in Hollywood” in1998; and a Screenwriting Fellowship from the California Arts Council in 2001. She and Real Women Have Curves co-author George LaVoo won the HUMANITIES PRIZE for Screenwriting in 2002, The Gabriel Garcia Marquez Award from Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn in 2003, and the Artist-in-Residency grant from the National Endowment for the Arts/Theatre Communications Group in 2007. Her first short play, Simply Maria or the American Dream was filmed as a PBS special and won a Gold Award from the Corporation of Public Broadcasting and an Emmy Award. Josefina López was also the recipient of the 2023 Your Voice Carries Weight Award presented at the 2023 The Creative Coalition Humanitarian Awards Gala, and CASA 0101 Theater, the theater she founded, was the recipient of the Eastside Arts Initiative 2023 Innovative Arts Organization of the Year Award.
As an author López has penned numerous books including: Real Women Have Curves and Other Plays, Detained In The Desert and Other Plays, Real Women Have Curves, A Study Guide for Josefina López’s Real Women Have Curves, 8 Ways To Say I Love My Life!, Confessions of Women from East L.A, the novel, Hungry Women in Paris and the Children’s Book, Shine, Shine, Shine Bright (The Antonio Villaraigosa Story).
Aside from her signature play, Real Women Have Curves, Josefina López’s cannon of plays also includes: Simply Maria, or the American Dream; Confessions of Women from East L.A.; Boyle Heights; Remembering Boyle Heights I and II, Hungry Woman in Paris; Detained in the Desert (which was also made into a feature film); Trío Los Machos; A Cat Named Mercy; Piñata Dreams; Drunk Girl; Lola Goes To
Roma, The Voice Lesson, An Enemy of the Pueblo, 20 Pounds To Happiness, the Fotonovela, Queen of the Rumba (screenplay and play) and the screenplay, Add Me To The Party.
Josefina López’s original play, Real Women Have Curves, and the HBO film, Real Women Have Curves written by Josefina López and George LaVoo, are the source materials for an adaptation of the new Broadway show, Real Women Have Curves: The Musical, which will debut in New York at the James Earl Jones Theatre on Sunday, April 27, 2025. The musical is being produced by Barry and Fran Weissler and Jack Noseworthy, directed and choreographed by Sergio Trujillo, with Book by Lisa Loomer with Nell Benjamin, Music and Lyrics by Joy Huerta and Benjamin Velez, with Music Supervision by Nadia Digiallnardo and Casting by X Casting and Arc Casting. The production received its World Premiere production at American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) in the Loeb Drama Center in Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA, in December of 2023 and January of 2024. Learn more at https://realwomenhavcurvesbroadway.com
The prolific Josefina López is currently working on numerous writing projects for the stage, screen and for print. López’s latest new play entitled, Electrico, a Feminist Western dealing with the lynching of Mexicans in 1908, will debut at CASA 0101 Theater later this season. She is also working on her memoir titled Real Women Have Courage. For more information about Josefina López please visit: www.Josefinalopez.biz and www.casa0101.org
Emmanuel Deleage (Show Producer and Executive Director of CASA 0101 Theater) is a graduate of UCLA in World Arts and Cultures. While in college he joined the skid row theater troupe, Los Angeles Poverty Department, founded by performance artist John Malpede. He later became the company’s administrator. In 2001 he formed his own company Courage Productions, and produced Armand Gatti’s Public Song Before Two Electric Chairs at the Los Angeles Theater Center. He also met Josefina López that same year, and merged Courage with the newly formed CASA 0101 Theater. He is currently the Executive Director of CASA 0101. He has overseen the growth of CASA 0101 from an all-volunteer organization running out of a storefront venue, to becoming a leading arts organization in Boyle Heights offering a full season of theater productions, arts education classes and art exhibitions. He also has had the privilege of working with theater directors, Peter Sellars, Gino Zampieri, Pascal Rambert and Armand Gatti. At CASA 0101 Theater, he has directed The Imaginary Life of the Street Sweeper August G by Armand Gatti, Locked Up and You Don’t Know Me by Patricia Zamorano, Nat Turner by Randolph Edmonds and Food for the Dead, by Josefina López. He recently co-produced, along with Brown Fist Productions, a critically acclaimed production of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, as well as the critically acclaimed productions of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and World Premiere productions of Josefina Lopez’s plays, Queen of the Rumba and A Woman Named Gloria. As a writer, his first play was Selma Worth, about homelessness and finding self worth. His second play, which he directed and co-wrote with Lorenzo Alfredo, was An L.A. Journey.
About CASA 0101 Theater:
CASA 0101 Theater, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, was founded 25 years ago by Founding Artistic Director, Josefina López, author of Real Women Have Curves, in 2000 to fulfill her vision of bringing art and live theater programs to Boyle Heights. From its humble beginnings in a former bridal shop, CASA 0101 Theater has established itself as a leading arts venue for Los Angeles’ East Side, currently offering year round theatrical productions and classes in dramatic writing and acting for youth and adults. CASA 0101 Theater is dedicated to providing vital arts, cultural, and educations programs in theatre, digital filmmaking, art and dance – to Boyle Heights, thereby nurturing the future storytellers of Los Angeles. CASA 0101 is named such, as casa means house of home in Spanish. 0’s and 1’s are the binary language computers use to operate. CASA 0101 Theater was founded at the dawn of the digital age, when digital cameras started appearing and moviemaking became accessible to more people. Early on Josefina López taught digital video classes. Though the organization subsequently focused its energies on theatre and not digital filmmaking, the name stuck. To learn more, please visit www.casa0101.org
Theatre Calendar Listing
CASA 0101 Theater Presents The World Premiere of MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMEN ON THE VERGE)
WHO & WHAT: Josefina López, Founding Artistic Director and Emmanuel Deleage, Executive Director proudly announce the 25th Anniversary Season of CASA 0101 Theater will kick off with the World Premiere of MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMEN ON THE VERGE), Four One-Act Plays in celebration of Women’s “HER”story Month, to be presented in the Gloria Molina Auditorium at CASA 0101 Theater, 2102 East First Street (at St. Louis Street), in the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles, CA 90033, February 28 – March 23, 2025.
MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMEN ON THE VERGE) brings together four one-act plays that explore love, friendship, ambition and the unexpected turns in life. From former Pachucas reigniting an old rivalry (Pleito) (Flight), to best friends sweating through menopause and tough choices (The Fan Club), to a woman whose dreams of writing are sidelined by caregiving (La Noche de Anoche) (Last Night), to a holiday gathering that unravels a lifetime of addiction (La Mano de Dios) (The Hand of God).
Playwrights include: Lindsey Haley, Mariana Herrera, Maria G. Martinez and Raquel Salinas. Directors include: Olivia Chumacero, Jacqueline Guido, Karla Ojeda and Vilma Villela. Actors include: Alejandro Bravo, Tricia Cruz, Tina D’Marco, Alejandra Flores, Carmelita Maldonado, Gisel Murillo, Ariana Raygoza, Saul Rodriguez, Raquel Salinas, Jasia Topete and Myrna Velasco.
WHERE: MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMAN ON THE VERGE) will be presented at CASA 0101 Theater in the Gloria Molina Auditorium, 2102 East First Street (at Louis Street) across the street from the Hollenbeck Police Station, Los Angeles, CA 90033.
WHEN & HOW: Tickets for the Four-Week Run of MUJERES ON THE VERGE (WOMAN ON THE VERGE), to be presented on Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. and Sundays at 3:00 p.m. from February 28 – March 23, 2025 are $25.00 per person for General Admission; $22.00 per person for Students and Seniors 60+ and $20 per person for Boyle Heights residents and Groups of 10 of more. The official press opening night of the play for reviewers will be on Friday, February 28, 2025 at 8:00 p.m.; press are also welcome to review any performances thereafter during the run of the show. To view a Sneak Preview of the show, please visit: https://youtu.be/-em7Bit6tXI
This show has a PG-13 recommendation for strong language and mature themes. Advance reservations are highly recommended. For tickets, please call the CASA 0101 Theater Box Office at 323-263-7684, E-mail tickets@casa0101.org, or buy online at www.casa0101.org <http://www.casa0101.org> . Join the conversation on Facebook @CASA0101Theater; on Twitter @CASA0101 and on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/user/casa0101theater
Free Parking is also available on several streets surrounding the theatre. Limited Free Parking is also available at the Boyle Heights City Hall Parking Lot located at 2130 East First Street (at Chicago Street) by entering the lot from Chicago Street.