SOL 8:
Christin Eve Cato
SANCOCHO
by Christin Eve Cato
directed by Rebecca Martinez
with Shirley Rumierk and Zuleyma Guevera
scenic design: Raul Abrego
costume design: Harry Nadal
lighting design: María Cristina Fusté
sound design: Germán Martinez
SANCOCHO
The Playwright:
Christin Eve Cato
Christin Eve Cato is a playwright and performing artist from the Bronx. She holds an MFA in Playwriting from Indiana University and completed her BA in Political Science and Philosophy at Fordham University. Cato is also a graduate of Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School for Music and Art and the Performing Arts. She is affiliated with NYC theater companies, Pregones/PRTT (ensemble member & former Resident Dramaturg), INTAR Theatre (UNIT 52 ensemble member), and the Latinx Playwrights Circle. Cato's artistic style is expressed through Caribbean culture and the Afro-Latinx diaspora, honoring her Puerto Rican and Jamaican roots. Recent Off-Broadway productions include "The Good Cop" (DUAF 2022) . Recent productions include, "Sancocho" (Vision Latino Theatre Company/ Destinos, 5th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival); "American Made" (Samuel French OOB Festival/ NYC); and an audio play journey, "The Mayor of Hell's Kitchen Presents: A Time Traveling Journey Through NYC's Wild West" (The Parsnip Ship & Playwrights Horizons/ NYC).
The Play:
Sancocho
Simmering between two Puerto Rican sisters is a family tension that finally comes to a boil. Forced to confront the reality of their father’s rapidly declining health, Renata and Caridad clash over cultural divides, unearth old wounds, and reveal long-buried secrets. As Caridad’s sancocho bubbles on the stove, will the two sisters reconcile their past resentments to face their uncertain futures – together?
The Director:
Rebecca Martinez
Rebecca Martinez (she/her) is an award-winning director and choreographer and the BOLD Associate Artistic Director at WP Theater. Upcoming projects include: "Living and Breathing" (Two River), a musical adaptation of "The Comedy of Errors" (The Public Theater’s Mobile Unit). Recent projects: "Los Complicados" (EST Marathon), "Randy’s Dandy Coaster Castle" (Egg & Spoon Collective), "Songs About Trains" (Working Theater and Radical Evolution), "Somewhere Over the Border" (Syracuse Stage and Geva Theatre). Rebecca has developed new work with The Public Theater, Amas Musical Theater, the O’Neill, Latinx Playwrights Circle, the Sol Project, NAMT, INTAR, Working Theater, The Playwrights Realm, among others. Affiliations: Sojourn Theatre Ensemble, 2021 TCG Rising Leaders of Color; Sol Project Collective, Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab, INTAR’s Unit52, New Georges Affiliated Artist, WP Lab, Drama League Directing Fellow, member of SDC. Awards: Colorado Henry Award for Directing; four Portland, Oregon Drammy Awards; Lilla Jewel Award for Women Artists. Rebecca is originally from Colorado with deep ancestral roots in the Southwest. rebeccamartinez.org
The Partner:
WP Theater
WP THEATER (Lisa McNulty, Producing Artistic Director; Michael Sag, Managing Director), now in its 45th Season, is the nation’s oldest and largest theater company dedicated to developing, producing, and promoting the work of Women+ at every stage of their careers. For over four decades, WP has served as leaders of a global movement towards gender parity – and the artists fostered have grown into a robust, thriving community in theater and beyond. WP empowers Women+ artists of all kinds to reach their full potential, challenging preconceptions about the kinds of plays they write and the stories they tell. Founded in 1978 by Julia Miles, WP Theater has earned acclaim as a home for Women+ theatermakers, historically marginalized in the field, to hone their craft while becoming leaders, change-makers, and advocates in the industry. To date, the company has produced more than 700 Mainstage productions and developmental projects and published 11 anthologies of plays by Women+ artists, and continues to forge forward in making a difference in the artistic landscape of New York and beyond, by offering these artists a platform to develop and present their stories. Today, WP accomplishes its mission through several fundamental programs, including: the WP Lab, a celebrated two-year mentorship and new play development program for Women+ playwrights, directors, and producers; the Space Program, providing inexpensive performance space to mission aligned small theater companies and individual artists; the Developmental series of workshops and readings; the Commissioning program, and the Mainstage series, which features a full season of Off-Broadway productions written and directed by extraordinary Women+ theater artists. Current artists under commission are: Donnetta Lavinia Grays, Emily Kaczmarek, MJ Kaufman, Sylvia Khoury, Zoe Sarnak, and Leah Nanako Winkler. WP Theater received a 2018 Lucille Lortel Award and an 2019 Obie Award, both for Outstanding Body of Work; and a 2020 Special Drama Desk Award recognizing WP and its founder, Julia Miles. As the premier launching pad for some of the most influential artists in theater, television, and film, WP’s work has a significant impact on the field. Nearly every notable female theater artist has been through its doors, including: 2019 Tony Winner Rachel Chavkin; two-time Pulitzer Prize Winner Lynn Nottage, 2018 Pulitzer Prize Winner Martyna Majok; MacArthur “Genius” Grant Winner & Tony Award Nominee Dominique Morisseau; Tony Winner Pam MacKinnon; and Tony Winner Diane Paulus. At WP, these powerful women found an early artistic home and are a testament to the organization’s role as a driving cultural force. *When we say Women+, we mean people who are cis women, trans, non-binary, or gender nonconforming people, and all gender identities which have been systematically oppressed throughout history in the theater and beyond.
The Producing Partner:
Latinx Playwrights Circle
Latinx Playwrights Circle (LPC) is an artist-led development and production organization for Latinx(é) playwrights. Founded in 2017 by playwrights Guadalís Del Carmen and Oscar Cabrera with the mission to build a network of Latinx(é) playwrights nationwide in order to promote, develop and elevate their work while making their plays accessible to theater makers looking to find the next generation of American Storytellers. Its programs include Sunday Service, Fresh Draft Series, Greater Good Commision and Festival, Intensive Mentorship Program, LPC Community Nights and Page-to-Stage, whose inaugural production is "Sancocho" by Christin Eve Cato. In 2020 LPC received a residency at Kabayitos Theater, located in the Clemente Soto Velez Center where it produces a portion of their programming. In 2022 LPC was awarded a Creatives Rebuild New York Grant (CRNY) as well as the HOLA Award for Excellence in Theater. For more information on Latinx Playwright Circle and its many programs please visit http://www.latinxplaywrights.com LPC embraces the ever evolving landscape of Latinidad and the names used to describe this community, including Latiné, Latinx, Hispanic, and the next generation of names to come. Like language itself, this is an ever evolving name.
Highlights
2024 Obie Award Winner for Performance: Zuleyma Guevara
"Sancocho" Extends Off-Broadway at WP Theater
BroadwayWorld | March 28, 2023
"Sancocho" Review: In "Sancocho," A Family Crisis is Cooking
The New York Times | March 24, 2023
Review: In "Sancocho," Two Sisters Stew Over the Legacy of Their Dying Father
TheatreMania | March 23, 2023