Tell Hector I Miss Him
By PAOLA LÁZARO
Directed by DAVID MENDIZÁBAL
Atlantic Stage 2
January 11 – February 19, 2017
Atlantic is thrilled to premiere Paola Lázaro’s vibrant, compelling play and introduce this bold new voice to audiences. She is Atlantic’s 2016|2017 Tow Playwright-in-Residence, supported generously by The Tow Foundation.
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You’re in Puerto Rico. Old San Juan. You’re a tourist, you walk down the stairs of this beautiful old fort built by the Spaniards. When you reach the bottom, you realize you’re in a hole. Welcome to the basement that lies under the tourism and behind the fort walls. You spend some days there, you don’t want to leave. Oh no, you’re addicted. Tell Hector I Miss Him unmasks a community built on the law of respect that keeps getting washed away but refuses to drown.
Cast & Creative
Victor Almanzar
Jeison
VICTOR ALMANZAR is a New York-based actor who came from the Dominican Republic at an early age. He appeared as Oswaldo in the Pulitzer Prize-winning Between Riverside and Crazy at Atlantic Theater, Second Stage Theater (New York) and Steppenwolf Theater (Chicago). His performance earned him a Lucille Lortel Award Nomination for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play. He also appeared as Oscar in Steppenwolf’s production of Grand Concourse. Victor recently shot a lead role in the feature film 11:55 and a supporting role in Brawl in Cell Block 99. Recent television credits include “Empire” (FOX), “Chicago PD” (NBC), “High Maintenance” (HBO) and “LFE” (CBS). Before turning his attention to acting, Victor was in the United States Marine Corp where he served in Kosovo and Iraq. Since then he has worked on the New York stage, regionally and in London. Victor received his MFA from The Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University.
Sean Carvajal
Palito
SEAN CARVAJAL is excited to make his Atlantic Theater debut. As an actor, some of his work includes: Ghetto Babylon (59E59), Lissabon (LaMaMa), Holy Land (HERE Arts Center), Seven Spots on The Sun (Cincinnati Playhouse), Dominica, That Fat Ugly Ho (LAByrinth Intensive Ensemble), Between Riverside and Crazy (Studio Theatre), Water by the Spoonful (Premiere Stages).
Alexander Flores
Toño
ALEXANDER FLORES is from the Bronx, New York and has been acting since he was a teenager. He attended the famed Professional Performing Arts School (PPAS). Alexander plays Winston in The Maze Runner and the sequel Scorch Trials, directed by Wes Ball. He also appeared in Delivery Man starring Vince Vaughn, directed by Ken Scott, Home as Thomas, directed by Jono Oliver and Twelve as Arturo, directed by Joel Schumacher. Other film and television credits include “Orange is the New Black,” “The Good Wife,” “The Greatest,” “The Wackness,” “Nurse Jackie,” “The Big C,” “Law and Order,” “Sopranos” and a recurring role on “Rescue Me.” Alexander also performed Off-Broadway in Slag Heap at the Cherry Lane Theatre and Guinea Pig Solo at The Public Theater (Labyrinth Theater Company). He has participated in readings such as You, Me, and the Lampshade by Raúl Castillo and Waiting for Godot alongside Ethan Hawke, Sam Rockwell, Bobby Cannavale and Peter Dinklage.
Yadira Guevara-Prip
Isis
YADIRA GUEVARA-PRIP is a NYC-based actress, singer and playwright. She can currently be seen in a recurring role on “Mad Dogs” for Amazon, opposite Michael Imperioli and Steve Zahn. On stage, Yadira most recently starred in Vertigo Theater’s production of Street Children, written by Pia Scala-Zankel. Yadira also appeared in Se Llama Cristina at Intar directed by Lou Moreno, as well as Basilica at the Cherry Lane Theatre.
Juan Carlos Hernández
Mostro
JUAN CARLOS HERNÁNDEZ. Broadway: Wait Until Dark. Off-Broadway: A Question of Mercy, Souls of Naples, A View From 151st Street, Big Al and Water Music. Regional: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Merry Wives of Windsor, King Lear, The Dresser, Filumena and The Milk Train Doesn’t Stop Here Anymore. Film: Tower Heist, Cop Out, The Mercy Man, Carlito’s Way: Rise to Power, War of the Worlds, Undefeated, Against the Ropes, High Crimes and In America. Television: “Oz,” “Madam Secretary,” “House of Cards,” “The Blacklist,” “The Mysteries of Laura,” “The Good Wife,” “Person of Interest,” “Blue Bloods,” “Law & Order,” “Law & Order: SVU” and “NYC 22.” Juan is a former host at New York Comedy Club and has done stand-up at various clubs in the city. He would like to dedicate this show to his late teacher and friend, Robert “Neff” Williams, with love and thanks.
Selenis Leyva
Samira
SELENIS LEYVA was last seen on stage in the production of Basilicaat the Cherry Lane Theatre and the title role in The Life and Music of Celia Cruz(New World Stages). She can be currently seen as “Gloria Mendoza” on Netflix’s “Orange is the New Black” now in its fifth season, for which The New York Times named Selenis as one of 2015’s top television performances. Ms. Leyva has been honored with receiving the 2014 Alma Award Special Achievement in Television, The Hola Jose Ferrer Tespis award and is a two-time Screen Actors Guild Winner (2014, 2015) for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series. Some of her past television appearances include “Madam Secretary” (CBS), “Veep” (HBO), “Girls” (HBO). She was recently named one of the 25 Most Powerful Women in 2016 by People en Español for her philanthropic work with Cancer Research, LGBTQ issues and children’s issues. Selenis can be seen in the new Spiderman movie (Marvel, Sony), coming out Summer 2017.
Talene Monahon
La Gata
TALENE MONAHON was recently seen in Alligator (New Georges/Sol Project). New York: Widower’s Houses (TACT/Gingold Theatrical Group), Permission (MCC), The Wild Party (Encores!) and Here’s Hoover (Les Freres Corbusier/Abrons). Regional credits include the world premieres of Confederacy of Dunces (Huntington Theater) and Hollywood (La Jolla Playhouse), in addition to productions of Carousel, Our Town, The Seagull and The Importance of Being Earnest. Her one woman show All in Good Fun was a hit at The United Solo Festival and has been produced across New England.
Flaco Navaja
Hugo
FLACO NAVAJA is a Puerto Rican actor/singer/poet who was raised in the Bronx, New York. Recent theater credits include: La Cancion (Spanish Rep theater), The Block (Working Theater), El Apagon (Pregones Theater Co), The Seven (New York Theater Workshop), Slanguage (New York Theatre Workshop). Television: “Blue Bloods” (CBS), “Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll” (FX), “CSI: NY” (CBS), “Law & Order CI” (NBC), “East Willy B” (web series), “Def Poetry” (HBO). Film: Babygirl, Gun Hill Road, Fighting, Pride and Glory.
Dascha Polanco
Malena
DASCHA POLANCO is recognized for her role as “Dayanara Diaz” on the hit Netflix series and SAG award winning show, “Orange is the New Black.” Polanco has also co-starred in the 20th Century Fox, Golden Globe-nominated film Joy directed by David O. Russell opposite Jennifer Lawrence. Last year, she starred in The Perfect Match, produced by Queen Latifah and Tom McCarthy’s The Cobbler with Adam Sandler. Polanco made her big screen debut opposite Vanessa Hudgens and Rosario Dawson in the film Gimme Shelter. In 2017, she will star in her first lead film by Adrian Martinez, iCreep. Polanco has been the Latin face for Old Navy commercials and the NFL’s Women’s Apparel campaign. Her achievements have been recognized by ALMA Awards, HOLA Awards and The National Association of Latino Independent Producers (Lupe Award). The Hollywood Reporter named her one of the 40 Young Latino Powerhouses in Hollywood.
Lisa Ramirez
Mami
LISA RAMIREZ. Originally from the Bay Area, Lisa performed at many CA theaters including The Magic Theater, Marin Theatre Company, Actors Theatre and The Ubuntu Theater Project, where she received 3 Bay Area Critics Circle Awards and a Dramalogue Award for her work. In New York, Lisa has performed at the Cherry Lane Theatre, Working Theater, NYTW, INTAR, Ontological-Hysteric Theatre. Lisa’s first play, Exit Cuckoo (nanny in motherland)was presented Off-Broadway by the Working Theater/Mark Plesent (Colman Domingo, director). Other writing credits include Art of Memory, commissioned by Company SoGoNo and presented at the Ontological-Hysteric Theater and 3-LD; TO THE BONE , commissioned by the Working Theater/Mark Plesent and produced by the Cherry Lane Theatre/Angelina Fiordellisi (Lisa Peterson, director); Pas De Deux (lost my shoe), commissioned by the Cherry Lane Theatre/Mentor Project 15. She is a proud recipient of the 2015 Helen Merrill Playwriting Award and has recently become a company member of Ubuntu Theater Project in Oakland, CA.
Luis Vega
El Mago
LUIS VEGA is an actor and a writer. He has appeared Off-Broadway and regionally at The Culture Project, South Coast Rep, Williamstown Theater Festival, INTAR and HERE Arts Center. Notable on-camera appearances include Another Earth (Sundance 2011/Fox Searchlight), Emoticon, Chinese Puzzle and the Bekah Brunstetter-penned web series “Heirloom.” As a writer, his first full-length play, The Last Barnstorm, will appear as part of Teatro Vivo’s Austin Latinx New Play Festival in March 2017. He has a BA in English from Columbia University and an MFA in Acting from UCSD. Company member of The Ubuntu Theater Project (Oakland, CA).
Analisa Velez
Tati
ANALISA VELEZ. Recent credits include: Queen Latina in Queen Latina and her Power Posse (Cherry Lane Theatre), Rockhead/Teressa in Entremeses (INTAR), Lucy in The Inheritance (The Amoralists), Xiomara in Dolphins & Sharks (The Fire This Time Festival), Raptor in Tenant Occupied (24 Hour Plays: Nationals) and Closet in Broken Motherhood Museum (NuAFrikan Theatre). Film Credits: SFTU and Green Brothers.TV credits include: “MASTERCLASS: Liv Ullmann” (HBO). Analisa is a proud founder of the street theatre collective, Raw Love Theatre. She would like to thank God, family, friends and mentors for the support as well as Paola, David, casting and the Atlantic family for the opportunity. Please follow @analisavelez.
Paola Lázaro
Playwright
PAOLA LÁZARO is a playwright and actress born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico. She holds a BFA in Dramatic Writing from SUNY Purchase College and an MFA in Playwriting from Columbia University. Paola is Atlantic Theater Company’s 2016/2017 Tow Playwright-in-Residence, supported by The Tow Foundation. She was a member of the Public Theater’s 2015 Emerging Writers Group and was selected as Playwright-in-Residence for the 2016 Sundance Theatre Lab in Morocco. Some of her plays include Contigo and There’s Always the Hudson, which was selected as part of Labyrinth Theater Company’s Up Next Series. Paola is the recipient of the Arts Entertainment Scholarship Award (2011) from the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts for her TV pilot episode of “Trópico”. In 2015, she was nominated for a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play for her role in TO THE BONE at the Cherry Lane Theatre. Gracias to my family and my friends for all the support, siempre.
David Mendizábal
Director
DAVID MENDIZÁBAL is a director, designer, and one of the Producing Artistic Leaders of The Movement Theatre Company in Harlem. At The Movement he directed Look Upon Our Lowliness by Harrison David Rivers, and Bintou by Koffi Kwahulé, translated by Chantal Bilodeau. Additional directing credits include: Locusts Have No King by J. Julian Christopher (INTAR), Evensong by Christina Quintana (APAC), and The Gospel According to F#ggots by Aurin Squire (BAX). Upcoming: Separate & Equal by Ricardo Pérez González (March ‘17), And She Would Stand Like This by Harrison David Rivers, choreographed by Kia LaBeija (July ‘17). Co-founder of The Sol Project, member of the Latinx Theatre Commons, and La Co-Operativa. Current recipient of TCG’s Leadership University Grant. Alumni of The Drama League, NALAC, LCT Directors Lab, and LAByrinth Intensive. B.F.A. NYU/Tisch – PHTS. davidmendizabal.com
Clint Ramos
Scenic Designer
CLINT RAMOS. Broadway: sets and/or costumes for Eclipsed (Tony Award), In Transit, Elephant Man (also West End), Violet. Off- Broadway & Regional: Over 100 shows including Sweet Charity, Here Lies Love (also London), Bootycandy, Familiar, Angels in America 1&2. Also the principal designer for Encores! Off-Center since the series’ inception. Other Design: Frozen at the Hyperion in California Adventure. Honors: OBIE Award for Sustained Excellence in Design, three Lucille Lortel Awards, the TDF Irene Sharif Young Master Award, two American Theatre Wing Henry Hewes Design Awards and a Helen Hayes Award. Upcoming: Sunday at the Park With George and Six Degrees of Separation on Broadway, David Byrne’s St. Joan: Into The Fire (Public), Kander and Pierce’s Kid Victory (Vineyard) and the West Coast Tour of Here Lies Love. clintramos.com
Dede M. Ayite
Costume Designer
DEDE M. AYITE. Off-Broadway: Marie and Rosetta (Atlantic); The Royale (Lincoln Center); Ugly Lies the Bone (Roundabout); brownsville song (b-side for tray) (LCT3); ToasT, Urban Retreat and Manahatta(The Public). Regional: The Last Tiger in Haiti (La Jolla Playhouse & Berkeley Rep); Bella: An American Tall Tale (Dallas Theater Center); The Wiz (OSF); Between Riverside and Crazy (Studio Theatre); The Blood Quilt (Arena Stage); Marie Antoinette (Steppenwolf Theatre); Stagger Lee (Dallas Theatre Center); The CA Lyons Project (Alliance Theatre); Five Guys Named Moe (Arena Stage, Cleveland Playhouse); A Raisin in the Sun (California Shakespeare Theater); The Piano Lesson (Yale Repertory Theatre); The Music Man in Concert (Two Rivers, NJPAC); Fried Chicken & Latkes (National Black Theatre); Holding it Down (Harlem Stage); Vassa (Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute). Television: Comedy Central; “Fox Shortcoms” (FOX Network); “COPPER Project” (Improv Everywhere/BBC America). MFA: Yale School of Drama.
Eric Southern
Lighting Designer
ERIC SOUTHERN is an OBIE Award-winning designer for theater, opera and dance. New York: 10×25, Good Television (Atlantic Theater); The Fever (Under the Radar/ The Public); The Harvest (Lincoln Center); Sell/Buy/Date (MTC); Pocatello, Indian Summer (Playwrights Horizons); Rimbaud in NY (BAM, The Civilians); Steve (New Group); Buyer and Cellar (New York, London, Mark Taper Forum, & National Tour); Collected Stories: memoir with David Lang (Carnegie Hall); Play/Pause (BAM, David Lang, Susan Marshall and Company); Chromatic (ADI, The Kitchen, Susan Marshall and Company). His extensive work with the award-winning group 600 Highwaymen has been seen throughout the US and Europe. Also: The Guthrie Theater, Virginia Opera, Long Wharf Theater, The Huntington Theater, Dallas Theater Center, The Kennedy Center, Baltimore Centerstage, Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, Williamstown Theater Festival, Kansas City Rep, Portland Center Stage, among others.
Jesse Mandapat
Sound Designer
JESSE MANDAPAT combines his skills as a composer and sound designer through location-based performance and immersive experiences. Recent sound designs include: 1984 (Greenway Court Theatre); Good Kids | Dog Sees God (Chapman University); Two Kids That Blow Shit Up (Artists At Play); Third (South Pasadena Theatre Workshop); Locusts Have No King (INTAR Theatre, NYC), a new work written by J. Julian Christopher and directed by David Mendizábal; Dry Land (Pomona College); Francesca Francesca (Edinburgh Fringe Festival); The Ravine (California Institute of the Arts). Associate Sound Design: Pearl (Lincoln Center NYC, David H Koch Theater). Other collaborations include: What Goes Around, a Kaiser Permanente Educational Theatre traveling production educating Southern California high school students on STD prevention; music research and creative development with Walt Disney Imagineering. Education: MFA in Design & Production from California Institute of the Arts; BA in Music from University of California, San Diego.
UnkleDave’s Fight-House
Fight Direction
UNKLEDAVE’S FIGHT-HOUSE is a team of fight directors founded by David Anzuelo. The core members are Jesse Geguzis, Sean F. Griffin and Gerry Rodriguez. Broadway credits: An American in Paris (Palace); Tuck Everlasting (Broadhurst); Disgraced (Lyceum). National tour: An American In Paris. London: Buried Child. Off-Broadway: Alligator (New Georges); Mercury Fur (The New Group); The Hill Town Plays (Rattlestick); Locusts Have No King(INTAR); Kill Floor (LCT3); Gray (Rising Phoenix). Regional: Mark Taper Forum, Goodman, Berkeley Rep, Dorset Theater Festival, Northern Stage. Film: Poor Behavior, Emoticon, The Ribbon, Last Night At Angelo’s, Helen At Risk.
Sol Crespo
Dialect Coach
SOL CRESPO is a New York-based actor, writer, director and producer. She is a Creative Partner at Flux Theatre Ensemble, producing and developing new work. She is also an Ensemble Member and Teaching Artist with Pregones Theater/Puerto Rican Traveling Theater. As a dialect coach, she has worked with Cedric Leiba Jr. (Millie and the Lords) and other private clients. She has won multiple awards including: HOLA Award for Outstanding Performance (2005); Ford Foundation Fellowship for Career Advancement (2007); Person of the Year by NYTheatre.com (2012) and The Eben Demarest Trust by The Pittsburgh Foundation (2016). She reps Caimito Alto, Puerto Rico. solmarina.com
Laura Smith
Production Stage Manager
LAURA SMITH. NY: Signature Theater: Antipodes (workshop); Juilliard: Appropriate; Baltimore Center Stage: Detroit ’67, As You Like It, 4000 Miles, After the Revolution, It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play, Amadeus, Wild with Happy, Twelfth Night, Stones in His Pockets, dance of the holy ghosts, Clybourne Park, Beneatha’s Place, The Mountaintop, Bus Stop, An Enemy of the People, The Whipping Man, Gleam, The Rivals, Snow Falling on Cedars, Cyrano, Working it Out, Fabulation or, The Re-Education of Undine, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. Other Regional: Shakespeare Theater Company: Salome; CATF: World Builders; Everyman: Pygmalion, Shipwrecked, The Exonerated, Rabbit Hole, Doubt, Gem of the Ocean, And a Nightingale Sang, The School for Scandal, A Number, Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me, Yellowman; Woolly Mammoth: Gruesome Playground Injuries, House of Gold, The Unmentionables, Vigils, After Ashley; Folger: Measure for Measure; Olney Theatre: Stuff Happens.
Lindsay Eberly
Assistant Stage Manager
LINDSAY EBERLY. NY: Theater For One at Signature Theatre, Carnegie Hall’s West Side Story. Baltimore Center Stage: The Secret Garden, Pride & Prejudice, 4000 Miles, After the Revolution, It’s a Wonderful Life, Amadeus, Twelfth Night, A Civil War Christmas, Animal Crackers, Beneatha’s Place, Clybourne Park, The Mountaintop, The Completely Fictional…Final Strange Tale of E.A. Poe. CATF: The Second Girl, pen/man/ship, WE ARE PUSSY RIOT, The Full Catastrophe, Dead & Breathing, The Ashes Under Gait City, Modern Terrorism, Scott & Hem in the Garden of Allah, The Insurgents, Ages of the Moon, Inana, and The Eelwax Jesus 3-D Pop Music Show. Hartford Stage: Queens For A Year. Berkshire Theater Festival: A Thousand Clowns, Homestead Crossing. Huntington: Circle Mirror Transformation. Royal Court: Haunted Child.
Reviews
“Life, in all its messy glory, overflows the stage of the Atlantic Theater in this dynamically staged production. Lázaro’s animated ensemble piece unearths the volatile residents of a close-knit community, and a vibrant acting company breathes live into every quirky character!”
Marilyn Stasio, Variety
“Lázaro is a spinner of vivid tales possessed of a sharp ear for language and a keen eye for the humane comic detail. [She] has been blessed with a superb company and a director who keeps a firm hand on the chaos, establishing an engaging balance between comedy and pathos as these characters work their way under our skin. I’d have happily spent more time with them!”
Jeremy Gerard, Deadline
Photos
Photos by Ahron R. Foster