La Jolla Playhouse will host the eighth Latinx New Play Festival later this month, with four scripts by Latinx playwrights running Nov. 21 through 23.
Launched in 2016 at San Diego Repertory Theatre, the LNPF is now co-produced by the Playhouse and TuYo Theatre, which is a Latinx company founded in 2018. This year’s festival was also curated by TuYo’s co-artistic director Maria Patrice Amon. The festival was created to expand the presence of Latinx stories and artists on the American stage and celebrate the range of today’s Latinx experience.
For this year’s festival, four scripts were selected from more than 150 submissions. Each of the four plays will be rehearsed and developed at the Playhouse before a live reading before an audience.
In addition to the play readings, there will be an artistic and literary panel at 6 p.m. Nov. 21, a local project presentation at 2 p.m. Nov. 22, and a scholar panel at 1 p.m. Nov. 23. There will also be receptions at the end of each day’s programming.
“This year’s Latinx New Play Festival once again showcases a terrific lineup of new plays by an incredibly talented group of playwrights,” said Amon. “TuYo is thrilled to partner with the Playhouse to develop these new works and collaborate with artists from across the country to bring their scripts to life.”
Here are the four plays featured at this year’s festival and the time and date of their public readings.
“Novios” by Arturo Luíz Soria — 7 p.m. Nov. 21
A motley crew of cooks hurl insults, harass each other and compete to be the most macho en el calor (“male in heat”) in a gringo’s failing kitchen, all under the thumb of chef Gallo. When a flamboyant new dishwasher sparks an affair with Luiz, Gallo’s ward, the cooks’ banter turns deadly. Gallo must wrangle the men to keep the restaurant open while wrestling with her own demons that threaten to push Luiz away forever.
“Tempt Me” by Andrew Rincón — 3 p.m. Nov. 22
God starts the world with light. But then the Devil (call him Lucy) suddenly appears on stage. He speaks into a microphone and asks the audience to imagine the stage as a familiar Garden. But things seem strange in Paradise. There’s a lonely lisping animal, inventingdance. Eve is overworked and facing a crisis. Adam’s a hot idiot. And when a mysterious woman sneaks her way into the Garden, Lucy finds himself taking the audience on a metatheatrical journey that twists narratives of good and evil.
“Ama. Egg. Oyá” by Lori Felipe-Barkin — 7 p.m. Nov. 22
A papaya falls from between Ama’s legs and breaks into pieces, meaning she has had another miscarriage. Hailing from Hialeah, Florida, Ama is hell-bent on having a child. It’s no wonder she feels an affinity towards Oyá, a barren African Orisha. As told through a series of fables, this bilingual play blends modern-day Miami and Cuban beats with Santería to examine infertility, motherhood and maternal ambivalence.
“Our Lady of the San Diego Convention Center” by Mario Vega — 2 p.m. Nov. 23
Lulu and Milli are hired to work as youth care workers at the San Diego Convention Center, which is being used as a shelter for young migrant girls. As time passes, Lulu and Milli are tested by the changing rules and restrictions at their job. This new play is written by San Diego local, Mario Vega, a graduate of San Diego State University, and the playwright and book writer for Pásale Pásale featured at La Jolla Playhouse’s 2024 WOW Festival.
2025 Latinx New Play Festival
When: Nov. 21-23
Where: Play Development Center, La Jolla Playhouse, 2910 La Jolla Village Drive, La Jolla
Admission: All tickets are reserved, but a waitlist is available at formspring-xpeow.formstack.com/forms/2025_latinx_waitlist