Players packed house applauds bilingual Mariachi Girl

As audience members began filling the Wimberley Playhouse on Saturday afternoon, the Wimberley Players knew they had taken a chance on a new idea —and the outcome they had hoped for was coming true.

Solo patrons, groups of friends, moms and dads and carloads of kids, both Anglo and Latino, were arriving for a very special bilingual event. Many families were introducing their children to a theater experience for the first time.

In a first for Wimberley, the Players presented Teatro Vivo, a bilingual theatre whose home is the Mexican American Cultural Center of Austin, in a staged reading of the children’s musical, Mariachi Girl.

In his welcoming remarks, David Bisett, president of the Players, noted, “People have always told stories. From way back to the days we still lived in caves and sat around a fire at night, we have told stores about what happened to us today, what we want to happen tomorrow, our hopes and dreams. We still tell stories and they are still important. Today we welcome new storytellers to our stage. To tell us a story many of us have never heard before.”

And the staged reading began. Skilled actors in simple black attire told the story of a young girl’s dream, singing and speaking their roles to a packed house. The enthusiastic audience frequently burst into applause.

Without costuming or scenery, the cast successfully conveyed all the energy, emotion, conflict and wry humor of a family facing a clash of generationsin any language. But this family is struggling with a new understanding of what preserving traditions can mean. The young daughter, Carmencita, played by Genevieve Schroeder-Arce, wants to be a mariachi like her dad. He says in this family, only men and boys can be mariachis.

The show’s original songs were rendered beautifully by the cast. In addition to the young lead, the actors were: Alejandra Murga, Julian Gamez-Arizola, Juan Leyva, Mario A. Ramirez, and Lesly Reynaga. Mariachi musicians included Joshua Garcia, Noah Galloso and Julian Gamez-Arizola who played Carmencita’s father.

As narrator, Natasha Cosme-Batista read the stage directions and announced the credits: book by Roxanne Schroeder-Arce; music and lyrics by Hector Martinez Morales; director, Alexis A. Arredondo and production manager, Oscar Franco.

A discussion after the play was led by the director. Asked how they would describe the reading, audience members called out answers, including:

“Beautiful!”

“You are creating bridges.”

“Wonderful songs.”

“Transformational.”

“Whether we speak English or Spanish, the bilingual mix was perfectly easy to understand.”

One older audience member, choking back emotion, said softly, “Recuerdos de mi tierra.”(Memories of my homeland.)

One sharp-eyed patron, age about six, asked, “What are those costumes hanging on the back wall?” Amid appreciative laughter, he was complimented on his good question. Alexis Arredondo explained, “There’s going to be another play (Moon Over Buffalo) on this stage tonight, and those costumes are part of that set!”

Summing up the afternoon’s experience, a board member of the Wimberley Players commented, “For so many members of this audience to bask in the beauty of their culture as we Anglos look on in appreciation is surely a memorable, binding moment for us all.”

The free event was underwritten by Amigos de Jesus, lead donor, and individual donors Brenda and Patrick Cox, Sharon and Bruce Drobeck, Jane and Cleon Dunham, Teresa Kendrick and Guy Ben-Moshe, Jean and Al Sander, Julie and Bert Ray and Terri Burney-Bisett and David Bisett.