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Washington, DC - GALITA, a program of GALA for the entire family, is proud to present the world premiere of Blancaflor – The Girl Wizard by Cecilia Cackley. Commissioned by GALA Hispanic Theatre and directed by Gustavo Ott, this bilingual production will be presented at GALA Theatre, 3333 14th Street NW, Washington, DC 20010 from October 7 through October 21, 2017. The theater is located one block north of the Columbia Heights Metro station on the Green and Yellow lines. Parking is available at the Giant Food garage on Park Road NW.
In this charming Spanish fairy tale, a prince promises to complete a series of impossible tasks to return to his kingdom. But the prince is able to defeat evil and accomplish the tasks only with the help of the girl wizard Blancaflor and her formidable powers. This magical presentation with puppets and music is for children ages 4 and up.
“I discovered the tale of Blancaflor in the collection “Tales our Abuelitas Told” by Alma Flor Ada and F. Isabel Campoy,” states playwright Cecilia Cackley. “Shortly thereafter,” continues Cackley, “I began to look for other versions and compare them. I chose to adapt this story into a play because the world could use a little magic right now, and I wanted kids to see girls achieve impossible things and save princes, rather than waiting to be saved. Fairy tales are reassuring stories; there may be obstacles and challenges, but everything turns out well in the end.”
Student matinees for Blancaflor are scheduled week days on October 10 - 13 and October 16 - 20, 2016 at 10:30 am. Performances for the general public are on Saturdays, October 7; October 14; and October 21 at 3 pm. The duration of this show is approximately 45 minutes and is appropriate for the entire family.
ABOUT PLAYWRIGHT, DIRECTOR AND PRODUCTION
Cecilia Cackley is a Mexican-American playwright and puppeteer based in Washington DC. She is the artistic director of Wit's End Puppets and co-creator of their shows Cabinets of Kismet, Saudade and Malevolent Creatures. Her bilingual children's plays have been presented by GALA and toured to DC to schools. Cecilia is an affiliated teaching artist with Imagination Stage, Capitol Hill Arts Workshop and Young Playwright's Theater. Internationally, she has performed or taught workshops in France, Canada, Armenia, Guatemala and El Salvador. She is also a company member of GALA Hispanic Theatre and Young Playwright's Theater.
Gustavo Ott (Director) directed Volcanoes – Cuentos de El Salvador for GALita last season, but has had many of his plays produced by GALA, most recently Señorita y Madame. This season GALA will produce another Ott play, the world premiere of La Foto. Among his directing credits are Never Swim Alone by Daniel McIvor; Glengarry, Glen Ross by David Mamet; Caligula by Albert Camus; and El animador by Rodolfo Santana. He also has directed several of his own plays, including 120 Lives a Minute; Two Loves and a Creature; Bandolero y Malasangre; Comegato; and Fotomatón, and productions that have appeared at international festivals in Japan, Denmark, the Czech Republic, Romania, Spain, Monaco, Morocco, Chile, Brazil, and the United States. Among his awards are the Municipal Theater Best Director Award and the Venezuelan Casa del Artista Best Director Award.
Featured in the cast are Delbis Cardona and Karen Morales, who appeared in Volcanes – Cuentos de El Salvador last season; and Adrián Iglesias, who appeared in Séneca: Ráton de biblioteca. Appearing for the first time with GALita are Karen Romero and Hilary Kacser.
Scenic Design is by Jonathan Dahm Robertson, who designed Séneca – Ráton de biblioteca. Lighting Design is by Alex Keen, who is designing his first GALita project, and Costume Design and Properties are by Alicia Tessari, who designed Volcanes and Nuevas aventuras de Don Quijote for GALita. Sound Design is by April Kelli Sturdivant, who is working on her first GALita production. Tsaitami Duchicela is Stage Manager; Lena Salins is Production Manager; and Devin Mahoney is Technical Director. Abel López is Producer.
ABOUT GALita
Since 1980, GALita has produced children’s theater by Hispanic playwrights in both Spanish and English that inspire a sense of joy, discovery, pride and identity in our community’s children. GALita also has commissioned new works and adaptations based on classic Hispanic literature, presented international theater companies such as Teatro Gayumba from the Dominican Republic, produced several children’s film festivals, and collaborated with Kids Euro Festival on children’s programming.
TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets are $10 each (children), Adults $12 (general public performances). For more information call 202-234-7174 or visit www.galatheatre.org.
This production is supported by Target, the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, and the Mayor’s Office on Latino Affairs.
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