La Fiesta is an ode to the glorious parties we used to have, and a celebration of the sense of belonging and joy that we will hopefully feel again, someday soon.
In the depths of lockdown, a man throws a party for himself. To his surprise, mythical spirits from his homeland begin to arrive, and soon his lonely fantasy becomes a wild fiesta. Inspired by the Mexican Day of the Dead, in which the spirits of our ancestors come to visit, La Fiesta is both a surrealist Pandemic parable and an immigrant’s dream of overcoming the isolation of being so far from home.
The Party (La Fiesta) Puente Theatre
Written, Designed & Directed by Mercedes Bátiz-Benét
Performed by Waldo Facco
Composer / Sound Designer: Mariano Franco
Choreography by Mercedes Bátiz-Benét, Waldo Facco, Pedro M. Siqueira
Costume Design & Build: Mercedes Bátiz-Benét, Waldo Facco, Amaranta Almaraz, JIMBO, Gamaliel Islas, Diana Kitsch, Judd Palmer
Costume Build Assistants: Rufo Lugo, Alma Ivonne Páez Sánchez
Puppet Design & Build: Jessica Hickman
Puppet Build Assistant: Jayne Walling
Set Design and Build: Mercedes Bátiz-Benét, JIMBO
Set Dressers: Jeff Insell, Elliot Loran
Stage Manager: Pedro M. Siqueira
Assistant Stage Manager: Andrea Lemus
Produced by Mercedes Bátiz-Benét, Waldo Facco, Judd Palmer, Pedro M. Siqueira
Technical Producer: Cody Graham
Director of Photography: Luke Connor
Producer / Camera Operator: Mike Wavrecan
Production Manager / Camera Assistant: Sam Graham
Production Assistant: Sebastian Carmona
On Set Post Consultant & Editor: John Roney
Visual Effects: Tribal Imaging
VFX Artist: Vienna Bierman
Supervising Compositors: Aydan Rogan, Clint Heusser, Darren Bierman
Stills Photographer: Víctor Zuñiga
Special Thanks: Max Palmer, Marilyn Palmer, Philippe Boname, La Ferme des Rêves, Alison Browne, Francisco Constantino, Pichi, Brady Taylor, Maureen Mackintosh, Pacific Opera Victoria,Tanya Hickman, Brooke Maxwell, Molly Pilchar, Heather Burns, Andrew Phoenix, Janet Munsil, Julie McIsaac, Rebekah Johnson, Blue Bridge Repertory Theatre, Kathleen Greenfield, Lou Belton.