2022 Latinx Theatre Commons Comedy Carnaval Announcement

Featuring Latinx Mafia Member: Réal Vargas Alanis 

Dates for show: June 9 - 11 

This event is free plus must submit an participant application

The Latinx Theatre Commons (LTC) announces the 2022 LTC Comedy Carnaval, 9-11 June 2022 in Denver, Colorado. The convening is hosted by Su Teatro Cultural & Performing Arts Center. …because the past two years have been so rough that we gotta ducking laugh 🦆

The 2022 LTC Comedy Carnaval will highlight some of the best Latinx comedic talent in the country in a myriad of formats, including three full-length play readings, a late night of stand-up and solo performances, and three sketch comedies performances. The event has two goals: to introduce national theatre decision-makers to new comedy Latinx plays and talent, and to connect the local and national Latinx theatremaking communities.

“The 2022 LTC Comedy Carnaval is a critically important platform to celebrate and uplift all that is joyful, fun, and humorous about the Latine experience. All too often, when the American Theatre puts Latine voices on stage, trauma-based narratives prevail. While these works individually can invite rich dialogue about urgent issues facing our communities, the cumulative effect is a two-dimensional portrayal of Latine people that lacks agency or hope and reifies the status quo of White Supremacy,” said Amelia Acosta Powell, LTC Comedy Carnaval Champion and Impact Producer at Actors Theatre of Louisville. “Comedy Carnaval is an intervention. Comedy Carnaval invites Latine artists and art-lovers to a revolutionary space of collective healing and communal nourishment through laughter and playfulness.”

Hold onto your cafecito! If you’re excited about diving into the healing power of humor while learning about the roots of comedy in Latinx/e performance; seeing the comedic talents of veteran and emerging Latinx theatremakers; making authentic connections with artists, scholars, and decision-makers; and laughing, all while drinking a cafecito, Comedy Carnaval is for you! In addition to the performances, the Carnaval will also include panel discussions, late-night parties, networking, and plenty of food, drink, and dancing. All Carnaval participants will also have the opportunity to experience theatre in Denver with tickets to see productions at Su Teatro and at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts during the course of the event.

“Inside our deepest tragedies, a sly, slick and completely obnoxious belly laugh awaits to erupt, expunging the shackles of convention and acceptance. It is the resilience of resistance that tells us that we are survivors and any potential for our happiness is in our own hands. No one is better at ridiculing and exposing our internal contradictions, however we are even better at ridiculing and exposing the contradictions of the oppressor.” said Tony Garcia, Artistic Director of Su Teatro Cultural & Performing Arts Center. “Historically our humor has been a sword to eviscerate and skewer the powerful. Our comedy has found its place in carpas, drag shows and graffiti art painted on urban sidewalks and underpasses. It has been a tool for critical analysis, intellectual processing and emotional release. We will come together to celebrate those who live to laugh, and make us laugh for a living. They challenge us to find the edge and explore the potential of the unobvious. We will place them centerstage where they will take us to a place where the irreverent is the spiritual. They strip away our pretensions and cause us to heal.”

All are welcome to apply, though artists, the local community, and artistic leaders and decision-makers will be prioritized for attendance to ensure opportunities for visibility and community building with our local and national Latinx theatre landscape. Attendance at the 2022 LTC Comedy Carnaval is free, and we will have a limited amount of travel subsidies available. You must apply to be considered for attendance and travel subsidies.

To attend the 2022 LTC Comedy Carnaval, read the participant application guidelines here and then apply here. The LTC is accepting applications for participants through Friday, 15 April 2022 at 11:59 PM PDT. You will be notified of your status by Monday 2 May 2022. If you have additional questions, please email LTC Producer Jacqueline Flores at jacqueline@howlround.com.