We’re presenting the world premiere reading of Andrew Siañez-De La O’s The Ortiz Twins Are Coming Home as part of our Week of Extraordinary Risk on June 20, 7:30PM. This new play is our first venture into theatre for young audiences and, at its heart, is intended to help young people of color reconnect with their indigenous roots. Learn more from Andrew below, and reserve you tickets (free, $10 suggested donation) today.
Pipeline Theatre Company: What do you want us to know about your play?
Andrew Siañez-De La O: That at its heart, I wanted this play to be a way to help young generations of people of color, especially those on the US-Mexico Border, reconnect with their indigenous roots.
PTC: When and where did you decide to start writing this play?
ASDLO: Mid 2018, I had just wrapped up working on Borderline, a much darker play about the border and its impact on young children of color, and had really enjoyed writing the two young sibling characters. I wanted to keep that momentum and start working on a more lighthearted, mythical play where I could explore themes of diaspora while writing scenes with magical puppets.
PTC: What excites you most about this project?
ASDLO: That my younger siblings can see themselves represented in this play. It’s an adventure that looks like home and tells myths and legends that are ingrained in their culture.
PTC: In one sentence, tell us something strange that happens in your play.
ASDLO: My home town (El Paso) has this crazy alligator statue that I had to not only put in this play, but also bring to life!
PTC: Are you working on anything else?
ASDLO: I am hard at work on my new play Wilder which is being development through the Gish Jen Fellowship with the Writers’ Room of Boston. Wilder will take a look at the long term ramifications of this administration’s child separation policy. I am also a guest writer on the Latinx children’s fiction podcast Timestorm!
PTC: What’s next for you?
ASDLO: Wilder and Timestorm are currently both my work and passion projects so I’m excited to continue working on them while also catching up on some reading.
The Ortiz Twins Are Coming Home
By Andrew Siañez-De La O | Directed By Tatiana Pandiani
Thursday, June 20th at 7:30 | RSVP
Robert Moss Theater at Playwrights Downtown
440 Lafayette St, 3rd Floor, NYC
Andrea and Mateo Ortiz have always seen their abuelo as a hero, but when an ancient Zapotec God reveals a dark family secret, the twins must journey back to the land of their ancestors to right a long forgotten wrong.
