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[0:09] Iyvon Edebiri: Thank you, everyone. Thank you, thank you. Hello, hello. Welcome to The Parsnip Ship. My name is Iyvon Edebiri. Happy Halloween, everyone. Yes, yes, yes, yes. We are excited to share this evening with you for our season five, episode eight recording. We are here tonight at the Mark O'Donnell Theater at the Entertainment Community Fund Art Center in downtown Brooklyn. And we love seeing our live audience out here. Who is out here? Are y'all here? Yeah. Woo! They're alive. They're alive. Tonight we are thrilled to share with you the amazing play, Luciérnagas by Javier Rivera DeBruin.

[1:04] Iyvon Edebiri: And actually, some of you may know that Luciérnagas was actually slotted to be recorded in this space in 2020 and was unfortunately delayed by over two years. But it was produced on stage by National Queer Theater in the fall of 2021. And it actually became a weekend recommendation in the New York Times. Yes. And now it will have its audio recording with us tonight. Better late than never. And we are so fortunate to have everyone here to listen to Luciérnagas, which is directed by the wonderful Rebecca Aparicio. Woo woo! Yes, yes. And we have the talented V Darling as our musician tonight.

[1:56] Iyvon Edebiri: So I have Javi up here with me to get things going tonight. So we like to start our night off by asking our playwright one question before we get into our first song in the play. Javi, what would the world be missing if it didn't have this play?

[2:17] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Okay. I'm short, so let's try this. If it wasn't for Luciérnagas, the world would be missing a spooky children's game between a bioluminescent eternal child, a queer accountant, and a box full of spiders.

[2:39] Iyvon Edebiri: I love it. Very on brand for tonight. Very on brand. Yeah, we thought it through, y'all. Yes. We like to curate here. Um, so we're gonna kick it off with our first song by a wonderful musician, V Darling. Take it away. Woo!

[3:04] ♪ Musical number: "Song Title" — performed by V Darling ♪

[5:12] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Luciérnagas by Javier Rivera DeBruin. One things we leave behind. A small one-room house, spare in furniture, but a wealth of knickknacks, textiles, herbs, and chilies hang up to dry. A crawl space between the walls leads up to an attic. Lupe, a short sturdier woman in her late eighties, stands by a hearth holding a stick of palo santo. She wears a long woven skirt, a simple white blouse, and slippers. A white shawl covers her shoulders. Lupe prepares the space for company, performing a cleansing as she speaks.

[5:48] Jara appears in the attic, peeks through the floorboards.

[6:44] Lupe: They'll be here soon. Come, help me bless the casita.

[6:50] Jara descends. Lupe hands Jara the palo santo and sits. Jara continues to clean the space with the palo santo.

[7:00] Jara: Ay, que viejo este fantasma. Who knew these wrinkles would follow me to the after place? Still, I make them look good. Ay, pero por Dios, no more corns. I can barely make it around the house in anything but my chanclas. Death should come with some relief.

[7:23] Lupe removes a slipper, halves a clove of garlic, rubs it along the side of her foot.

[8:30] Lupe walks over to the cot and lies down. Soon we will both be home. Lupe pulls her shawl over her head like a shroud. Jara curls up at her feet like a cat. Sound of a heartbeat. Jara glows a soft blue light. Blackout.

[9:02] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Two. Wanderers. Jara sleeps in the attic in a nest. Front door opens. Enter Malinda. Late 30s. Mal for short. With a small suitcase in business attire. Put together, but in a way that seems strained. Enter George, early 60s.

[9:21] George: Thanks again. I'm sorry if I disturbed your gardening. I still can't believe I lost the keys. Not sure where I could have gotten to. You know, none of our family even knew she had this place.

[9:35] Mal and Jara: Oh, no trouble, no trouble. Good woman, your grandmother. Lupe spoke so highly of you.

[9:43] George: It's wonderful to meet the illustrious Linda in the flesh.

[9:46] Mal and Jara: Mal.

[9:47] George: Sorry, dear?

[9:48] Mal and Jara: My name. I go by Mal.

[9:50] George: Oh, right. Yes, Ma. Please excuse me. I hate to start things off on the wrong footing with my new neighbor now, wouldn't I?

[9:58] Mal and Jara: Oh no, I'm not. I'm just here to clean it out and get everything settled. I'm selling it.

[10:05] George: The house.

[10:06] Mal and Jara: Oh, pity. It would have been lovely to have you around.

[10:10] George: Well, Mal, if there's anything else you need, do give me a shout. Helen and I are just down the road.

[10:16] Mal and Jara: Thank you. That's so kind. You wouldn't happen to know if this place has Wi-Fi, would you? I'm not used to being so far out in the woods like this.

[10:26] George: Yes, I think that's why Lupe liked it. Somewhere calm to escape the city once in a while.

[10:33] Mal and Jara: I'm not sure about the Wi-Fi, but you're welcome to use ours any time you need.

[10:38] Mal and Jara: Do you smell that? That hot rubbery smell.

[10:44] George: Never mind. It's probably nothing.

[10:46] Mal and Jara: Thank you, really. I so appreciate all this.

[10:49] George: Oh, it's my pleasure. Don't be a stranger.

[10:53] Mal and Jara: Me, Caza.

[10:55] George: It Suz Cazan.

[10:59] Mal and Jara: Huh?

[11:00] George: Right. Have a good one, George.

[11:04] George: You take care now.

[11:06] George exits. Jara sits up in their nest. Mal sniffs the air.

[11:11] Jara sniffs the air. Mal changes out of her work clothes into unflattering loungewear. Maybe a snuggie. Jara scurries down the sides of the wall, peeks their head out.

[11:23] Mal removes a string of worry dolls from her suitcase, kisses them, holds them to her chest. The door bursts open.

[11:32] Jara scrambles back to their nest. Enters Silvia, early to mid-sixties, in all ways Mal's opposite. She wears a maxi dress with a lightweight kimono-style sweater draped off of her. Her flowing hair is silver and ethereal. A collection of bangles at her wrist jingles when she walks.

[11:52] Silvia: Hi, my girl. What are you doing here?

[11:56] Mal and Jara: I best will find a way to greet the mother who bore you.

[11:59] Silvia: Hi, Ma. I just didn't expect—I mean, it's been too long, bing.

[12:04] Silvia grips Mal in a big overcompensating bear hug.

[12:08] Mal and Jara: How did you know about this place anyway?

[12:10] Silvia: I own the place, baby.

[12:14] Mal and Jara: Well, half of it anyway. The other half is yours.

[12:30] Silvia: The olfo gave me the key. He said we should split it. Lupe will want it this way.

[12:39] Mal and Jara: Let me take a look at you.

[12:40] Silvia turns a stiff Mal in a circle.

[12:43] Silvia: Aye, what's this, eh? What have you done to that gorgeous bello of yours?

[12:47] Mal and Jara: Huh? Are you okay? Your feet. Your feet. When was the last time you had a pedicure?

[12:56] Mal and Jara: Ay, ay. Jesus, Ma, I thought you were having a heart attack. You almost gave me one with those talents of yours.

[13:04] Silvia: You have to take better care of yourself, Linda.

[13:07] Mal and Jara: Mom.

[13:08] Silvia: No one calls me Linda anymore.

[13:10] Silvia: Mal, Mal, Mal. I sounds like a fruit going back. I went away. Are you going to help your mommy with her things?

[13:18] Silvia gestures to a pile of luggage in the still open doorway.

[13:22] Mal and Jara: What is all this? Are you moving here or something?

[13:26] Silvia: I have a meeting Monday morning, and I need to have this place cleared out by the time I go.

[13:31] Silvia: No need to rush, Mijan. I'm happy to stay up here as long as it takes. After all, who's gonna kick me out of my own house, huh?

[13:39] Mal and Jara: Ever thought you'd hear me say that? My house?

[13:42] Silvia: About the house, ma'am Ito Nobio.

[13:44] Mal and Jara: What?

[13:44] Silvia: No, no boyfriend.

[13:46] Mal and Jara: I don't understand it. You—you're such a beautiful girl.

[13:49] Silvia: Trust me, I'm fine.

[13:51] Mal and Jara: I know, I know. You're an independent woman, but everybody needs someone once in a while.

[13:57] Silvia: You know, I would have thought at your age. I just want to know about your life, Linda. To give you some advice to help you? Is that such a horrible thing?

[14:07] Mal and Jara: Now that I have something you want, you suddenly care about my life?

[14:10] Silvia: Simbel Wins, I'm still your mother. Did you forget while you were off living your fancy life with your organic kale in business school? Show me some respect.

[14:21] Mal and Jara: I don't need your help, Ma. And I'm very gay. So you can stop worrying about when I'll find a husband.

[14:30] Silvia: I see. Did I Welita know?

[14:32] Mal and Jara: I don't know. I never told her.

[14:33] Silvia: You know you are Willita. She knew you better than anyone. I don't know if she knew you were gay or lo que sea, but she always saw you for you, and she loved you very much. So, you know.

[14:47] Mal and Jara: A girlfriend then? Really, Ma? No, I don't have a girlfriend. I just want to know there's someone taking care of you.

[14:55] Silvia: Sure. Boy, no, I'll cook, you help. Hand me that bag.

[14:59] Mal and Jara: *picks up a tote bag and peers inside.* Tortillas, tomatoes, avocado, potatoes, garlic, chiles, cotija.

[15:07] Mal and Jara: Jesus, Ma, you bought the whole grocery store. Oh, and a Tupperware full of—

[15:10] Silvia: *hands the bag to Silvia.* What is that?

[15:15] Mal and Jara: Brains.

[15:18] Silvia: I am pulling, I'm pulling your leg. It's got nitas.

[15:22] Mal and Jara: I'm still not eating it. I'm vegetarian.

[15:24] Silvia: Suit yourself. How are you gonna cook the stuff anyway? I don't see a microwave, uh stove.

[15:30] Mal and Jara: We'll use the fireplace.

[15:32] Silvia: Does it work?

[15:34] Mal and Jara: It's a concrete pit. There's not much to break. We just need to open the flue and find some firewood. I think I saw some outside.

[15:42] Silvia: Where did you put the matches?

[15:43] Mal and Jara: Huh? From the Palo Santo. You you were just burning.

[15:46] Silvia: I wasn't burning any. Never mind. I have some in my purse. Grab them for me, will you?

[15:52] *Sylvia exits.*

[15:53] *Mal gets matches from Sylvia's purse, digs through drawers looking for things to cook with.*

[15:59] *Sylvia returns with a small load of wood.*

[16:02] Mal and Jara: *hands her the matches.* You know how to cook?

[16:05] Silvia: Yes, Ma, I know how to cook. Where do you want me to start?

[16:09] Silvia: Oh, uh, chop the ajo, cebolla, and the chiles.

[16:13] *Mal chops the veggies while Sylvia gets the fire going.*

[16:17] *For a moment, they are silent, absorbed in their tasks.*

[16:21] *As she stokes the fire, Silvia begins to sing Volver absent-mindedly.*

[16:28] Mal and Jara: Ma, why didn't you go to the funeral?

[16:35] Silvia: Aye, I just got the fire started, and you want to give me the third degree.

[16:39] Mal and Jara: Can you be serious for a minute, please?

[16:41] Silvia: I Nena, you're serious enough for both of us. Anyway, what would my being there have changed? She will still be dead.

[16:50] Mal and Jara: What could you have possibly had to do that was more important than be there for her?

[16:55] Silvia: That wasn't your abuelita anymore, Mih. Just a pretty doll, someone dressed up so that we could all feel better about the fact that she's gone.

[17:04] Mal and Jara: Sefue.

[17:05] Silvia: Well, that doesn't work for me, okay? Doesn't make me feel better to drink the blood of Christ and hear a priest who barely knew her absolve her or for it wasn't about you. It was about honoring Awelita, about being there for the rest of the family.

[17:21] Mal and Jara: And I'm supposed to honor her the way you decide? The way the family? We all know by now you're gonna do what's best for you, Ma. Just I just thought maybe once. This one time you might stop and think about someone else too.

[17:35] Silvia: And why didn't you ask me to come if it was so important to you? You could have called, you know. You could have picked up the phone and said, Mommy, I need you.

[17:44] Mal and Jara: Could I? Gladolinda. It's not like I abandoned you. I'm still your mother.

[17:50] Silvia: You want to go there? That was 20 years ago, Linda. When are you going to forgive me?

[17:56] Mal and Jara: Agualita was a mother to me. See, well, she was my mama, and now she's gone, and I'm an orphan at my age. Can you believe that?

[18:06] Silvia: You think you have nobody, but I'm here. You act like I'm already gone when I'm right here in front of you, Linda.

[18:13] Mal and Jara: Well, you know what? One day, I won't be here anymore. And you'll know what it's really like to be alone.

[18:23] Silvia: Oh, uh dinner's ready. And this one's yours. No meat. How you like it.

[18:33] *They eat in silence.*

[18:36] *Afterwards, Mal and Silvia clean up.*

[18:39] Mal and Jara: I didn't mean to imply that you don't care, Ma. I'm just trying to understand. How about a round of rummy like old times?

[18:49] Silvia: Hmm. I don't know about you, but I'm not tired yet.

[18:52] Mal and Jara: I don't know, Ma. I need to get up early. Besides, I didn't bring any cards.

[18:57] Silvia: Ah, you think I came here without cards? Ha.

[19:01] *Sylvia returns to her big bag and produces a pack of playing cards and a bottle of tequila.*

[19:07] Silvia: Alright. Your deal.

[19:10] *Sylvia grabs two glasses and they sit on the floor facing one another.*

[19:14] *Sylvia pours the tequila.*

[19:16] *Mal shuffles and cuts the deck and deals out the cards.*

[19:20] *Lights fade.*

[19:22] *Three.*

[19:23] *Amor, muerte y polque.*

[19:27] *Night falls on the house.*

[19:29] *Sylvia sleeps soundly on the small cot.*

[19:32] *Mal sleeps on the floor.*

[19:34] *In the attic, Jara glows.*

[19:40] *Jara grabs a thermos and small wooden cigar box, crawls down the walls, sneaks up to Mal.*

[19:47] *Jara sets down the thermos and the box, crouches over Mal.*

[19:52] *Jara strokes Mal's hair, singing a pirukea.*

[19:57] *Something like Tireni Tzitziki by Lila Downs.*

[20:01] *Mal stirs, opening her eyes.*

[20:11] Mal and Jara: Who? Who are you?

[20:12] Jara: Shh. You'll wake mommy.

[20:18] Mal and Jara: Uh does she know you're here?

[20:20] Jara: Probably not. Silvia sees what she wants to see.

[20:23] Mal and Jara: I I I don't understand. Where did you come from?

[20:26] Jara: I've been here a long time. I'm very good at hiding. Lupe will be glad you're here now too.

[20:32] Mal and Jara: Awelita. But she never told me about it.

[20:36] Jara: That would be a lot easier if you loosen up a little bit. We've got lots of playing to do. Not enough time to explain everything. You're just a child. Shouldn't someone be taking care of you?

[20:46] Jara: Abuelita used to look out for me. I'm on my own now. She looked out for me too.

[20:51] Mal and Jara: What's your name?

[20:53] Jara: Jara Tanga. You can call me Jara.

[20:58] Mal and Jara: I'm Mal. Story from Malinda. But no one really calls me that.

[21:02] Jara: Mal Mal. Malinda. La Mala Maldita. La Malinche. She betrayed her heritage too. Is that you?

[21:15] Mal and Jara: You don't look like a traitor.

[21:18] Jara: What? No. I mean, sometimes I think I barely know anything about my family, my culture. I'm not religious. I'm not warm like mom or abuelita. I can't do anything with my hands. I listen to NPR and alt rock. I can't stand telenovelas. I don't wear bright colors. I'm vegetarian. I didn't grow up in El Barrio. I drink Starbucks.

[21:43] Jara: The Starbucks part is bad.

[21:46] Mal and Jara: Is that it? I don't even speak Spanish.

[21:50] Jara: Neither did your ancestors once upon a time. The last Malinche was a traitor because she spoke Spanish. Now you are a traitor because you do not. Whether you speak the tongue of one colonizer or another, are you still not the colonized?

[22:12] Mal and Jara: I guess.

[22:13] Jara: Colonizer and colonized. Maybe you're just a goth. It's okay. Lots of Mexicans are goth.

[22:21] *Jara holds the thermos out towards Mal.* Do you like pulque?

[22:27] Mal and Jara: What's pulque?

[22:28] Jara: Honey water from the agave. Try a sip.

[22:31] *Jara unscrews the thermos lid and pours liquid into it.*

[22:35] Mal and Jara: I don't know if I should.

[22:38] Jara: Oh, what was that for? I don't like shoulds. Come and sip from the honey water.

[22:46] Mal and Jara: Is that an alcohol?

[22:48] Jara: I thought you said it was water.

[22:49] Jara: From the agave, yes.

[22:51] Mal and Jara: Oh. It's fermented. It relaxes your limbs. Close your eyes and see.

[22:56] *Mal closes her eyes.*

[22:58] *When she opens them, she has been transported to a tiny well-lit room.*

[23:03] *A bedroom that is being used as a working sculpture studio.*

[23:07] *There is a small kiln in the corner.*

[23:09] *A table is in the center of the room with various clay pieces atop it in different stages of development.*

[23:16] Mal and Jara: Why did you bring me here?

[23:19] Jara: This is where I come from. It's where we start. Now let's play a game.

[23:24] Mal and Jara: What kind of game?

[23:25] Jara: What's in that box?

[23:27] *Jara hands the cigar box to Mal.*

[23:30] Mal and Jara: La Vibora de la Mar.

[23:33] Mal and Jara: Oh, I hate sinks.

[23:35] Jara: I like snakes. They're good at hiding, making themselves small, even if they are really big.

[23:41] Mal and Jara: It's not funny. They scare the shit out of me.

[23:43] Jara: Relax. There's no real vibora, silly. This is just some friends for us to play with.

[23:48] Mal and Jara: What exactly are these friends?

[23:50] Jara: My spiders.

[23:51] Mal and Jara: Oh, they're not like normal spiders.

[23:54] Jara: They're very well trained. I play with them all the time, so they've had lots of practice. First, I need a cup.

[24:00] Mal and Jara: I'm not sure I like your games.

[24:04] Mal and Jara: What's what do we do with the cup?

[24:06] Jara: Okay. Well, first I'm going to let the spiders out of the box. And then we start singing.

[24:11] Jara: Oh, wait. Uh, do you want to be melon or sandilla?

[24:15] Mal and Jara: I don't know what that.

[24:16] Jara: Honeydew or watermelon.

[24:17] Mal and Jara: Uh honeydew, I guess.

[24:19] Jara: Okay. You're melon, and I'm Sandia. So then we start singing.

[24:24] Jara: A la vibora vibra de la mar de la mar together.

[24:29] Jara: A la viva viva de la mar, de la mad.

[24:34] Mal and Jara: Good, good. So we sing, and then the spiders make a little circle around us. And when we get to the part of the song, you'll see the part of the song where we sing.

[24:49] Jara: And we look into each other's eyes. And when we're both ready, we drop the cup down and trap one of the spiders. And we ask it, Melon or Sandia. And if it answers Melon, then it goes with you. And if it answers Sandia, then it goes to me.

[25:06] Mal and Jara: But how will we know what it says?

[25:08] Jara: Oh, don't worry. I speak spider. Ready?

[25:11] *Mal shrugs, then nods.*

[25:14] *Jara opens the box.*

[25:16] *A little stream of spiders comes marching out in a circle around them.*

[25:20] *The two sing together. Jara with confidence, Mal hesitantly following their lead.*

[25:43] *Jara puts their ear down to the cup.* Sandia.

[25:48] *Jara raises the cup and the spider scuttles away behind her.*

[25:52] *The remaining spiders dance.*

[26:25] Mal and Jara: Oh, um Melon o sandia.

[26:29] *Again, Jara puts their ear to the cup.*

[26:35] Jara: Sorry, Mal. I guess they just feel more comfortable with me. Give them time, they'll warm up to you.

[26:41] *Jara lifts the cup and the spider scurries off behind them.*

[26:45] Jara: Será melon, será Sandia, será la vieja de Rotro Dia Dia Dia.

[26:52] Mal and Jara: Melon o Sandia.

[26:57] *Something on the table falls, shatters, disrupts the joy.*

[27:03] Mal and Jara: Mommy will be mad.

[27:05] *Mal looks down to discover she is holding shards of broken ceramics in her hands.*

[27:10] *Like a switch has been turned suddenly.*

[27:12] *Mal is back in the house, laying on the floor.*

[27:16] *In front of her is a cardboard box.*

[27:18] Mal and Jara: Shit. What was in that bulge?

[27:22] *Sylvia turns over on the bed.*

[27:24] Sylvia: Linda. Ooh, he's cold. Who are you talking to?

[27:28] *Mal gets up and fixes the blankets.*

[27:30] *Jara scurries away back into the walls.*

[27:40] Mal and Jara: No one, Ma. You were dreaming. Come, Linda. Keep your mommy warm.

[27:47] *Mal grabs the worry dolls and her pillow and gets onto the cot with her mother.*

[27:52] *Sylvia holds her tight. Immediately falls back asleep.*

[27:58] *Upstairs, Jara begins to sing the Vivora song to themselves.*

[28:02] Jara: Good night, Sharatanga.

[28:05] *In slumber, Jara begins to glow.*

[28:10] *Mal's eyes remain open.*

[28:13] *Lights out.*

[28:14] *Lights up on four.*

[28:16] *A mother's love.*

[28:18] Silvia: Morning.

[28:20] Sylvia: Sylvia wakes alone in the house.

[28:22] Jara: Shara sleeps in the attic.

[28:25] Mal and Jara: Nena.

[28:27] Mal and Jara: Malinda donde stas.

[28:29] Sylvia: She notices a note on the table.

[28:32] Sylvia: Heading to town to get some things for dinner.

[28:35] Sylvia: Found this box in the attic.

[28:38] Sylvia: Wanna start going through it?

[28:40] Sylvia: There's an attic.

[28:49] Lupe: I missed that laugh.

[28:54] Sylvia: Sylvia runs to Lupe and throws her arms around her.

[28:58] Lupe: Ah Mija.

[29:01] Lupe: I knew you'd turn up.

[29:04] Sylvia: Donde sta Mineta?

[29:05] Lupe: She went to the market, but never mind that.

[29:08] Lupe: What about you?

[29:10] Lupe: You're here.

[29:12] Lupe: How can this be?

[29:13] Sylvia: I am here.

[29:15] Sylvia: And I am there.

[29:18] Lupe: Is that what death is like?

[29:20] Sylvia: See?

[29:21] Lupe: Paradox Mija.

[29:24] Lupe: You will see.

[29:25] Lupe: For now, enjoy life.

[29:30] Lupe: How are my girls?

[29:32] Lupe: Have you spoken to Melinda?

[29:35] Sylvia: Mija meodia.

[29:40] Lupe: And she does, Amma.

[29:41] Lupe: She hates me.

[29:43] Lupe: And it's my fault.

[29:44] Lupe: She hates me.

[29:45] Lupe: I would hate me too.

[29:46] Lupe: I mess everything up and now she can't stand me.

[29:49] Lupe: Mija, you will learn these things you think are so big, they are so small.

[30:00] Sylvia: I have to make it better.

[30:04] Lupe: No.

[30:06] Lupe: It is hers.

[30:08] Lupe: Don't force it.

[30:09] Lupe: Only support her.

[30:11] Sylvia: I don't know, Ama.

[30:12] Sylvia: It's been so long.

[30:13] Sylvia: What if I'm gone by the time she's ready to reconnect?

[30:16] Lupe: We are never gone, Mija.

[30:19] Lupe: Only changed.

[30:21] Lupe: She's here now.

[30:23] Lupe: Make the most of this time with her.

[30:26] Lupe: That's why I brought you here.

[30:30] Sylvia: I wish I had been like you.

[30:32] Lupe: Ay, pues.

[30:34] Lupe: There was a time you didn't think so.

[30:38] Lupe: You didn't think I was so good.

[30:41] Lupe: I broke things in you too.

[30:44] Lupe: Lupe gets up and shuffles to the hearth.

[30:46] Lupe: She grabs a comal hanging from the wall and brings it to Silvia.

[30:53] Lupe: It's a comal.

[30:55] Sylvia: See.

[31:01] Lupe: What was to remember?

[31:03] Lupe: Dia de las Madres.

[31:10] Sylvia: Do you remember what I told you?

[31:15] Sylvia: Anyways, I I don't I don't want to remember.

[31:18] Lupe: Try it.

[31:19] Sylvia: Sylvia sits holding the comal.

[31:21] Lupe: Lupe lights a fire in the hearth.

[31:25] Lupe: Five.

[31:28] Sylvia: The house shifts, turns to a small apartment.

[31:32] Sylvia: Lupe grows taller till she is looking down on Silvia.

[31:36] Sylvia: Silvia regresses to childhood.

[31:39] Sylvia: Sylvia carries the Kumal to the stove and sits it next to a frying pan.

[31:44] Sylvia: The stove is slightly too tall for her, and she has to stand on her tiptoes to reach it.

[31:50] Jara: Shara brings Silvia a small teddy bear.

[31:55] Jara: Come help me.

[31:56] Jara: I'm making breakfast for Ama.

[31:58] Sylvia: Sylvia places the bear on a cramped countertop next to the stove.

[32:02] Sylvia: Sylvia grabs a carton of eggs from the refrigerator.

[32:06] Sylvia: She balances two Tupperware containers precariously on top.

[32:10] Sylvia: Rojas or Veldes.

[32:12] Jara: Ah, see, see, see, see.

[32:13] Jara: Huevos y bolsiados.

[32:15] Sylvia: I'll use both.

[32:16] Sylvia: Silvia puts all the containers next to Gordo, sending a large serving spoon clattering to the ground.

[32:23] Sylvia: Shh!

[32:24] Sylvia: Gordo!

[32:24] Sylvia: We have to be quiet.

[32:26] Sylvia: Ama sleeping.

[32:27] Sylvia: Shh.

[32:28] Sylvia: Silvia grabs two eggs from the carton and cracks them into the frying pan.

[32:33] Sylvia: She turns on the stove.

[32:39] Sylvia: Silvia impatiently eyes the pan.

[32:42] Sylvia: I know, I know.

[32:43] Sylvia: I'll bring her the breakfast in bed.

[32:45] Sylvia: Like on TV.

[32:47] Jara: Gordo judges.

[32:49] Sylvia: Oh, you know, you know every TV show, they always have breakfast in bed.

[32:52] Sylvia: So why shouldn't Ama?

[32:55] Sylvia: I we do to have a tray table.

[32:58] Sylvia: Silvia digs in the cabinet and produces a small plastic tray painted with vibrant colored flowers.

[33:05] Sylvia: She holds this in front of the teddy bear.

[33:07] Sylvia: See?

[33:09] Jara: Gordo judges.

[33:11] Sylvia: Aye, who cares if it's not a tray table?

[33:13] Sylvia: It's a tray.

[33:14] Sylvia: What's the difference?

[33:16] Jara: More judgment from Gordo.

[33:18] Sylvia: I but why would it have legs?

[33:20] Jara: Gordo explains.

[33:24] Sylvia: Oh.

[33:28] Sylvia: I will I think this is fine.

[33:30] Sylvia: Ama would just have to hold her legs very still.

[33:34] Sylvia: Aye, whoops, the eggs are done.

[33:38] Sylvia: Oh shoot!

[33:39] Sylvia: I have forgot the tortillas.

[33:42] Sylvia: Silvia retrieves the tortilla warmer, turns the burner back on, and replaces the fry pan with the comal.

[33:49] Sylvia: She takes the tortilla from the warmer and places it on the Kumal.

[33:52] Sylvia: You should have told me, Goldo, that's the most important part.

[33:57] Sylvia: Ow!

[33:58] Sylvia: She pulls her arm back fast, knocks the Kumal and the frying pan off of the stove.

[34:03] Sylvia: They fall to the floor with a loud bang.

[34:05] Lupe: Caramba!

[34:07] Lupe: Silvia!

[34:08] Lupe: Lupe serves the chaos.

[34:11] Lupe: It was Gordo's fault.

[34:13] Sylvia: Yeah.

[34:16] Sylvia: I was making breakfast.

[34:19] Sylvia: But it's for you.

[34:20] Lupe: I was making you breakfast in bed.

[34:22] Lupe: I don't want breakfast in bed, Mija.

[34:24] Lupe: I want to sleep.

[34:26] Lupe: I spent all day cleaning up messes.

[34:28] Lupe: Don't you think I clean enough?

[34:29] Lupe: And now I have to clean this too.

[34:31] Sylvia: But it's Mother's Day, Ama.

[34:33] Lupe: Bueno.

[34:34] Lupe: Este dia de las madres.

[34:36] Lupe: I want Una Ija who does what she's told.

[34:39] Sylvia: It's not fair.

[34:40] Sylvia: I was just trying to make you a present.

[34:43] Lupe: You're lucky not.

[34:47] Lupe: Clean this mess.

[34:49] Lupe: That will be my present.

[34:52] Sylvia: Silvia cries.

[34:54] Sylvia: As she cleans the mess, the room changes back to the house.

[34:58] Lupe: Lupe returns to her normal size.

[35:01] Sylvia: Sylvia still holds the comal.

[35:05] Sylvia: Do you still think I was a good mother?

[35:09] Lupe: But how could that even compare to everything you've done for me?

[35:14] Lupe: Pues mija.

[35:19] Lupe: You can't undo what has been done.

[35:24] Lupe: Only create something new.

[35:27] Lupe: Don't let your fear stop your heart.

[35:32] Lupe: Sig creando.

[35:34] Lupe: Creciendo.

[35:35] Lupe: Just make room for Mal to be a part of your growth.

[35:40] Lupe: She will come when she's ready.

[35:44] Sylvia: Silvia sits down on the floor next to Lupe.

[35:47] Lupe: Lupe strokes her hair like a little girl.

[35:50] Lupe: Without speaking, Lupe hands Silvia a small block, a container of masa, and roller.

[35:57] Sylvia: Silvia looks up at her in amazement.

[36:00] Sylvia: Together they make tortillas.

[36:02] Sylvia: Silvia diligently rolls them out.

[36:04] Lupe: Lupe warms them on the hearth.

[36:07] Lupe: This continues until the masa is gone and the tortillas are nestled cozy into a warmer.

[36:12] Sylvia: At which point Silvia turns to discover Lupe has gone.

[36:20] Sylvia: She opens it and begins to go through the things inside.

[36:24] Sylvia: Lights fade, lights up on six.

[36:28] Sylvia: Volver.

[36:30] Mal and Jara: Mal enters groceries in hand.

[36:32] Mal and Jara: A small clay pot of tortillas sits on the kitchen table.

[36:36] Mal and Jara: A small CD player blares loud music.

[36:39] Sylvia: Silvia dances.

[36:42] Mal and Jara: Mal sets grocery bags down on the table, pulls out a bouquet of flowers, sets puts them in water.

[36:48] Sylvia: Silvia, still dancing, turns up the volume and begins to croon along.

[36:53] Sylvia: Este amor apasionado and that Ma Voical Menua La Locura.

[37:12] Mal and Jara: Oh, hi, yeah?

[37:14] Mal and Jara: How is town?

[37:15] Mal and Jara: Can you turn that down?

[37:17] Mal and Jara: It's a little loud.

[37:18] Sylvia: Ah?

[37:18] Sylvia: Eh?

[37:19] Sylvia: It's a little loud.

[37:22] Mal and Jara: Wait, eh.

[37:26] Mal and Jara: Volvetos.

[37:49] Sylvia: Sylvia spins Mal.

[37:51] Mal and Jara: Mal's leg bumps into the handle of the sizzling cast iron pan.

[37:55] Mal and Jara: Ow, fuck!

[37:56] Mal and Jara: I kepazo.

[37:57] Mal and Jara: Can you please turn that off?

[38:00] Sylvia: Sylvia turns off the CD player, sits Mal down on the chair and examines her.

[38:05] Sylvia: Okay, okay, okay.

[38:06] Sylvia: It's not so bad.

[38:07] Sylvia: Here, take this.

[38:07] Sylvia: You'll be fine.

[38:08] Mal and Jara: Did you get into the tequila already Ma?

[38:11] Sylvia: Sylvia brings Mal ice wrapped in the dish towel.

[38:14] Sylvia: I don't need tequila to dance.

[38:18] Sylvia: 10 seconds on, 10 seconds off you got it?

[38:21] Sylvia: I know the procure nena burning yourself on breakfast is a family tradition.

[38:25] Mal and Jara: Where did you get more tortillas?

[38:27] Sylvia: Your Wella and I made them do you like the music?

[38:31] Sylvia: I found all this in that box of yours.

[38:34] Mal and Jara: Bonita.

[38:35] Sylvia: No.

[38:36] Sylvia: And she was like you, you know.

[38:38] Mal and Jara: Huh?

[38:39] Sylvia: Chabela Valgas.

[38:41] Sylvia: Una lesbiana.

[38:43] Mal and Jara: Godma.

[38:44] Mal and Jara: Why?

[38:45] Sylvia: I thought you would like to know.

[38:47] Sylvia: You know, there was a fine tradition of Latinas loving Latinas, Mija.

[38:51] Sylvia: No reason to be ashamed.

[38:52] Mal and Jara: What makes you think I'm ashamed?

[38:54] Sylvia: Sylvia brings Mal a plate of food.

[38:57] Sylvia: I just didn't know.

[38:58] Sylvia: You never told me.

[39:00] Mal and Jara: Yeah.

[39:00] Mal and Jara: Well, we'll eat them.

[39:01] Mal and Jara: You kind of missed all that.

[39:04] Mal and Jara: Mal eats.

[39:05] Sylvia: Sylvia continues to go through the box.

[39:09] Sylvia: I guess she didn't have anything too valuable up there.

[39:12] Mal and Jara: That depends on what you value.

[39:18] Sylvia: Sylvia pulls a stuffed bear from the box.

[39:23] Mal and Jara: Excuse me?

[39:24] Mal and Jara: I mean that this is my gordo.

[39:26] Mal and Jara: My favorite toy from when I was just a little girl.

[39:29] Mal and Jara: I brought Gordo with me everywhere.

[39:31] Mal and Jara: Until one day I left him on the playground.

[39:33] Mal and Jara: I thought he was lost forever.

[39:36] Mal and Jara: You know, I cried for days.

[39:41] Sylvia: I never imagined she had taken him.

[39:43] Mal and Jara: Maybe she was keeping him safe, so you wouldn't lose him for real.

[39:47] Sylvia: Oh.

[39:49] Mal and Jara: You should keep the bear, Ma.

[39:51] Mal and Jara: Take it with you now.

[39:53] Mal and Jara: It took you this long to find it.

[39:56] Sylvia: Sylvia places the bear back in the box.

[39:58] Sylvia: That's alright, Mija.

[40:00] Sylvia: Sometimes we have to let go of the things that mean the most to us.

[40:05] Mal and Jara: What about the house?

[40:07] Mal and Jara: Do you think you can give it up too?

[40:09] Sylvia: I finish your food before it goes cold, eh?

[40:12] Sylvia: Sylvia turns the music back up and dances with Gordo.

[40:16] Sylvia: Lights out.

[40:17] Sylvia: Lights up on seven.

[40:19] Sylvia: Sonambula.

[40:21] Sylvia: Night in the house.

[40:23] Sylvia: The cart is empty.

[40:24] Mal and Jara: Mal sleeps on the floor.

[40:26] Jara: Shara watches her.

[40:28] Jara: Shara pulls a ceramic crown out of a box from earlier, gingerly perches it on Mal's head.

[40:35] Jara: It is a silver moon-shaped crown with a snake wound elegantly at the tippy top.

[40:41] Mal and Jara: Mal shifts in her sleep.

[40:44] Mal and Jara: The crown falls to the floor and shatters, waking Mal up.

[40:48] Mal and Jara: Mal looks down at the broken crown in her hands.

[40:52] Mal and Jara: Mal looks around.

[40:54] Mal and Jara: They are no longer in the house, but back in the small bedroom, turned art studio from earlier.

[41:00] Mal and Jara: A large table sits at the center of the room full of clay sculptures.

[41:04] Jara: Loud footsteps approach.

[41:07] Jara: Give me that.

[41:09] Jara: Shara grabs the shards from Mal, holds them behind their back.

[41:13] Jara: Let me do the talking.

[41:15] Mal and Jara: Mal stands behind Shara.

[41:17] Mal and Jara: They move as one.

[41:18] Jara: What the hell is this?

[41:20] Sylvia: Mal, what are you doing in here?

[41:22] Mal and Jara: I wanted to see what you were making.

[41:30] Sylvia: What's behind your back?

[41:33] Sylvia: Malinda, I'm not playing with you.

[41:35] Sylvia: This isn't a game.

[41:37] Sylvia: Now show me.

[41:38] Mal and Jara: It was an accident.

[41:40] Sylvia: Muestra me.

[41:42] Mal and Jara: Mal brings her arms out from behind their back and reveals the shards.

[41:47] Sylvia: Sylvia gasps and cups her hands over against her mouth.

[41:51] Sylvia: Do you realize what you've done?

[41:54] Sylvia: Sylvia grabs the shards from Shara Mal's hands.

[41:57] Sylvia: I was only trying to get a better look.

[41:59] Sylvia: How could you after I explicitly told you to never touch my sculpture?

[42:03] Mal and Jara: I just thought it was so pretty, and I the idea was.

[42:06] Mal and Jara: It was so pretty.

[42:08] Sylvia: Now look at it.

[42:09] Sylvia: Maybe I can fix it.

[42:11] Sylvia: Can't you see you?

[42:12] Sylvia: You've ruined it.

[42:12] Sylvia: This was the last part of the piece.

[42:14] Sylvia: It was her crown.

[42:15] Sylvia: It was Sharantanga's crown, and now it's ruined.

[42:18] Mal and Jara: Who is uh Jaratanga?

[42:21] Sylvia: Sharatanga is tu sangre, tu ancestros, tu herencia.

[42:25] Sylvia: She is the pure pecha goddess of the moon of life and death all at once.

[42:30] Mal and Jara: She is the ultimate homage to everything we've been through and will overcome.

[42:34] Sylvia: And now her crown is shattered.

[42:36] Mal and Jara: Could you make a new one?

[42:37] Sylvia: Make a new one.

[42:39] Mal and Jara: You don't get it, Malinda.

[42:41] Sylvia: Some things you can't just replace like that.

[42:44] Mal and Jara: But you did it the first time.

[42:45] Sylvia: Why can't you make it again?

[42:47] Mal and Jara: Do you know what this is?

[42:49] Sylvia: This is silver, Linda.

[42:51] Mal and Jara: Real fucking silver.

[42:53] Sylvia: But it looks like clay.

[42:56] Mal and Jara: Yes, yes. And do you know how expensive it is to get silver polymer clay?

[43:00] Sylvia: I had to order it from Pota, Japan.

[43:03] Mal and Jara: I'm sorry, mommy. Maybe I can get you more.

[43:06] Sylvia: Uh-huh.

[43:06] Mal and Jara: Yeah, right.

[43:07] Sylvia: I have $50 saved.

[43:10] Mal and Jara: I saved the extra quarters Abuela gave me from the ice cream chip.

[43:14] Sylvia: That's a lot of beans of quarters.

[43:15] Mal and Jara: 200.

[43:16] Sylvia: What?

[43:17] Mal and Jara: That's 200 quarters.

[43:18] Sylvia: Hi, Gray.

[43:19] Mal and Jara: My kids Einstein.

[43:21] Sylvia: Pues Einstein, even your 200 quarters aren't enough.

[43:24] Mal and Jara: Maybe um Abuela will help.

[43:27] Sylvia: Maybe if we tell her how important it is.

[43:29] Mal and Jara: And what about my time, Nina?

[43:31] Sylvia: Hmm?

[43:32] Mal and Jara: This piece is six months in the making.

[43:34] Sylvia: Where am I going to get that time back?

[43:37] Mal and Jara: Can you give me those hours of my life back?

[43:40] Sylvia: Well, can you?

[43:42] Mal and Jara: I have a deadline to submit in two weeks.

[43:45] Sylvia: People's times matter, Linda.

[43:48] Mal and Jara: My time matters.

[43:51] Sylvia: You didn't think of that, did you?

[43:53] Mal and Jara: What if I help you?

[43:55] Sylvia: Abuela always says hard work goes faster, juntos.

[43:59] Mal and Jara: Yeah, well, Abuela was talking about chores, Linda, not a fucking NEA gram.

[44:04] Sylvia: And now it's ruined.

[44:08] Mal and Jara: It's just ruin.

[44:09] Sylvia: I'm sorry, mommy.

[44:14] Sylvia: You know, you need to learn something.

[44:17] Sylvia: Very important from this, Malinda.

[44:19] Sylvia: People like you and me.

[44:21] Sylvia: We don't get second chances.

[44:23] Sylvia: We don't get to fail.

[44:25] Sylvia: Least of all that's something like art.

[44:27] Sylvia: We have to fight with everything we've got just to be considered at all.

[44:32] Sylvia: Don't you ever forget that?

[44:34] Mal and Jara: I just wanted to see what you were making in here.

[44:37] Mal and Jara: I want to know how you do it.

[44:39] Sylvia: Well, you can't, okay?

[44:41] Mal and Jara: This is mine.

[44:43] Sylvia: Do you understand?

[44:45] Mal and Jara: Mine.

[44:46] Sylvia: Don't you think I deserve something for just me?

[44:49] Mal and Jara: Or do I have to share everything in my life with you?

[44:52] Sylvia: But come out.

[44:55] Mal and Jara: Please, mommy.

[44:57] Sylvia: Not another word.

[44:58] Sylvia: I don't want to see your face for the rest of the afternoon.

[45:02] Jara: retreats into the walls.

[45:05] Mal and Jara: stays frozen on the spot.

[45:07] Sylvia: does not see her.

[45:10] Sylvia: smashes her sculptures one by one.

[45:14] Jara glows blue in the wall.

[45:24] Mal and Jara: jolts awake in bed to the sound of shattering.

[45:28] Sylvia: sleeps behind her.

[45:30] Jara: scurries up the wall to the attic.

[45:34] Lights: dim.

[45:36] Lights: up on eight.

[45:37] Mal and Jara: Worry dolls.

[45:39] Mal and Jara: looks around for Jara.

[45:41] Mal and Jara: Jara.

[45:43] Jara: hides in their cocoon.

[45:45] Mal and Jara: Are you okay?

[45:48] Mal and Jara: That was kind of intense, huh?

[45:51] Mal and Jara: gets up and makes a plate of food, brings it over to the wall, and sets it down on the floor.

[45:57] Mal and Jara: I made you a plate.

[45:58] Jara: perks their head up, skitters down the wall and pokes their head out.

[46:04] Jara: Uncertain.

[46:05] Mal and Jara: Are you hungry?

[46:07] Jara: I'm always hungry.

[46:12] Mal and Jara: What is it?

[46:13] Jara: Garnitas.

[46:14] Mal and Jara: Mommy made them.

[46:17] Mal and Jara: Go on, it's okay.

[46:19] Jara: caves, grabs the plate and eats ferociously with her hands.

[46:24] Mal and Jara: You must miss Awelita's cooking.

[46:27] Jara: She was a wonderful cook.

[46:30] Mal and Jara: Jara.

[46:32] Mal and Jara: What was that?

[46:34] Jara: Where were we just then?

[46:36] Mal and Jara: A memory.

[46:37] Jara: I know, but why that one?

[46:40] Jara: You um you needed to see it.

[46:43] Jara: To understand.

[46:44] Mal and Jara: Understand what?

[46:46] Jara: Me?

[46:46] Jara: You us?

[46:49] Mal and Jara: I still don't think I do understand.

[46:52] Jara: You will.

[46:53] Jara: We're not done yet.

[46:55] Jara: Here.

[46:56] Jara: Take these worry dolls for the journey.

[47:00] Jara: braids a strand of worry dolls into Mal's hair.

[47:05] Mal and Jara: turns her head to look for her worry dolls.

[47:09] Mal and Jara: Wait, where did you get these?

[47:11] Jara: disappears.

[47:13] Mal and Jara: touches the worry dolls.

[47:15] Music plays distantly.

[47:17] Mal and Jara: Jara, where did you go?

[47:19] The scene shifts.

[47:20] Mal and Jara: is alone in her Abuelita's apartment.

[47:23] Mal and Jara: Hello?

[47:25] Mal and Jara: Jara.

[47:27] Mal and Jara: Mommy.

[47:29] Mal and Jara: Awelita?

[47:30] Mal and Jara: Silencio.

[47:31] Lupe and Sylvia enter arguing.

[47:35] Lupe: Before you say something you can't undo.

[47:37] Sylvia: But that's just but that's just it, isn't it, Ma?

[47:40] Sylvia: I can't undo it.

[47:41] Sylvia: I can't undo any of this.

[47:43] Lupe: What's wrong with you?

[47:44] Lupe: How can you say such things?

[47:46] Sylvia: Who would want to unwork?

[47:49] Lupe: It's not I don't not want this just not this way.

[47:55] Sylvia: I wanted it to be different.

[47:59] Lupe: What's the point of that?

[48:01] Lupe: Wanting such a thing you can't have.

[48:04] Sylvia: This is the life you have.

[48:06] Sylvia: These are the choices you made.

[48:09] Lupe: They weren't all my choices.

[48:11] Sylvia: And what would you have chosen?

[48:21] Lupe: I don't know you.

[48:23] Lupe: What have you done with my sweet little Sylvia?

[48:26] Lupe: She certainly isn't this monstro in front of me.

[48:29] Sylvia: Well, your little Sylvia grew up, Ma.

[48:33] Sylvia: That's what sweet little children do.

[48:34] Sylvia: They become big and convenient adults.

[48:36] Lupe: I didn't raise you to be like this.

[48:38] Sylvia: Yeah, well, you were never around much anyway, so how would you know?

[48:45] Lupe: I didn't mean it.

[48:46] Lupe: I'm sorry, I you are a good for nothing.

[48:53] Sylvia: That's what you are, Maldita.

[48:57] Lupe: I was working.

[48:59] Lupe: I broke my back every day for you.

[49:01] Lupe: On my feet for hours, working three jobs just to give you a chance at life.

[49:09] Sylvia: And what have you done with that life?

[49:12] Sylvia: What good is any of that if you hold it against me?

[49:15] Lupe: Take some responsibility for your life para tu hija.

[49:18] Sylvia: But you resent me, mommy.

[49:20] Sylvia: Is that what you want for me and Linda?

[49:22] Sylvia: You want me to resent her too?

[49:23] Lupe: I want you to act like her mother.

[49:25] Sylvia: No importa si te gusta.

[49:29] Lupe: Punto.

[49:31] Sylvia: I'll only be gone for three weeks.

[49:34] Sylvia: Besides, what's the point of being a bad mother and giving up on the life I've always wanted for myself?

[49:40] Sylvia: I mean, if I'm gonna be a bad mother already, I might as well be good at something.

[49:46] Lupe: Who do I help by failing us both?

[49:48] Sylvia: What matters is for you to be here, not to be perfect.

[50:00] Lupe: It's about giving myself a chance to do something for me, a chance to be happy.

[50:10] Sylvia: Well, sometimes she is, okay.

[50:15] Lupe: I'm not supposed to say that, right?

[50:17] Lupe: I'm not supposed to say that I'm so no, no, I'm supposed to say that motherhood fills a hole in my heart that I didn't know was there, and that nothing in this world could make me happier.

[50:28] Sylvia: But sometimes it's just fucking hard to do this by myself.

[50:36] Lupe: Because you may have given up on your child, pero yo no.

[50:41] Sylvia: I will never do that.

[50:43] Lupe: Well, then I guess it's good.

[50:44] Mal and Jara: has you then.

[50:46] Lupe: Shhh.

[50:51] Sylvia: It's three weeks, mommy.

[50:53] Sylvia: That's all I'm asking for.

[50:55] Sylvia: Look, this retreat, it's a big deal, okay?

[50:59] Sylvia: It's my invitation, it's by invitation only, and they don't just ask anybody.

[51:05] Sylvia: There will be some major patrons at the show.

[51:07] Sylvia: It could make my career, ma.

[51:09] Sylvia: This could change everything for me.

[51:12] Lupe: turns away.

[51:17] Lupe: She is now facing Malinshara.

[51:20] Lupe: Her eyes well up with tears.

[51:23] Lupe: She gazes on them, seeing and not seeing.

[51:30] Sylvia: What?

[51:33] Lupe: Yes.

[51:34] Lupe: It will change everything.

[51:37] Lupe: And Ma, Joordny.

[51:43] Sylvia: Do you want to be free?

[51:45] Lupe: You're free.

[51:47] Sylvia: Do you want to clean up your mess?

[51:49] Lupe: I will.

[51:52] Sylvia: I don't want you making a scene in front of Malinda.

[51:55] Lupe: She still, you have no family to return to.

[52:02] Sylvia: Come on, this is too much.

[52:04] Lupe: I'm not abandoning her.

[52:06] Lupe: I just need a little time.

[52:08] Lupe: This will make it better for all of us.

[52:11] Sylvia: No, not for me.

[52:13] Lupe: Do you think I don't know any better?

[52:16] Lupe: But no soy tonta.

[52:18] Lupe: Three weeks is just the start.

[52:21] Lupe: And then it's a show you just can't miss.

[52:23] Lupe: Then it's this, then is that.

[52:26] Lupe: This choice is not for me.

[52:29] Lupe: It's not for your daughter.

[52:31] Lupe: It's for you.

[52:32] Lupe: So go.

[52:33] Lupe: And don't come back.

[52:35] Sylvia: This is totally unfair.

[52:37] Lupe: No.

[52:38] Lupe: What's unfair?

[52:39] Lupe: Is your it's still standing there wasting my time.

[52:47] Sylvia: LARGATE.

[52:50] Sylvia: grabs a bag by the door and exits.

[52:53] Shara: quietly cries.

[52:57] Mal and Jara: You don't have to stay here.

[52:59] Shara: Go.

[53:00] Mal and Jara: Hide.

[53:02] Shara: I'll find my way back.

[53:04] They break apart.

[53:05] Shara: exits.

[53:07] Lupe: walks over to Mal as if fully seeing her for the first time.

[53:15] Lupe: presses some worry dolls into Shara's hand.

[53:18] Lupe: Aquitienes.

[53:21] Lupe: exits.

[53:26] Mal and Jara: Worry dolls.

[53:28] Mal and Jara: holds the dolls to her chest.

[53:31] The scene changes, returning home.

[53:35] Shara: hides in their cocoon, glowing blue.

[53:42] Mal and Jara: stands still, holding the worry dolls.

[53:45] Mal and Jara: looks up.

[53:47] Lights: out.

[53:49] Lights: up on nine.

[53:51] Sylvia: Ofrenda.

[53:53] Sylvia: Morning.

[53:54] Sylvia: wakes up alone.

[53:57] Sylvia: Where is this girl off to now?

[53:59] Sylvia: sees Gordo sitting on the table, holding another note.

[54:04] Sylvia: At George, back in a few.

[54:06] Sylvia: Who's George?

[54:08] Sylvia: puts on a flamboyant robe and slippers.

[54:11] Sylvia: picks up the Kumal and considers it.

[54:14] Sylvia: Looks like it's just you and me again, Goldo.

[54:17] Sylvia: But I won't forget the Tultillas this time.

[54:19] Sylvia: begins to make breakfast.

[54:22] As she is cooking, Mal enters, laptop in hand, George behind her.

[54:26] Mal and Jara: Thanks again for letting me use your Wi-Fi.

[54:29] Sylvia: There you are.

[54:30] Sylvia: I was beginning to worry.

[54:32] Sylvia: Oh, and this must be George.

[54:35] Sylvia: Welcome, George.

[54:36] Sylvia: I'm Sylvia, Malinda's uh mother.

[54:39] Mal and Jara: Mom.

[54:40] Sylvia: Oh, yes, of course.

[54:42] Sylvia: Sylvia.

[54:43] George: Lupi told me all about you.

[54:46] Sylvia: So nice to finally meet you.

[54:47] George: Igual mente, George.

[54:49] Sylvia: I take it you live nearby.

[54:51] George: Oh, yes, yes.

[54:52] George: My wife Helen and I are just down the road.

[54:55] Sylvia: So, Mal, does this mean you're gonna be hanging on to the place a little longer after all?

[54:59] Mal and Jara: Yeah, I sure hope this isn't the last we see of you folks.

[55:02] George: Oh, I don't think so.

[55:03] George: No.

[55:03] George: You're still working out the details.

[55:06] Sylvia: Well, I was just making us some breakfast, George.

[55:09] Sylvia: Why don't you join us?

[55:10] George: Take a lodo.

[55:12] George: Oh, well, that's very kind.

[55:13] George: Oh, but I'm afraid Helen is waiting for me.

[55:16] Sylvia: Dinner tonight, then?

[55:17] Sylvia: Both of you?

[55:19] Sylvia: It's our last night here, and it will be just so special if you and Helen would could come.

[55:23] George: Oh, well, that's very sweet.

[55:25] George: I think we've taken up enough of George's time this week, guys.

[55:28] Sylvia: Oh, don't be silly.

[55:29] Sylvia: It's nice to have some excitement around here.

[55:32] Sylvia: Now let me think.

[55:33] Sylvia: Really, it's no pressure.

[55:35] Sylvia: You've been so welcoming.

[55:36] Sylvia: I think mom just wants to return to the bottom.

[55:38] Sylvia: Oh, you just must join us, George.

[55:41] Sylvia: You know, we just made some fresh tortillas.

[55:43] Sylvia: It's what I'm ma would have wanted.

[55:47] George: Well, that sounds lovely.

[55:49] Mal and Jara: Yeah, just let me check with Helen.

[55:51] George: See, see, see, yes, yes, yes.

[55:52] George: Here's my number.

[55:54] George: Just call me so I know how many and she ladders to make.

[55:57] Sylvia: Goodbye, George.

[55:59] Sylvia: Thanks again.

[56:00] Sylvia: And really, and really don't go out of your way on our behavior.

[56:04] Sylvia: Save you two plates.

[56:05] George: politely exits.

[56:20] Sylvia: What?

[56:21] Sylvia: Don't look at me that way.

[56:22] Sylvia: Those things never go bad.

[56:25] Sylvia: Anyway, I better get started.

[56:26] Sylvia: If it's going to be ready in time, I don't want George and Helen to come over.

[56:30] Mal and Jara: Hi, don't be ridiculous.

[56:31] Mal and Jara: How could you not?

[56:32] Mal and Jara: I'm sure they're lovely people.

[56:34] Sylvia: So lovely.

[56:35] Mal and Jara: That's not the point. And it's our last night together here. I have to leave pretty early tomorrow. And don't worry about that, Linda. We won't go too late. And no tequila for me this time. I promise I was hoping we could get some time alone, just us. I mean how we've had nothing but a long time since we got here.

[56:55] Sylvia: Look at you getting all sentimental. We need to talk about the house, Ma. About what we're going to do with it.

[57:06] Sylvia: We don't have to rush to make any big decisions in one weekend. You know that this house isn't going anywhere. We should take some time. Bolo Meno, wait till we're done with the enchiladas. There's nothing worse than arguing while cooking. It makes the mole taste sour.

[57:27] Sylvia: What's all that for?

[57:29] Sylvia: Uno frienda to feed our ancestors. We can't very well leave them out of a dinner party, can we? Your abuela. She's one of them now.

[57:39] Mal and Jara: But where did all this stuff come from?

[57:42] Sylvia: Here and there. You need to learn to see the abundance around you, Mija.

[57:57] Mal and Jara: How's this for a start?

[58:01] Mal and Jara: You know, you always were a quick learner. Bueno, we'll say a prayer.

[58:12] Mal and Jara: It's nice. Spending time together like this.

[58:21] Sylvia: Hello? Oh yes, George, hi. Wow, that was quick. Oh, what a shame. Uh her her canasta game tonight? Oh, that's too bad. Maybe sometime in the future we all could wait, what's that? Oh, you can. Oh, okay. Well, of course. We we could we would still love to have you.

[58:43] Sylvia: It's her car game. If her car game finishes early, she can join us. Oh yes, yes. How nice. I'm I'm so glad. Well, let's see. Um you know, uh, we're a little behind schedule here, but I think seven should be just fine.

[59:02] Mal and Jara: Ma, we have to talk about the house in time.

[59:05] Sylvia: Boys, I'm afraid that we'll have to wait right now. It's time to make the mollet. We have company coming.

[59:09] Mal and Jara: Company coming.

[59:16] Mal and Jara: The furniture has been rearranged. The kitchen table sits in the center, remnants of food prep scattered across it.

[59:32] Mal and Jara: Property tax is a real thing, Ma. That's a lot to pay for a country home, you're escaped to on the weekends.

[59:39] Mal and Jara: And what if it's not just the weekends? What, like a summer home? I don't think we're summer home people. What if I lived here?

[59:55] Shara: You can't be serious. There's an outhouse for fuck's sake.

[1:00:07] Mal and Jara: You've thought about this. How long have you been planning this?

[1:00:18] Mal and Jara: Well, I mean Dioro Lololfo and I talked about it in and talked about it a bit after she died, of course. But it's the right thing to do, Miha. Ama would have wanted this to be a space for the two of us.

[1:00:30] Mal and Jara: You don't even have a car. How are you going to get around?

[1:00:33] Mal and Jara: I figure it out. I have two perfectly good legs, and walking doesn't scare me. Maybe I could even get a bike.

[1:00:44] Sylvia: No. Uh no, no, no, absolutely not. What do you care where I live? You didn't know here before this weekend.

[1:00:54] Shara: Before this weekend, you weren't trying to take my inheritance.

[1:01:00] Mal and Jara: I'm not taking anything from you. Besides, if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have an inheritance.

[1:01:09] Mal and Jara: To get me to let you stay here. You don't have to let me do anything. I am co-owner.

[1:01:15] Mal and Jara: So you're telling me you plan to live here, Mom. Actually live here full time. You know that's a commitment, right? You can't just take off for three years because someone offers you a gallery show somewhere.

[1:01:33] Shara: There is a small pop in the hearth, and a flame licks up, setting the corner of the enchiladas aflame.

[1:01:40] Shara: Fuck. Fuck the fuck fuck fuck fuck.

[1:01:47] Shara: You know, this is why I didn't want to talk to you about this right now. I told you bad things happen if you cook when you're angry.

[1:02:07] Mal and Jara: I I think we can salvage them.

[1:02:09] Sylvia: No, no, no. Can't you see their ruin?

[1:02:12] Mal and Jara: Calm down, Ma, it's it'll be fine. Really, they're fine. Good enough for some upstate gringo anyway.

[1:02:17] Mal and Jara: I doubt he even knows what the difference what they're supposed to taste like.

[1:02:21] Sylvia: Ma will know. Awelita.

[1:02:23] Mal and Jara: Okay, Ma, why don't you just sit down in the big chair and take a breath? I'll get the table set.

[1:02:29] Mal and Jara: But they'll be here any minute.

[1:02:34] Mal and Jara: She grabs the tablecloth from Shara and throws it over the table.

[1:02:38] Mal and Jara: She arranges two other chairs around it. She puts out plates and silverware her mother has gathered, leaving three place settings.

[1:02:46] Sylvia: Four! We have to have four!

[1:02:48] Mal and Jara: What do you mean? There's only three of us. Remember Helen has canasta?

[1:02:52] Sylvia: Don't get so worked up.

[1:02:59] Sylvia: The big chair is for Auelita. We need four chairs and four place settings. One, two, three, for you, me, George, and one for Ma.

[1:03:07] Mal and Jara: Mal nods and adds a fourth place setting.

[1:03:11] Sylvia: There is a knock at the door.

[1:03:13] Sylvia: George! Hi! Come, come, come in. Welcome.

[1:03:20] George: Hiya.

[1:03:21] Sylvia: Well, you guys aren't sick of this old mug yet.

[1:03:30] George: Don't be silly. You're you're you our neighbor. You're always welcome.

[1:03:34] George: Oh, does that mean uh did you folks decide what you're doing with the house?

[1:03:38] Sylvia: No. We still have some details to iron out.

[1:03:42] Sylvia: Come have a seat, George. Take a load off.

[1:03:54] Mal and Jara: Uh that that one's just uh for Lupe. Uh silly old tradition.

[1:03:59] Sylvia: Yes, you see, since it was Lupe who brought us all here tonight. We leave her a little offering. She's our guest of honor.

[1:04:08] George: Oh, like Elijah.

[1:04:13] Sylvia: It's a Jewish thing, Ma.

[1:04:15] Mal and Jara: I pass over.

[1:04:21] Shara: Ah, okay nice. Are you Jewish, George?

[1:04:25] George: Oh, me? Oh, Methodist, actually.

[1:04:28] Sylvia: Hmm. Well, we're Catholic. Sort of.

[1:04:31] Sylvia: Can I get you anything to drink?

[1:04:33] George: Oh, yes, water would be lovely. Thank you.

[1:04:35] Sylvia: Oh, I almost forgot, George. I got you a little present to say thank you for all your help this weekend.

[1:04:42] George: Oh my.

[1:04:42] Sylvia: Oh well, that is just too kind. But you certainly didn't need to please.

[1:04:46] Sylvia: Please, please. I I I insist it's the least we could do.

[1:04:50] Sylvia: Mal sets down a glass of water in front of him.

[1:04:54] George: Your water.

[1:04:55] Sylvia: Thank you, dear. Now let's see.

[1:04:58] George: What do we have here?

[1:05:08] George: Oh my word. It's um Colin Zon Day.

[1:05:15] Sylvia: Oh, Tequila.

[1:05:17] George: Yeah, it's it's Lupe's favorite.

[1:05:20] Sylvia: Oh, well, that is very nice. Oh, that is just so thoughtful of you both. Thank you very much.

[1:05:24] Mal and Jara: I'm afraid I can't take the credit. That's all Sylvia.

[1:05:27] George: I let's all drink a toast, eh?

[1:05:29] Mal and Jara: Malinda. Get us four glasses.

[1:05:31] George: Oh, that's all right. I don't drink, actually. Sixteen years sober myself.

[1:05:37] Sylvia: Oh, but Helen will love it. She and the girls in her canast again still like to stir up a little trouble.

[1:05:43] Mal and Jara: Ah, okay, okay, okay. Three glasses, then eha.

[1:05:47] Mal and Jara: I thought we weren't drinking tonight, Ma. Remember? I have to be up early tomorrow.

[1:05:51] Sylvia: Yes, yes, yes, of course, of course. No drinking, but we have to have a toast at least for Abolita's sake, no?

[1:05:59] Mal and Jara: Three glasses, Anda.

[1:06:01] Mal grabs three small glasses and returns to the table.

[1:06:06] George: Do you mind?

[1:06:07] Mal and Jara: No, go right ahead.

[1:06:09] Sylvia opens the bottle and pours a finger of tequila into the three glasses.

[1:06:14] Sylvia: She places one before her, gives one to Mal, and sets one ceremoniously down in front of Lupe's chair.

[1:06:31] Mal and Jara: To our querida Lupe, may she rest in peace.

[1:06:36] Mal and Jara: To all friends and new neighbors.

[1:06:40] All: Salute.

[1:06:41] All: Salute.

[1:06:42] All: Salute.

[1:06:44] Mal and Jara: They each drink from their glasses.

[1:06:46] George: George sips his water.

[1:06:48] Mal and Jara: Mal sips at the tequila, but does not drink at all.

[1:06:51] Sylvia: Sylvia swigs it down in one go.

[1:06:53] Shara: And Shara reaches their hand up, quickly drinks the third glass, and replaces it while no one is looking.

[1:07:01] George: George, who cannot see Shara, looks down at the empty cup in astonishment.

[1:07:07] Sylvia: Sylvia pours herself another glass.

[1:07:11] Mal and Jara: A dinner party. Dinner is served.

[1:07:16] Mal and Jara: Mal passes around the enchiladas.

[1:07:18] George: Oh, well, this smells just divine.

[1:07:20] Sylvia: It's an all-family recipe. Everything made from scratch, the tortillas, the mole.

[1:07:26] Sylvia: Of course, we have some restrictions here, the time, the space. This one being a vegetarian.

[1:07:33] George: But we make do with what we have. I'm sure it will be wonderful.

[1:07:38] George: Did your mother teach you how to cook, Sylvia?

[1:07:40] Sylvia: Eventually, yes. But it was a long time before Lupe would trust me with the secret family recipes.

[1:07:48] George: Let's eat.

[1:07:49] George: Actually, would you mind if I said a little grace before we begin?

[1:07:53] Sylvia: Oh, sure, sure, sure. Why not? You know, we're sort of Catholic after all, aren't we?

[1:07:59] George: (reaches out his hand to Sylvia, and she reaches hers out in turn to Mal)

[1:08:04] George: (closes his eyes)

[1:08:06] Sylvia: (follows suit, and Mal looks down at the table)

[1:08:10] Shara: (slips out from under the table and puts their hand on top of George's free hand)

[1:08:15] George: Bless us, O Lord, in these thy gifts which we are about to receive from thy bounty.

[1:08:20] George: We give thanks for this beautiful meal prepared by Sylvia and Melinda, and for Lupi, who brought us all together today.

[1:08:29] George: May this be the first of many happinesses we share together through Christ our Lord, Amen.

[1:08:35] All: Amen.

[1:08:37] All: Amen.

[1:08:38] Mal and Jara: Mal almost spits out her food.

[1:08:40] Shara: Shara sits in the big chair and swings her legs playfully.

[1:08:45] Sylvia: Linda, is everything all right?

[1:08:46] Mal and Jara: Oh, yeah, yes. Uh, I was just so moved by your lovely prayer, George.

[1:09:03] George: Well, I meant every word of it.

[1:09:05] George: Now, I don't want to get too preachy here, but I do think it's important to pray. In whatever way is right for you, of course. But just to take the time to give thanks each day for God's abundance. It really enriches your life.

[1:09:19] George: Now, I don't know what your plans are for the house here, but I want you to know how much gratitude Helen and I have had for Lupi over the years.

[1:09:27] Sylvia: And now for you both here, here.

[1:09:30] Sylvia: Sylvia brings the tequila to her lips and sips it.

[1:09:34] George: George attempts to pick up his glass but becomes disoriented when it is not there.

[1:09:39] George: He looks down at his place setting, confused, and rearranges it.

[1:09:44] All: They begin to eat.

[1:09:45] George: Mmm.

[1:09:46] George: Oh, that's delicious. What is that? Is that chocolate?

[1:09:49] Sylvia: Mole.

[1:09:51] Sylvia: It's kind of like a savory chocolate sauce, yes. Of course, there's a lot more in it than that, but that's a chef's secret, I'm afraid.

[1:09:59] George: George nods vigorously. He is smiling, but his eyes are wincing.

[1:10:05] Shara: Shada sneaks up behind George, grabs his cup of water, and drinks till it's almost empty.

[1:10:09] Mal and Jara: Are you okay, George?

[1:10:11] George: George continues to nod painfully.

[1:10:13] Mal and Jara: Aye, you see, I told you he would he would notice. You know, they're not usually this soggy.

[1:10:19] Mal and Jara: I promised. They're just a bit of a mix with the.

[1:10:24] George: George reaches for his water to drink, but is disappointed to discover only a splash remains.

[1:10:30] George: His face reddens and he begins to fan at his face and breathe heavily.

[1:10:34] Mal and Jara: Get him some milk. Mihak, go go, go, go, huh?

[1:10:36] Mal and Jara: Mal leaps up to grab milk.

[1:10:38] Shara: Jada brings Mal his cup.

[1:10:40] Mal and Jara: Mal snatches it from them and hisses.

[1:10:42] George: George's eyes have begun to tear.

[1:10:45] Sylvia: Mom, how many chiles did you put in the sauce?

[1:10:47] Mal and Jara: Only only only one.

[1:10:48] Sylvia: I I swear, only one.

[1:10:49] Sylvia: I usually put two, but I thought that that would be too much.

[1:10:52] Mal and Jara: What kind of chile, Mom?

[1:10:53] Sylvia: How about habanero?

[1:10:55] Sylvia: I it uh it was all we had.

[1:10:57] Mal and Jara: Did you take the seeds out?

[1:10:59] Mal rushes over and places a full glass of milk in front of George, who drinks it eagerly.

[1:11:05] Jara grabs a fork and sneaks a bite of his food.

[1:11:09] Mal clears her throat.

[1:11:11] Mal and Jara: Aye, George, I forgot to take the seeds out.

[1:11:14] Mal and Jara: I'm just so used to cooking for you know for people who who are used to the heat.

[1:11:19] George, who has drunk half of the glass of milk, nods and gathers himself.

[1:11:24] George: That's all right, Sylvia.

[1:11:28] Mal removes George's plate.

[1:11:30] George continues to collect himself over the milk.

[1:11:33] Mal and Jara: Can I get you anything else, George?

[1:11:34] George: Oh dear, I I'm so sorry to be so.

[1:11:36] Sylvia: George, please, we're the ones who should be upon.

[1:11:39] All: Yes, yes.

[1:11:40] Sylvia: These culpanos por favor.

[1:11:42] Sylvia: How careless of us, really?

[1:11:44] Sylvia: We should have known better.

[1:11:46] George: Oh no, no, no.

[1:11:48] George: How could you have known?

[1:11:49] George: I suppose I just don't have the constitution for heat.

[1:11:52] Sylvia: Well, let's just find you something else.

[1:11:55] George: Oh, please.

[1:11:56] George: I I I don't want to be too much trouble.

[1:11:58] George: I feel like such a silly old fool.

[1:12:00] Sylvia: How could you possibly be troubled?

[1:12:03] Sylvia: Mira, we have extra tortillas and there's no pimento in the filling.

[1:12:07] Sylvia: We could whip you up some tacos or some quesadillas.

[1:12:13] George: Ah, yeah, sure.

[1:12:15] George: I'll just uh throw something together.

[1:12:17] George: Gracias, Linda.

[1:12:20] Mal and Jara: Isn't she the best?

[1:12:21] Mal and Jara: Very hospitable.

[1:12:24] Mal and Jara: Oh, so George, how long have you and Helen lived around here?

[1:12:29] George: Oh, uh, let's see.

[1:12:30] George: Uh it's been about 25 years now.

[1:12:33] George: You know, Helen wanted some peace and quiet after the kids left.

[1:12:37] Mal and Jara: Now there's an idea.

[1:12:39] Mal and Jara: Do you mind?

[1:12:41] George shakes his head.

[1:12:42] Sylvia pours herself another glass of tequila.

[1:12:45] Sylvia: That's fine.

[1:12:46] Sylvia: Uno, dos, three, quattro, cinco.

[1:12:49] Sylvia: See, I can count too.

[1:12:51] Shara bangs on the table five times.

[1:12:54] George takes off his glasses and rubs the bridge of his nose.

[1:12:58] George replaces his glasses and looks around to make sure he is seeing correctly.

[1:13:02] Sylvia checks to see if the table is stable.

[1:13:09] Mal places a new plate in front of George.

[1:13:11] Mal and Jara: Here you go, George.

[1:13:12] Mal and Jara: I think you'll find these less intense.

[1:13:15] George: Thank you, dear.

[1:13:15] George: You're you're too kind.

[1:13:17] George: You you know, George, I must admit I've I've been looking for some peace and quiet of my own lately.

[1:13:25] George: You know, when I was young, my my artist craved excitement, adventure, risk.

[1:13:30] George: If I stayed in one place too long, it was like being smothered.

[1:13:34] George: I couldn't breathe.

[1:13:35] George: I couldn't create.

[1:13:37] George: But now I'm getting a little myself as well.

[1:13:41] George: And George, I'm I'm tired.

[1:13:43] George: And my artist.

[1:13:45] George: She needs space.

[1:13:46] George: She needs time.

[1:13:49] Mal and Jara: You're still young, you know.

[1:13:50] George: Aye, George, you flatter me.

[1:13:52] George: You're not old until you're 70.

[1:13:55] George: That's what my grand once told me.

[1:13:56] George: And well, she was 90 at the time, so I'd imagine she'd know.

[1:13:59] George: Thank God for grands.

[1:14:01] George: Here.

[1:14:02] George takes a sip of his milk and a kind of toast.

[1:14:05] Sylvia sips her tequila.

[1:14:08] Sylvia: Bueno.

[1:14:09] Sylvia: Then it's decided.

[1:14:11] Sylvia: I'm going to keep the house.

[1:14:13] Mal and Jara: Mom.

[1:14:14] Sylvia: No, Iha.

[1:14:15] Sylvia: I've made up my mind, and there's no point in beating around the bush.

[1:14:18] Mal and Jara: Mom, please, we have company.

[1:14:19] Sylvia: Yes, we do have company.

[1:14:21] Sylvia: In fact, if I'm honest, that's why I invited you all here.

[1:14:26] Sylvia: A housewarming is exactly what the occasion calls for.

[1:14:30] Mal and Jara: Seriously, I need you to stop.

[1:14:31] Mal and Jara: I know you don't like it, but you won't change my mind.

[1:14:35] Sylvia: I need room to bloom a second bloom in my winter years.

[1:14:38] Mal and Jara: Mom, stop talking.

[1:14:41] Mal and Jara: For once, can you just shut up?

[1:14:44] Shara hides under the table.

[1:14:47] George obediently, wordlessly, begins to eat.

[1:14:52] Sylvia pouts.

[1:14:54] Mal cuts up her food and begins to eat for the first time since the party has begun.

[1:15:00] Mal and Jara: Would you pass the hot sauce, please, George?

[1:15:03] George passes her the hot sauce.

[1:15:05] In an act of defiance, Mal smothers the top of her enchiladas in it.

[1:15:10] As she eats, sweat and tears stream down her face, becoming indistinguishable from one another.

[1:15:17] Mal and Jara: Pues enjoy, because I put lard in the tortillas.

[1:15:21] Mal and Jara: What the fuck is wrong with you?

[1:15:24] Sylvia: Language, Linda.

[1:15:26] Mal and Jara: I'll say a fucking hail Mary.

[1:15:27] Mal and Jara: You know, ladies, I really hate to overstay my welcome.

[1:15:30] Mal and Jara: And it seems as if I've stumbled into a personality.

[1:15:41] Sylvia: Malinda.

[1:15:42] Sylvia: I would not have this falta de respeto in my propia casa.

[1:15:45] Mal and Jara: This is not your house, Ma.

[1:15:48] Mal and Jara: I'm not even sure this is half your house.

[1:15:50] Mal and Jara: You swindled Theo into giving you keys, and suddenly you think that makes you a landlady here.

[1:15:55] Mal and Jara: I can't believe I even allowed you to entertain this fantasy for so long as I did.

[1:16:00] Mal and Jara: You know, I was actually starting to feel bad for keeping you out of my life as if you could ever do anything without an agenda.

[1:16:00] Mal and Jara: As if you could ever just be my mother.

[1:16:11] Sylvia: I haven't even started.

[1:16:13] Sylvia: Agualita made excuses for you her entire life.

[1:16:15] Sylvia: You know that?

[1:16:16] Mal and Jara: No, hables mía, graciada.

[1:16:18] Mal and Jara: You know what?

[1:16:18] Mal and Jara: I'll talk about whatever I want in my own house, Ma.

[1:16:23] Mal and Jara: And I'll do whatever I want with it when I leave here.

[1:16:26] Mal and Jara: And if you don't like it, you can take your hurt feelings and make the fucking Guernica out of clay for all I care.

[1:16:32] Mal and Jara: But you'll have to sell it somewhere else because I'm not buying it.

[1:16:37] Shara, who has slowly crept out from the table, clings to George's chair.

[1:16:45] Shara: I don't have anywhere else to go.

[1:16:47] Mal and Jara: What?

[1:16:47] Mal and Jara: What is that supposed to mean?

[1:16:49] Shara: It means I have nowhere else to live right now.

[1:16:53] Mal and Jara: How?

[1:16:55] Mal and Jara: Where have you been staying?

[1:16:57] Shara: Here and there?

[1:16:59] Shara: With friends, apartment in the city, but some fancy new company just bought a building down the block and they wanted to hike the rent up three times as much.

[1:17:12] Shara: I can't afford it.

[1:17:16] Mal and Jara: Jesus Christ.

[1:17:33] Sylvia: A place for us to put aside all this polkeria once and for all and be there for each other.

[1:17:46] Sylvia: If I may.

[1:17:49] Sylvia: Now I can see you're both hurting.

[1:17:51] Sylvia: And maybe that's stopping you from actually hearing each other.

[1:17:55] Sylvia: Lupe loved you both very much.

[1:17:58] Sylvia: And she wanted you both to be happy.

[1:18:00] Sylvia: To be together.

[1:18:02] Sylvia: Now perhaps if you could put that hurt down long enough and really see each other.

[1:18:16] Abuelita: But I cannot speak for myself.

[1:18:18] Mal and Jara: Abuelita.

[1:18:18] Abuelita stands up and begins to sway.

[1:18:27] Abuelita: This mysterious guidance only confuses me more.

[1:18:32] Shara runs up to Lupe, embraces her, leads her to her seat at the head of the table.

[1:18:39] Lupe settles.

[1:18:45] Shara: It to Lupe along with a small offering of a handful of dried chilies and flowers and dead bugs from their pocket.

[1:18:58] Sylvia kneels down at her mother's side, holding her hand and resting her head in her lap.

[1:19:04] Mal is frozen like a deer in headlights.

[1:19:10] Mal and Jara: Aye, of course it's her.

[1:19:12] Mal and Jara: She's come to the housewarming to give her blessing.

[1:19:15] Mal and Jara: Isn't that right?

[1:19:16] Abuelita: How?

[1:19:17] Abuelita: Oh, do not ask how, mi vida.

[1:19:19] Abuelita: It spoils the magic.

[1:19:23] Abuelita: This is too much fuss for a viejita.

[1:19:25] Abuelita: Sit.

[1:19:26] Abuelita: Sit, sit, sit, sit, sit.

[1:19:28] Everyone returns to their seats.

[1:19:30] Shara sits on the floor by Lupe like an attentive pet.

[1:19:34] George, still reeling from the shock, stares down intensely at his plate.

[1:19:47] Abuelita: I had hoped that being here together after so much time would be enough.

[1:19:51] Abuelita: But of course, la reconciliacion.

[1:20:00] Abuelita: But I wanted you both to see each other as you really are in este momento.

[1:20:06] Mal and Jara: I've tried, Ama. I've really tried.

[1:20:08] Mal and Jara: But she won't give me a chance.

[1:20:10] Abuelita: Perhaps you have not tried hard enough, Mija.

[1:20:25] Shara runs to Mal's side.

[1:20:28] George catches a glimpse of Shara, bows his head, quietly prays.

[1:20:35] Mal and Jara: I don't know what else. I don't know what else I can do.

[1:20:38] Mal and Jara: I was all I had. I was alone.

[1:20:40] Abuelita: In this life, we have ourselves, Mija. No one else.

[1:20:43] Abuelita: That's what I learned when I was young.

[1:20:46] Abuelita: Sylvie, you are not alone.

[1:20:49] Abuelita: Look around you.

[1:20:52] Abuelita: Even George.

[1:20:54] Upon hearing his name, George looks up, looks around, then bows his head again and prays at double speed.

[1:21:01] Abuelita: And tomorrow, you all leave and go back where you belong.

[1:21:06] Abuelita: But I'll still be here.

[1:21:07] Mal and Jara: Mom, please.

[1:21:08] Mal and Jara: This is why we have to have a real conversation about this.

[1:21:14] Mal and Jara: I'm not trying to fight with you, Ma.

[1:21:16] Mal and Jara: I didn't ask for any of this.

[1:21:18] Mal and Jara: I never asked anything from you.

[1:21:20] Mal and Jara: And now you want to take all this?

[1:21:22] Sylvia: It's not fair.

[1:21:23] Sylvia: Fair.

[1:21:24] Sylvia: You know, I gave you the blood in your veins, the air in your lungs, my body, my youth, and you talk to me about fair.

[1:21:31] Mal and Jara: Why did you give me any of that then?

[1:21:34] Mal and Jara: No one asks for life, mommy. It happens to us.

[1:21:38] Mal and Jara: And you want to use that against me like some kind of emotional blackmail?

[1:21:43] Sylvia: How can you even think that?

[1:21:44] Mal and Jara: That's why you really left me, isn't it?

[1:21:47] Mal and Jara: Because you could have come back after your retreat.

[1:21:50] Sylvia: Don't talk about things you know nothing about.

[1:21:53] Mal and Jara: But I do know, Ma, I heard everything.

[1:21:55] Sylvia: Well, then you didn't hear very well because it was crystal clear that I wasn't welcome to be there so long as I kept doing my art.

[1:22:02] Mal and Jara: You could have always come home, but you didn't want to.

[1:22:11] Sylvia: Didn't you?

[1:22:14] Mal and Jara: I'm not, didn't you?

[1:22:22] Sylvia: What are you saying?

[1:22:24] Sylvia: Mija, you always had a home with me.

[1:22:27] Mal and Jara: Oh no, no, no. You know, that's not fair.

[1:22:31] Mal and Jara: You told me to get out and stop wasting your time.

[1:22:34] Sylvia: Awelita didn't mean what she said, Ma.

[1:22:36] Mal and Jara: How was I supposed to know that, huh? How was I supposed to know?

[1:22:39] Sylvia: Come on, Ma. Come on, Ma.

[1:22:42] Sylvia: You really think she would have told you to abandon your kid?

[1:22:47] Mal and Jara: My kid, no, my sculpture, sí.

[1:22:49] Sylvia: But I couldn't give either of you up, miha.

[1:22:52] Mal and Jara: But you didn't. That's what she did. That's what she did not understand.

[1:22:55] Sylvia: But you did. You made your choice.

[1:22:58] Sylvia looks at Mal, sees Shara for the first time.

[1:23:03] Mal and Jara: You know, I called you every day.

[1:23:05] Sylvia: You called me once a month, if that.

[1:23:07] Mal and Jara: It was every day, Mija.

[1:23:09] Mal and Jara: You think I could go a whole day without thinking of you?

[1:23:14] Sylvia: Mose, she wouldn't let me talk to you. Did you know that? Did Awelita tell you?

[1:23:19] Sylvia: Would you stop blaming Awelita for your choices?

[1:23:23] Mal and Jara: For her, Ama.

[1:23:33] Sylvia: Tell her.

[1:23:34] Sylvia: Please.

[1:23:41] Abuelita: Untiero.

[1:23:45] Abuelita: That's what we need. A funeral.

[1:23:49] Mal and Jara: Did I die?

[1:23:54] George: Christ, I've had a heart attack.

[1:23:57] Mal and Jara: Oh, that explains it.

[1:23:58] George: Loopy.

[1:24:01] George: Oh, were we in purgatory?

[1:24:05] Abuelita: Oh no, no, no. Not yet, Jorge.

[1:24:07] Abuelita: Not yet.

[1:24:13] Abuelita: You'll be fine in an hour or two.

[1:24:16] Abuelita: It's these hot chilies. They play tricks on your brain.

[1:24:20] Abuelita: Why don't you go lie down on the cot and have a little rest, huh?

[1:24:26] Abuelita: It will pass.

[1:24:27] George: Oh yes, I think that's a good idea.

[1:24:30] George: Oh Sylvia, my word, my behavior tonight has been so embarrassing.

[1:24:35] George: Would you mind terribly if I just lay down for a moment?

[1:24:40] Sylvia: I think that would be best.

[1:24:42] George: Soon this will all be like a distant dream.

[1:24:42] Abuelita: A distant dream.

[1:24:47] Abuelita: I like the sound of that.

[1:24:49] George lies on the cot.

[1:24:51] Shara runs over and covers him with a blanket.

[1:24:56] Lupe: Thank you.

[1:24:58] George: closes his eyes.

[1:25:09] Lupe: Twelve.

[1:25:15] Lupe: The cabin is temporarily transformed.

[1:25:18] Lupe: Papel picado decorates the wall, and four candles have been placed in a rectangle along the floor.

[1:25:24] Shara: grabs a flower for each person from a vase on the mantle.

[1:25:29] Sylvia, Lupe, and Mal: each sip tequila.

[1:25:33] Lupe: Bueno, we are here to say goodbye to who we cannot be.

[1:25:38] Lupe: My children, my time here is over.

[1:25:41] Lupe: I must move on.

[1:25:42] Lupe: Death is a door, but I cannot go all the way through yet.

[1:25:46] Lupe: I'm not finished.

[1:25:48] Lupe: I see it all.

[1:25:50] Lupe: I understand now.

[1:25:51] Lupe: The pain I give to you is the pain I was given.

[1:25:55] Lupe: We carry the history of our mother's pain in our hips.

[1:25:59] Lupe: It's our legacy, our inheritance.

[1:26:01] Lupe: I thought it was the only way, but it's not.

[1:26:05] Lupe: You can give each other something different if you open your eyes.

[1:26:09] Lupe: See all of each other.

[1:26:11] Lupe: See all of yourselves, even the hard parts.

[1:26:15] Lupe: Mal, I took care of this piece of your soul as long as I could.

[1:26:20] Lupe: I owed it to you.

[1:26:22] Lupe: But I cannot protect them anymore.

[1:26:24] Lupe: It's your turn.

[1:26:26] Lupe: Do not let Shara tanga slip away.

[1:26:29] Lupe: Silvia, it is okay to be needed.

[1:26:33] Lupe: To need other people.

[1:26:35] Lupe: You don't have to do everything alone.

[1:26:40] Lupe: Shara, do not be afraid to be a sin.

[1:26:44] Lupe: That is your gift.

[1:26:48] Lupe: You all still have each other.

[1:26:51] Lupe: Please don't wait till death to understand that.

[1:26:55] Lupe: No.

[1:26:57] Lupe: Speak the words you fear most and be free.

[1:27:03] Lupe: scatters its petals on the ground between the candles.

[1:27:09] Shara: helps Lupe over to sit in the big chair, grabs Mal and Sylvia's hands, and leads them to candles.

[1:27:17] Sylvia: stand holding hands.

[1:27:38] Mal and Jara: You know, the sound of the children on the nearby playground, the people walking their dogs, the breeze, the smell of earth.

[1:27:49] Mal and Jara: You used to tell me how much you missed the smell of earth when you came here, and the earth reminded you of home, reminded you of your family.

[1:27:59] Mal and Jara: And now it reminds me of my family.

[1:28:03] Mal and Jara: This is my secret.

[1:28:05] Mal and Jara: Even in the shadows, I glow.

[1:28:08] Mal and Jara: You think you are separate from me, but we all sleep on bones for a bed.

[1:28:13] Mal and Jara: The earth beneath both our feet is no more than the remains of some long-ago star, the dust of those left behind.

[1:28:22] Mal and Jara: You can build your houses high into the sky, but never can you escape the dirt.

[1:28:28] Mal and Jara: I'm not usually good at this opening up thing.

[1:28:32] Mal and Jara: I usually keep my heart hidden away where no one can hurt it.

[1:28:35] Mal and Jara: I guess I didn't realize something was missing.

[1:28:45] Mal and Jara: And being a mother, it's so much more than I think anyone can understand unless they've lived it.

[1:28:53] Mal and Jara: And it stays with you.

[1:29:04] Mal and Jara: Two of them are in this room, and none of them were me.

[1:29:11] Mal and Jara: In these walls, I have been safe, but I starve in this safe place, and my glow is fading.

[1:29:18] Mal and Jara: Suffocated by secrecy, by words left unsaid.

[1:29:22] Mal and Jara: Alessandra saw me.

[1:29:23] Mal and Jara: She wanted me whole and present and messy.

[1:29:26] Mal and Jara: And all my old tricks of hiding myself away sort of stopped working.

[1:29:31] Mal and Jara: I couldn't hide from myself anymore.

[1:29:34] Mal and Jara: I was gonna marry her.

[1:29:35] Mal and Jara: I never thought much about marriage till Alessandra.

[1:29:38] Mal and Jara: I had always been so focused on career, safety, material shit.

[1:29:43] Mal and Jara: I bought a ring and everything.

[1:29:44] Mal and Jara: I hid it away for the right occasion.

[1:29:47] Mal and Jara: Alessandra wanted a family, and I don't know if I'm wired that way to care for a child.

[1:29:54] Mal and Jara: You know, you think I knew what I was doing when I walked out that door, but de verdad I had no clue.

[1:29:54] Mal and Jara: I had no clue how to handle it all, being a mom, an artist, a daughter, and my own pinch person all at once.

[1:30:12] Mal and Jara: And I still don't.

[1:30:14] Mal and Jara: All I knew was I needed to go for Silvia.

[1:30:18] Mal and Jara: You know, it was painful and urgent and necessary.

[1:30:23] Mal and Jara: I didn't want to not be ready to resent a kid for their existence, for their helplessness, their needs, that resentment, it's like a cancer.

[1:30:32] Mal and Jara: No matter how many times someone says they love you, you know it's there under the surface, boring a hole into the core of your relationship.

[1:30:41] Mal and Jara: I'm sorry I wasn't a better mother, a better daughter.

[1:30:46] Mal and Jara: I want to be who you want me to be, but I'm just not.

[1:30:52] Mal and Jara: I can only be who I am.

[1:30:54] Mal and Jara: I'm sorry for that.

[1:30:58] Mal and Jara: But it's true.

[1:30:59] Mal and Jara: So I ended it.

[1:31:01] Mal and Jara: We ended it.

[1:31:02] Mal and Jara: Love ended.

[1:31:03] Mal and Jara: I thought.

[1:31:04] Mal and Jara: I want to come home now.

[1:31:06] Mal and Jara: I need to come home if it's safe.

[1:31:10] Mal and Jara: If you'll have me.

[1:31:12] Mal and Jara: But here I am in this house.

[1:31:15] Mal and Jara: Something is waking up in me again.

[1:31:17] Mal and Jara: Something I never thought I'd feel.

[1:31:20] Mal and Jara: I think I'm ready to let go.

[1:31:23] Mal and Jara: Let us be Jaratanga.

[1:31:27] Mal and Jara: Together with fish bones in our hair and the tides at our feet.

[1:31:34] Mal and Jara: And all those who see us will truly be blessed.

[1:31:43] Sylvia and Mal: In unison, tear the petals off of their flowers and scatter them.

[1:31:49] Jara: tears away the head of their flower with her mouth and eats it.

[1:31:54] Jara: begins to glow.

[1:32:01] Lupe: embraces Mal and Jara, then kisses Silvia on the head.

[1:32:12] Lupe: Aura el tiempo ya llego.

[1:32:16] Lupe: My time here is done.

[1:32:20] Lupe: But my time with you is everlasting when you seek the parts of us that are forever unidos.

[1:32:31] Lupe exits.

[1:32:34] Sylvia: wakes George.

[1:32:36] George: nods politely and exits.

[1:32:45] Sylvia and Mal: In this dreamlike state, clean up in silence.

[1:32:50] Mal and Jara: turns to Silvia.

[1:32:55] Mal and Jara: You should keep the house, mommy.

[1:32:58] Mal and Jara: It's yours.

[1:33:01] Lights: fade.

[1:33:03] Jara: brings Mal the cigar box.

[1:33:06] Jara: climbs into Mal's lap.

[1:33:09] Mal and Jara: hold each other glowing blue.

[1:33:16] The sound of two hearts beating asynchronistically.

[1:33:20] The sound grows till gradually the two are one.

[1:33:23] Within Mal's chest, a light blue light pulses.

[1:33:32] Mal and Jara: opens the cigar box and sets the spiders free.

[1:33:37] End of play.

[1:33:59] Carol Cadby: I was reading stage directions, and my sign is a Taurus.

[1:34:08] Carol Cadby: My name is Carol Cadby, and my sign is a Leo, and I was reading for Lupe.

[1:34:18] Imani Russell: My name is Imani Russell.

[1:34:20] Imani Russell: I use they them pronouns.

[1:34:27] Imani Russell: My birthday is on Saturday.

[1:34:36] Imani Russell: I'm also a Scorpio.

[1:34:40] Imani Russell: Um, and I read Mal, and she's a Capricorn with a Scorpio moon.

[1:34:47] Yohanna Florentino: Hey, what's up?

[1:34:48] Yohanna Florentino: What's up?

[1:34:49] Yohanna Florentino: Um, I'm Yohanna Florentino.

[1:34:51] Yohanna Florentino: I read for Silvia, and I am a Libra Balance.

[1:34:58] Gary Dooley: I'm Gary Dooley, I read George, and I'm a Sagittarian.

[1:35:51] ♪ Musical number: "Auntie Queen Dark Mother" — performed by Gary Dooley ♪

[1:36:26] Just beyond the veil of your reality's a great expanse called the unseen where spirits dance in the moonlight, shadows take over your mind.

[1:36:41] You can run and hide, but no escape you will find until the queen dark mother.

[1:37:16] Can we pass your divinity?

[1:37:21] Unsealy Queen Dark Mother, it's now her ring takeover to the shadow within wander the earth, cast out of heaven.

[1:37:49] Dishonesty is our carnal sin.

[1:38:00] Dishonesty is our carnal sin.

[1:38:14] Iyvon Edebiri: All right, before we get into it, we're gonna give it up one more time for that wonderful cast tonight.

[1:38:21] Iyvon Edebiri: They were amazing.

[1:38:23] Iyvon Edebiri: So much heart and love and soul.

[1:38:27] Iyvon Edebiri: So Javi, hello.

[1:38:29] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Hello.

[1:38:30] Iyvon Edebiri: How are you?

[1:38:31] Javier Rivera DeBruin: I'm great.

[1:38:31] Javier Rivera DeBruin: How are you feeling?

[1:38:32] Iyvon Edebiri: I'm feeling great.

[1:38:34] Iyvon Edebiri: This was this has been a minute and a half.

[1:38:36] Iyvon Edebiri: It had two minutes.

[1:38:37] Iyvon Edebiri: It's been two and a minute.

[1:38:39] Iyvon Edebiri: It's been two and a half whole minutes for this episode to happen.

[1:38:44] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Yes.

[1:38:45] Iyvon Edebiri: What's the wait?

[1:38:46] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Great.

[1:38:46] Iyvon Edebiri: Yay!

[1:38:46] Iyvon Edebiri: Awesome.

[1:38:47] Iyvon Edebiri: Um, let's start off by um the question of what where where did the inspiration of this play come from?

[1:38:55] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Um I like to say this play came from my Saturn return in keeping with our astrology theme this morning.

[1:39:03] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Um I was like really having this moment of reckoning with generational trauma in my own family, um, and just wanted a space to unpack that. Um and real and also at the same time, I was like, I had just gotten my 23andme done. It was 2017. Yes. And I was like digging more into uh the native ancestry of mine in different Latinx cultures, and um my Mexican family descends from uh the Pure Pecha people. Uh and yeah, so it was really just this moment of all of these things baking together, and this came out of it, which it is circumstantially nothing like my life or my own familial situation, but there was an emotional resonance, I feel like to the themes happening there.

[1:39:58] Iyvon Edebiri: No, definitely. And I think with that, one of the themes or a few of the themes that felt resonant were it felt like there was a very interesting conversation happening between memory, because this really feels like a memory play, which is beautiful. And so there's a conversation between memory, inheritance, resentment, and regret that all of the characters are really struggling to meet somehow in the middle. And so I was wondering how do you think those themes play with and against each other in this play and in how you um created the circumstances that we find each of our characters in.

[1:40:42] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Yeah. I think like my hope for, I'll start by seeing that my hope for each of these characters is the transcendence of that. And looking at um how when we break these generational experiences, we can be a link to heal not only ourselves, but to help heal our family, our ancestors. And so for me, like the this house was uh obviously very literal representation of inheritance. Um, but then uh you know, Jara being a manifestation of Mal's inner child is also in their own way kind of a manifestation of inheritance. Yeah, and I I wanted each of the characters to experience, like have their own very distinct experience and point of view, so that they're so different, but still see the places where they're so alike and the places where patterns repeat themselves.

And in this case with this family, um, as I feel like happens with a lot of families of multiple diasporas and especially Latinx families, there's like a lot of parentified children. There's a lot of like hyper independence as a survival mode and as a point of pride. Um and I wanted to the characters to see that there's that that there, as Lupe says, that there is strength and softness.

[1:42:15] Iyvon Edebiri: That was beautiful, beautiful. And um one one great thing about it this getting here in the 2.5 minutes it took for from 2020 to get here is uh this play has been um done on its feet. Originally it was gonna be the podcast, then the um actual stage production, um, in a you know, a page to podcatch to stage kind of model we were trying to do, and then COVID said, nah, fam, we're doing something different. And so um, what has been the process of, you know, when you first sent this play to us of like then adapting it to audio, working on that process and then readapting it to the stage and now readapting it back to audio. How has that experience been? Um, and how have you felt the differences, or what do you feel are the richest differences between the stage and with the audio production?

[1:43:13] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Yeah, that thank you. That's a great question. Um, I think coming into this process, I'll say that like I had never worked in audio as a medium before the work that I've done with partnership. Uh and I think that I had this idea of it being this like very distinct thing that I would write when I wrote the play, I hadn't written it specifically for audio. Um, and then as you mentioned, it's like the process we we pivoted a lot. And I think what I found was that rather than like trying to specifically tailor it for the format, I ended up allowing the format to like tell me something about like what do I need to hear in this play that I'm not hearing? Um, and then the having the visuals of it in a way and being able to like physically see it gave me a sense of what I only know when I see it, and like what sonically would like help enrich this world. Um, so I feel like it kind of all helped each other in a way. It got it to where it needed to be. Where it was meant to be, and that's beautiful.

[1:44:22] Iyvon Edebiri: Um, so your your play made me hungry. Very hungry.

[1:44:27] Javier Rivera DeBruin: We're all hungry, yes.

[1:44:29] Iyvon Edebiri: Ashley in the booth. Uh yes. Always hungry.

[1:44:31] Javier Rivera DeBruin: So there's so many dishes mentioned. It felt like I can I could smell enchiladas and mole, and I'm so fucking hungry right now.

[1:44:39] Iyvon Edebiri: Oh my god. So I just want to know how does food connect to your sense of self? And what is your favorite dish from your heritage?

[1:44:48] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Oh, that's a good question. Yeah. I mean, I I actually was really specifically inspired by a play I saw many years ago, Different Words for the Same Thing, where they cooked live on stage, and you literally like they but they literally cooked, you smelled it in the theater. Um, and it was such an experience. And I think like for me, sense like sensory elements are such a touchstone for me. Writing, like I listen to, I'll make a playlist for everything that I write. I will like light a candle or something or incense or something whenever I write. Like I I rely on that as a part of my process, and I wanted to infuse the work with that so that the audience is having similar experiences. Um and uh then it also just like I feel like so much of of culture and what we know of our culture is is passed through in food and recipes.

Um and so much of what we can sometimes lose is the loss of those recipes, right? Um and like it it only takes, I don't know, it it I feel like it takes one generation where someone's just really not into cooking, which like they should be allowed to be, you know, for no shame for recipes to be like, oh wow, that person had this bomb recipe, but now we don't have it anymore. Um so I don't know, I kind of wanted to to create a world where there was this food, right? Where that was a thing that that unified them and that could bring them together. Um, and that they learn, so like, you know, I envision that Ma doesn't really cook, and like, but this they all cook together at different points in this.

So, like, I don't think it's ever too late to learn to cook dishes connected to your heritage. Um, and I feel like in my own experience, uh, a lot of I feel like because I, you know, grew up, I didn't grow up in communities that represented my heritage, really. And so there's a lot of things that I feel like in my life I'm learning. Um, and I think I've I've know that I've held a lot of like shame and uh shame and blame around that, right? And imposter syndrome around that. And um I I think that in this play, food is a way to sort of release that um and to bring people together. Um and I'll say, so as far as my favorite dishes, I'll say that like the dish that to me is like something that got passed down that I know how to cook, um, that I take pride in is arroz con pollo.

All right, no. Um, on my mom's side of the family, my mom's Puerto Rican. Um and I wish I knew more, I wish I had more authentic Mexican recipes from my family. Um, but they're mostly still around, so I can still learn. Yes, yes. Um and that I think like part of this play for me has been embracing that that I'm still learning and that we that we're all still learning who we are and how our experiences fit in in a global context, right? Um, but so my favorite, I would say in mole is my favorite.

[1:48:05] Iyvon Edebiri: Okay. I love mole. I love a good mole.

[1:48:10] Javier Rivera DeBruin: And um, along though that still the same topic, and we're gonna wrap up with the last couple of questions. What did you eat for breakfast today?

[1:48:20] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Uh I ate a banana walnut muffin that I made.

[1:48:25] Iyvon Edebiri: Ooh, you made it?

[1:48:26] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Yeah.

[1:48:26] Iyvon Edebiri: Look at you, you can cook. Look at that. Pride.

[1:48:34] Iyvon Edebiri: And then the last question um for you, Javi. What do you envision for the future of gender equality a hundred years from now? This is the question we're asking all the season five playwrights.

[1:48:47] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Wow, that's a great question. I envision freedom and play and exploration. And I envision kind of, I don't want to say gender being irrelevant, but like kind of. Like I like I envision like the well, I should say like the silos of where people sit and like what people's gender is being irrelevant to how that's expressed. Um yeah, a lot of color and like fun fabrics and textures. And of course they made it about clothes somehow.

[1:49:25] Iyvon Edebiri: Yes.

[1:49:26] Javier Rivera DeBruin: But also because of when we're recording this in the moment, I also envision a future of full bodily autonomy for whatever the fuck people want to do with their bodies that has nothing to do with their gender.

[1:49:41] Iyvon Edebiri: Hell yeah.

[1:49:44] Javier Rivera DeBruin: I hope to live in that world of color and texture and learning lines. We can make it 100 years from now.

[1:49:52] Iyvon Edebiri: We'll be we'll we'll kind of be here.

[1:49:58] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Yes. We'll be bones.

[1:50:00] Iyvon Edebiri: Paradox. We'll be more than ancestors.

[1:50:04] Iyvon Edebiri: Um well, thank you so much, Javi, for a wonderful interview and for writing this gorgeous play.

[1:50:11] Javier Rivera DeBruin: Thank you, thank you.

[1:50:12] Iyvon Edebiri: All right, so we have some thank yous for all of the artistic collaborators who are part of this episode. Our wonderful, dope as fuck cast tonight is Gary Dooley, Imani Russell, Carol Cadby, Saul Nache, Yohanna Florentino, and Maribel Martinez.

[1:50:19] Iyvon Edebiri: Luciérnagas is directed by Rebecca Aparicio. Our musician tonight is Vie Darling. And Luciérnagas was written by Javier Rivera DeBruin.

[1:50:57] Iyvon Edebiri: Icon. And thank you to Luc De Cola, our wonderful sound engineer and editor tonight. And a thank you to our TPS team and co-producer, Business Lunch Productions. Business Lunch Productions is a leading creative agency based in New York City, working with creatives all over the world. And thanks as always to the Mark O'Donnell Theater at the Entertainment Community Fund Arts Center for having us in their space in downtown Brooklyn tonight. Thank you so much.

[1:51:34] Iyvon Edebiri: And before we close the night, we want to just say again thank you for listening to the Parsnip Ship. Please follow us on Facebook and Instagram at the Parsnip Ship NY. If you would like to help support the Parsnip Ship, please help us reach new audiences by sharing your experience and episodes across social networks. Please tag us if you take a photo of you being here tonight at the Parsnip Ship NY. You can listen to our past episodes and special productions, such as This Is Where We Go, which our wonderful writer also took part in writing, a six-part epic. Um, go check that out. And Br'er Peach. Um, both you will find on iTunes, Spotify, Broadway Podcast Network, and anywhere you hear your podcasts.

Join us for our next live recording on Monday, November 28th, here for an eco-fable, A Wolf, Rabbit, Crow, and Plant Give It Their All by Robin Rice, directed by Melinda Hall, and with music from Pamela Jean Agualoos. This episode was produced by the Parsnip Ship and Business Lunch Productions. New plays, new music, this is how we hear theater. And with that, thank you all, everyone tonight for joining us. It really means a lot. And we're gonna end off with a big round of applause for everyone for you for being here, for our artist, for our writer, for our director, our musician. Thank you all.