Many
fans of
Jade Esteban Estrada
know him for his openly gay
performances, but
the show he's bringing to Abilene has a
different focus - one with which he's equally
familiar.
Perhaps
best-known for appearances on Comedy
Central's ''The Graham Norton Effect'' and
his involvement with PBS's ''In the Life,''
Estrada brings to Abilene a simple family
story.
''Tortilla
Heaven,'' written by his sister, Celeste
Angela Estrada, focuses on
the differences between three
generations of Hispanics. It echoes Jade
Esteban Estrada's life growing up in
Texas, even if it's not completely
autobiographical.
Besides
being a commentary on today's society,
the one-man play is also a fund-raiser
for the Hispanic Leadership Council's
scholarship fund.
''It
was the first time I had actually
heard about him, but a few other
members had seen him on the Comedy
Central channel,'' she said.
The
play offers insight for
anyone, regardless of
nationality, Estrada said.
'''Tortilla
Heaven' has been
interesting to bring to
audiences because a lot of
people understand bi-culturalism,''
he said in a telephone
interview from New York.
''It's not just Spanish.
It's, 'I'm computer
literate and you're not.'
'I'm Republican and you're
not.'
''What's
interesting about this
is it's a simple story
about family - about
everybody.''
In
''Tortilla
Heaven,'' an
11-year-old boy is
left with his
immigrant
grandmother in
Texas while his
author mother goes
off to write and
promote her books
such as ''Out of
the Fuego, Into
the Fire'' and
''Trapped in the
Body of a Brown
Woman.'' The boy's
mother has
immersed herself
in American
culture. The
grandmother makes
a different
choice.
''Every
head or mind
is an entirely
different
universe,''
Estrada
explained.
''When people
say to each
other, 'Why
are you like
that?' people
need to
understand
everyone is
coming from a
different
world.''
Families
of
immigrants
often go
through
generational
changes,
especially
once the
children
start
attending
school, he
said. The
youngsters
come home
with a new
language
and new
information
that can
seem
threatening
to a
parent or
grandparent.
Estrada
and
his
sister
and
brother
were
raised
by
their
grandmother,
much
like
the
boy in
the
play.
His
mother
is a
stage
actress
and
his
father
an
Army
officer.
A
San
Antonio
native,
Estrada
said
he's
curious
about
how
the
play
will
be
received
in
Abilene,
a
place
he
said
is
unlike
South
Texas.
One
of
the
biggest
differences
he's
seen
between
Texas
and
New
York
is
how
he's
perceived
as
a
Spanish
speaker.
''When
I'm
in
San
Antonio
and
I
switch
to
Spanish
for
someone
who
speaks
Spanish,
I
get
that
look
like
I've
put
myself
in
a
lower
bracket,''
he
said.
''In
New
York,
when
you
speak
Spanish,
it's
empowering,
it
opens
up
doors
-
it's
like
a
secret
code.
''I
speak
Spanish
here
(New
York)
in
a
grocery
store,
I'm
a
prince.
I
speak
it
there
(San
Antonio),
I'm
a
pauper.''
He's
done
the
play
in
places
as
varied
as
New
York,
Missouri
and
Ohio,
and
each
audience
sees
the
play
differently.
''You
don't
know
what
your
show
is
about
until
you
do
it
in
front
of
an
audience,''
he
said.
''As
you
are
saying
the
words,
or
singing
the
songs,
you
are
getting
immediate
feedback.''
©2005 Abilene Reporter-News |
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