As the lights dim on the main stage of the Latino Cultural Center, a small girl wearing a bright red dress appears. She begins dancing barefoot – swirling around in circles, while her mother, Juana, and father, Cayetano, pack clothing and blankets in suitcases.
“This land isn’t providing,” Cayetano says to Tina. Tina’s grandfather has just died and the family decides to cross the U.S.-Mexico border in search of a better life.
Tina’s Journey, a bilingual play presented by Cara Mia Theatre, aims to spark conversations about immigration by showing the journey through a child’s eyes. Made in collaboration with Laboratorio de la Máscara of Mexico City, the play invites kids to learn the challenges and hopes of migration.
Alicia Martínez Álvarez is the artistic director of Laboratorio de la Máscara, and directed the play. She said the original intention was to show how traditions keep a family connected but in today's climate, she sees it as an opportunity to spark deeper conversations.
“Theater has a responsibility to talk about those uncomfortable themes and topics that should be said,” Alvarez said through a translator. “That's the beauty of theater, that it can be said in the right way.”
This is the fourth year Cara Mia has presented the play, which is usually performed in November. The play is originally a celebration for Dia De Los Muertos that teaches kids the struggles of adaptation.
However, David Lozano, Cara Mia’s executive director, said now was the time for the show given President Donald Trump declared a national emergency at the border and the uptick in raids by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials.
“Culture heals,” Lozano said. “In difficult times like these with ICE raids in places of residence … people feel very insecure and it's important that culture by its very creation provides this sense of safety.”
Beyond highlighting traditions, the play challenges the fear surrounding migration. The cast wears traditional Mexican half masks for the performance. In one scene, the lights in the theater dim when two actors playing border officials wear masks made to look frightful. The men walk toward one another, closing a gap that Tina and her family must fight through while loud sirens ring.
Lozano hopes audiences recognize that the desire for a better life is not a threat – but a shared human experience.
“Young people will see that there is a way in which all of us can belong here,” he said.
However, some officials argue securing the border is about safety. Last week, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott met with President Trump to discuss a partnership aimed at strengthening security at the southern border.
“Texas law enforcement alone has seized more than enough fentanyl to kill every man, woman and child in the United States, Canada and Mexico combined,” Abbott told reporters outside the White House after the meeting. “We’ll never know how many lives were saved because of Texas law enforcement getting that fentanyl off the streets before it got into other states, killing people across the country.”
The national news influenced programming Cara Mia provided before the play. Cara Mia employees shared information on what people can do if they are ever confronted by ICE, while El Konkon band performed a free sing along concert for kids.
Attendee Patricia Hernandez is from Mexico and didn't hesitate to bring her 12-year-old daughter, Mixtli, despite ongoing fears in her community due to immigration policies.
“We have to live,” Hernandez said. “It's better to go and show [up] because if you stay inside and cover everything it's more scary.”
She believes plays like Tina’s Journey have the power to help others understand the struggles that come with migration and adapting to new cultures.
“You know, sometimes the people know what’s happening, but when someone else shows [the] impact, it's different,” Hernandez said.
Just like Hernandez, Alvarez hopes families who aren’t directly affected by immigration policies will leave the show with a great sense of empathy.
“[Undocumented immigrants] have a heart and there's a necessity, they do it because they have to. They're human and it's tough for them,” she said.
Despite heavy subject matter, the energy inside the theater was hopeful on opening night, with over 250 attendees. After the show, families and friends praised the actors with overwhelming applause.
Lozano believes the show can help shift perspectives and foster a sense of belonging.
“In all of the range of our experiences and our cultural expressions, we can all belong here and live together as a family,” he said.
Details
Feb. 8 to Feb. 23 at Latino Cultural Center, 2600 Live Oak St. $16. caramia.org
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