Charles Philip Thomas

OPEN LETTER TO PINOCHET by Marco Antonio de la Parra ignited debates that forever changed Chile. It presents an incisive viewpoint of Pinochet's regime and its effect on the populace from the standpoint of the intellectual/artist in Chile. CARTA ABIERTA A PINOCHET was originally published in April 1998 by Editorial Planeta Chilena and it has been on the best seller lists in Chile ever since. The book is a true-life historic document, a testimony of horror and despair, with hopes for a better future. CLICHES is an allegory of the takeover of Chile by a brutal militaristic regime. THE OTHER LIFE is a short story which explores the fine line between dreams and reality in post-Pinochet Chile. Told in the first-person, it takes the reader on an essential and existential journey where space and time, and reality and fantasy cross paths in planes known and unknown. BEDS explores what's been gained and lost in terms of inter-personal relationships in the ambience of early post-Pinochet Chile. MISS KITTY by Alejandro Sieveking is a unique story of post-Pinochet Chile, where people who have fought the good fight for freedom now must confront their growing malaise. The dual inner monologue centers on a cat, an unchanging link between two mutable humans, a beloved creature of such stature that the humans speak of her in a derogatory manner in ironic token of their great esteem for her. Miss Kitty, fat, sensual, affectionate and elegant, was originally a wedding present for Oswald and Mercedes, and thrives on their love and happiness. The story would be extremely fragile if it consisted solely of those elements so familiar to us from tabloid reports and talk shows: tales of human weakness, wants, and wandering. The novella is carried by the portrait of Kitty, who is capable of lifelong loyalty and love. She evokes the same in her two ``owners'' toward herself. Toward each other they show no constancy. Kitty is innocent and sensual at once, independent and affectionate, self-centered and outgoing; her simplicity resolves all opposites. Oswald is bewildered and depressed, Mercedes is vacillating and restless. Kitty retains her status, her self-esteem, her non-judgmental devotion and her charm. She represents a refuge from problematical relationships, she is an ideal. Like Tarzan and the other comic book characters, she soothes wounded spirits with her natural optimism and her animal courage in the face of adversity. In INNOCENT DOVES a crime of passion occurs in the most expensive brothel on the Pacific coast, in which Martín and his lover are involved. This incident is the catalyst for the action of Innocent Doves, which begins when three women are hounded by reporters trying to obtain information about this page from a mystery novel. (There is talk about a strangulation and suicide). Then Martin's three sisters; Antonieta, Amelia, and Leontina, take possession of the previously mentioned establishment. They feel they are the rightful heirs of the wealth left by their ``stingy'' son, and show their true colors; ``getting a penny out of him was like finding a pearl in an oyster at the bottom of the ocean.'' But they are faced with another obstacle: the unexpected return of Loreto, Leontina's daughter, whose purpose is to show the three sisters for what they are, and put them in their place. What's more, per her uncle's instructions, she is the heir to the establishment. As the play unfolds, we watch an ``almost'' tragic game, which involves a good dose of morbidity: these ``innocent doves'' don't really know in which world they live, and because of this weakness they leave themselves wide-open to be deceived. Besides, each one of them has some kind of skeleton in their closet, which borders on the grotesque. In their niece's words, ``they're picturesque to put it mildly.'

And Other Words from Chile

Open Letter to Pinochet - Miss Kitty

Marco Antonio de la Parra

This collection is an anthology of the best recent plays from Latin America by some of the foremost writers from Puerto Rico, Mexico, Chile, Argentina, and Venezuela. Most of the plays have won awards such as the Casa de Las Amricas prize, and the Tirso de Molina award as well as many others. The anthology contains 14 play as follows. For synopses of any of the plays please visit GMW Productions at: http://www.vbe.com/~gmwchas Rodolfo Santana (Venezuela) Looking Into the Stands (Mirando al Tendido); Never Lose Your head Over a Swedish Doll (Nunca entregues tu corazn a una mueca sueca); The Ladies Room (Bao de Damas) Roberto Ramos-Perea (Puerto Rico): Bad Blood: The New Emigration (Malasangre: La nueva emigracin), Forever Yours, Julita (Tuya siempre, Julita); Family Secrets (Callando Amores) Guillermo Schmidhuber (Mxico) Obituary (Obituario); The Secret Friendship of Juana and Dorothy (La secreta amistad de Juana y Dorotea); The Useless Heroes (Los hroes intiles) Marco Antonio de la Parra (Chile) The Dead Father (El Padre Muerto); Killer Tangos (Matatangos) Eduardo Rovner (Argentina) She Returned One Night (Volvi una Noche); Company (Compaa) Mauricio Kartun (Argentina) Sacco-Vanzetti (A Dramaturgic Summary Judgement from Documents on the Case (Sacco, Nicols-Vanzetti, Bartolomeo: (Sumaria dramatrgica de documentos sobre el caso)

Charles Philip Thomas

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