Upcoming: Mastering Sex and Tortillas by Adelina Anthony, Southwestern University, October 25

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Adelina Anthony: Mastering Sex and Tortillas

October 25, 7 p.m., free admission
Alma Thomas Theater Southwestern University, Sarofim School of Fine Arts, Fine Arts Center 1001 East University Avenue Georgetown

Adelina Anthony identifies as a queer chicana/indigenous feminist woman and as a performer of multi-faceted identities. She creates a space for people of different identities to come together for performance art. Her creative use of comedy makes the show fun and entertaining while discussing and raising consciousness around issues of race, gender, class and sexuality.

In 2001, "How to Become a Tortillera" and "Papi Duro: F.B.I. (Fearless Bucha Instigator)" premiered and became the foundation for Mastering Sex & Tortillas. Invited by Dr. Alicia Gaspar de Alba to ponder the question, "Why do you love being a Chicana lesbian?" Adelina responded with the high-femme & high-drama diva La Profesora Mama Chocha. This character comically deals with her own dyke drama, while teaching her class some valuable lessons on "tortillerismo." Adelina brought down da' house and received the first of many standing ovations as the closing performer at U.C.L.A.'s historical conference "Otro Corazón: Queering the Art of Aztlán."

Ten months later, Tongues (a Latina lesbian collective) invited Adelina to perform at one of their special events at Highways Performance Space in Santa Monica. Adelina used this opportunity to premiere the debonair, Papi Duro. This old-school butch examines the historical (albeit invisible) role of jotería during the Chicano Movement. Finally, these segments coalesced into Mastering Sex & Tortillas, a performance work exploring sexuality, gender, race/ethnicity and other interconnected issues from a queer Chicana perspective.

A few months later, Dr. Emma Perez, Dr. Scarlet Bowen, and Gregory Ramos made it possible for Mastering Sex & Tortillas to participate in U.T.E.P.'s 2002 National Endowment for the Humanities Series. Over the years, Adelina work shopped the show and it went through many transformations. In 2003 the show went on hiatus as Adelina entered graduate school at Stanford University… but the show is BACK!

Tighter than Mama Chocha's mini skirt and as some Chicanas will say, "Hey, man, even MORE funnier than ever!!" Part stand-up, part performance art, part teatro, and not to mention exciting and fresh improvisations--this unique show has lots of buttery Xicana flavor. Mastering Sex & Tortillas is a hilarious and unflinching examination of Xicana/Latina lesbian sexuality.

[Photo Credit: Weenobee.com ]

review by LA Weekly, December 14, 2006

Adelina Anthony is associated with ALLGO, a statewide queer people of color organization