We like classic, elegant theater just as much as the next avid theatergoer, but sometimes we’re in the mood for something a little more…well, gritty. When we checked out the Guerrilla Rep theater company we found just what we were looking for. In their own words Guerrilla Rep’s mission is to “explore class in American society through provocative and entertaining new plays created by artists focused on the evolutionary process of developing works-in-progress.” That’s a whole lot for one little theater company to take on but Guerrilla Rep rises to the occasion admirably. Audience members leave their shows looking at the world with a completely new perspective on class conflict and how that dynamic fits into the larger realm of society.
Guerrilla Rep’s current production is the new play My Tia Loca’s Life of Crime, written by Roy Conboy and directed by John Caldon. The play opens with a Latina woman explaining her personal tale of how she ended up in her current situation—being interrogated by the police—because of things that happened in her past. She unfolds her story through a series of life events, including her experiences of falling in love in the explosive 1960s, beginning a family, and then losing that family. As she undertakes the decades-long task of finding her daughter she makes a series of dangerous decisions that finally bring her—and the audience—to the interrogation room.
My Tia Loca’s Life of Crime is edgy, intense, beautiful, and full of sorrow—a true delight for any artist at heart. And this is the last week it’s running, June 2nd is closing night (performances run Thursdays through Saturdays). Tickets are $20 and can be purchased here. The show is located at the Bindlestiff Studio at 185 Sixth Street in San Francisco, just blocks away from the Powell Street BART Station.
