Pregones Theater- Aloha Boricua

Aloha Boricua is a new Latino musical play based on the writing of the Manuel Ramos Otero, such as “Vivir del Cuento,” translated as, Living the Story. The songs and dialog are in both English and Spanish, with continuous sub-titles shown above the stage in the language other than what is being used. The music evokes shifting emotions and the singing is done well. Shadia Almasri, a female narrator, and Yarani Pinero have particularly strong, nearly operatic voices.

The story begins with the very old man Monserrate, or Mon, narrating about his youth. He grew up in Puerto Rico, but was brought to Hawaii to cut sugarcane. There is a surreal feeling to the story, with emotions shown of the hope of the immigrants, and their disappointments as well, one quite familiar to people in the Bronx. The music begins with a traditional sounding Puerto Rican song about San Ciriarco, the hurricane that hits Puerto Rico and causes much destruction. This is literally a moving song, with scenes of a town being hit by a hurricane in the background, and actors pantomiming being blown about by a hurricane.

A second narrator takes over, played by Omar Perez, who has “big hair” and is made up as a funny carnival showman. He promotes the migration of Puerto Ricans to Hawaii, while also hinting at their difficult journey. There is much drama involving the suffering of “Mon’s” mother Flor Maria, played by Sol Crespo, and a young couple, the man played by Erickson Huertas, and the woman, a school teacher named Pura Perez played by Yarina Pinero. Some of the more exciting moments of this trip are sung/spoken to a sort of rap music, which is a bit jarring, but is a striking mood change, as the migrants face real life. It’s exciting as well to have a live musical ensemble backing up the play, including guitar, keyboards, a clarinet and drums.

After the intermission, there is a jazzy Latin number, about how the Puerto Ricans revolt from bad conditions on the ship bringing them to the plantation. The intention is to show the Puerto Ricans fighting for their rights in a radically new setting. The most shocking scene is the presentation of the legend of the Hawaiian Goddess of the Volcano, Pele. The music is atonal and rhythmic, evoking a primitive ritual. The dance between the goddess and her lover is quite sensual. The legend is that when the goddess dies she explodes a volcano, with red lava going down to the sea.

The play returns to Mon’s narration, when he is 22. There is a party on the beach as Flor Maria and her friends live independently and celebrate, but soon she dies. A traditional Puerto Rican song, emphasizing guitar and drums brings back the feeling of the roots of the now Hawaiian, Mon. The play ends with a fun salsa dance. Aloha Boricua runs till November 22nd at the Pregones Theater, at 575 Walton Ave., Bronx. For information about this play, or future productions of Pregones, please call 718-585-1202 or email info@pregones.org .