Anna in the Tropics

Anna in the Tropics
A play by Nilo Cruz, Directed by Cynthia Santos DeCure
October 15-18, 7:30pm Thursday-Saturday, 2:00pm Sunday

Get tickets here: Anna in the Tropics tickets

Written by Nilo Cruz, an important Cuban-American playwright, Anna in the Tropics was Winner of the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It is a beautiful story about family, love, and change, set in Ybor City Florida in 1929. 

This iconic play combines Chekhovian drama with magic realism. It depicts strong familial bonds valued over individual independence, in tension with the cultural complexity of a multi-generation immigrant community, facing the pressures of the American Dream. The demand to leave behind traditional beliefs and practices in order to embrace modernization and competition threatens to overpower a slower-paced, romantic lifestyle and work ethic that characterize a family-owned cigar factory (one of the last of its kind), where cigars are still rolled by hand and "lectors" are employed to read literature to workers. 

"The arrival of a new lector is a cause for celebration, but when he begins to read aloud from Anna Karenina, he unwittingly becomes a catalyst in the lives of his avid listeners, for whom Tolstoy, the tropics, and the American dream prove a volatile combination." (Dramatist's Play Service)

If you are interested in this play, please take note that for Hispanic Heritage month, we will be hosting a number of cultural events in relation to Anna in the Tropics, to celebrate Latine communities and their contributions as part of our country's history and future. These events will include music, dance, video art, community building, information sessions and more! They are all free and open to the public. 

• Screening of dance film Entre Puerto Rico y Richmond: Women in Resistance Shall Not Be Moved, Wednesday September 30, 4:30pm-6:00pm, PBK 265 conference room, discussion with artists Dr. Patricia Herrera and Professor Alicia Diaz, University of Richmond 

• Know Your Rights training, Monday October 5, RSVP for time and location, with WM Fire

• Lecture/demonstration "Bata Beyond Performance: Understanding an African Diasporic Knowlege Tradition", Tuesday October 13, 5:30-6:00pm, Recital Hall, Music Arts Center, with Dr. R. Khari Clemmons, Virginia State University & bata ensemble

• Opening Night Latin Dance Party, October 15, 9:30pm-11:30pm, PBK 133 Lab Theatre (after the show Anna in the Tropics), with instructor Quiana from Con Alegria Movement & W&M Latin American Student Union, light refreshments provided 

• Reception, Friday October 16, after the show until 10:30pm, PBK lobby, Cuban food and drinks provided 

• Talkback, Saturday October 17, after the show until 10:00pm, PBK Studio Theatre

• Taller de Teatro Comunitario sobre nuestras historias / Community Theatre workshop in Spanish on Latinx Stories, Sunday October 18, after the show until 5:30pm, PBK 163, RSVP, refreshments provided 

• Community Theatre workshop on Latinx stories in English, Wednesday October 21, 5:00-7:00pm, PBK 112, RSVP, refreshments provided

• Undocu Ally Training, Tuesday October 22, 6:00-8:00pm, PBK 163, with WM FIRE