Tag Archives: Sándor Menéndez

A Jeff Recommended theater play for 2021 International Education Week

TO CELEBRATE 2021 INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION WEEK, the Chicago Chapter of the Fulbright Association invites you to a reception followed by the Jeff-recommended theater play, “La gran tirana (Descarga dramática)” produced by Aguijón Theater of Chicago.

With the reopening of theaters we are getting together to rejoice with this show that presents the gripping story of Ana Morgana (Ana Santos-Sánchez,) an immigrant and an artist who transcends her everyday reality by imagining herself a star: La Lupe. Singing the famous woman’s songs, retelling the diva’s troubled life as if it were her own, Morgana creates her identity by remembering someone else’s.

Ana Santos-Sánchez as Ana Morgana in “La Gran Tirana (Descarga Dramática)” Aguijón Theater

Conceived and directed by Sándor Menéndez, written by Rey Andújar, and inspired by the life of the incomparable Lupe Victoria Yolí Raymond, better known as La Lupe, the Queen of Latin Soul, La gran tirana (Descarga dramática) explores the journey of this artist through poetry and music, becoming a love letter to the rhythms and sounds of the Caribbean.

The play is presented in Spanish with English supertitles.

WHEN Saturday, November 20, 2021
TIME Reception 6:15 -7:45 pm  | Play: 8:00-9:30 pm
WHERE Aguijón Theater
2707 North Laramie Ave. Chicago, IL 60639


COST Ticket Price $30 [Fulbright Alumni & Friends of Fulbright]
Free Admission [Current Scholars* & Consular Corps]
Purchase Tickets HERE
RSVP by November 14, 2021 [This is a Limited Capacity event]
Click to RSVP

Additional tickets [without reception] for the play can be purchased HERE.


COVID-19 Event Protocol: Please present a vaccination card or most recent COVID-19 PCR negative test upon check-in.
Please adhere to the state mask mandate for indoor/outdoor sections of the venue.
*One free admission per student/scholar

Santos-Sánchez’s soulful, passionate, leave-it-all-in-the-road performance, balanced by Menéndez’s wry irony, creates a near-seamless dynamic. And by the end, we realize that it doesn’t really matter if we know all the facts about La Lupe’s life. We know her truth. “My life is the obstacle, not the spectacle,” she tells us. But this is a show that manages to be both intimate and spectacular.

—Kerry Reid, Chicago Reader

Free tickets for “La Fulana Respetuosa” theater play (with English supertitles)

“LA FULANA RESPETUOSA” theater play is being presented by Aguijón Theater from March 14 until April 13.

Elio Leturia, vice president of the Chicago Chapter of the Fulbright Association, is performing in the play and has donated 10 tickets to be used by Fulbright students. The dates? Friday March 28 and Friday April 4, 2014 both at 8 p.m.

If you want a ticket, contact Elio Leturia immediately at eleturia[at]colum[dot]edu with your name and school, and the date you would like to attend.

The play, written by Jean Paul Sartre (The Respectful Prostitute) and directed by Cuban Sándor Menéndez explores topics such as racism, abuse of power and sex through the story of Lizzie MacKay, a white prostitute targeted by police and politicians to collaborate in framing a black man for a crime he did not commit.

Aguijón’s production re-imagines the script with a musical dimension, featuring songs interpreted by well-known local singer Alba Guerra throughout the piece. Guerra functions as a kind of narrator for the piece, giving musical voice to Lizzie’s conscience, past, hope and pain.

“La Fulana Respetuosa” is presented in Spanish with English supertitles.

Aguijón Theater is located at 2707 N. Laramie Avenue, Chicago, IL 60639,
ph: 773-637-5899

Street parking available. Additional free parking available at Grace English Lutheran Church lot (2725 N. Laramie Avenue—entrance on Parker).

For mature audiences. Sexual content, strong language and violence.