Regional Premiere
The Elliot Plays: Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue
By Quiara Alegría Hudes
Directed by Chip Walton

A young boy, Elliot Ortiz, leaves his home and his family behind to fight the war in Iraq, and returns a hero and a man. But he has just begun his search to better understand his Puerto Rican heritage, his personal and familial history, and the meaning of heroism and war in this lyrical and moving new story of three generations of soldiers, musicians and activists in the Ortiz family.

 

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Artists

Cast
Ginny: Gabriella Cavallero
Elliot: Thony Mena
Pop: Antonio Mercado
Grandpop: Michael R. Duran

Production Team
Scenic Designer: Markas Henry
Costume Designer: Kevin Brainerd
Lighting Designer: Richard Devin
Properties Designer: Kristin Hamer MacFarlane
Sound Designer: Brian Freeland

“Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue” Is An Intense Contemporary Story
5280 Writer Daliah Singer
You are certain to leave A Soldier’s Fugue with a deeper, more complex understanding of the people and the families who fight for our freedom

REVIEW: Curious’s Elliot Issues a Battle Cry Throughout the Ages
Westword Theatre Critic Juliet Wittman
Although Elliot is the central character in Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue, his is one of a quartet of voices all expatiating on the theme of a soldier’s experience and the enduring effect of war on young men. In a series of monologues, the play explores the consonance between Elliot’s experiences and those of his father, who fought in Vietnam, and his grandfather, a musician who carried his flute with him into the freezing hills of Korea.

Tall Tales: “Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue,” Reviewed
Telluride Inside…and Out Writer Mark Stevens
I think everyone who sees “A Soldier’s Fugue” will be compelled to see how the story moves in the next two installments.

Play by Quiara Alegria Hudes opens at Curious
Post Theatre Critic Joanne Ostrow
Curious Theatre is proud to be the first theater company in the world to present all three plays as a series in the coming year, part of the company’s experiment in serial storytelling.

REVIEW: Colorado Drama
Colorado Drama Writer Bob Bows
Mena cuts an impressive figure as Elliot—a newly re-minted Marine, up at the crack of dawn for a cold shower and exercise, in preparation to ship out for a second tour of duty in Iraq—brimming with optimism and fondness for his Puerto Rican roots and Philadelphia upbringing.

War, Family and Puerto Rican Heritage Come Together in Curious’s Latest Show
CPR Arts News Reporter Stephanie Wolf & Colorado Matters’ Ryan Warner
“Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue” by Pultizer-Prize-winning playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes is about the legacy of war and how that gets passed down through a family.

Curious Scores Another Coup
Westword Reporter Brad Weismann
The regional company will be the first in the world to stage all of Quiara Alegría Hudes’s acclaimed theatrical trilogy, over three successive seasons, starting with Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue.

Three-Part Theatre
5280 Magazine’s Daliah Singer
Each of the three plays (the other two will be staged in late 2016 and early 2017) can be experienced independently, but the broader picture only materializes after viewing all three.

On Serial Storytelling and Growing Audiences
Westword Reporter Patricia Calhoun Q&A with Chip Walton
Our next cycle of plays is the Elliot Plays, by Quiara Alegria Hudes, starting in March, and we’ll be the first theater anywhere in the world to produce all three plays!

Go Deeper

Curious New Voices Companion Plays were inspired by Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue. To learn more and purchase tickets, click HERE.

Talkbacks
Want to talk with others about the show? Want to hear from the actors about the process behind the play? Talkbacks with artistic staff and cast members follow each performance, starting the Thursday after opening and continuing until Friday of closing weekend. A Curious favorite!

Serial Storytelling

This play is the first in a series of three plays by Quiara Alegría Hudes known as The Elliot Plays. While each was written independently and can be seen without the other two, they all center around Elliot, who is based on the playwright’s real-life cousin Elliot, at a different stage in his life. Each play offers insight into the other two through Elliot, the only character in all three.

Unlike a movie trilogy, there are no cliffhangers. Rather, Serial Storytelling allows a broader canvas and allows a playwright to more fully explore their work. For more information on Serial Storytelling, visit this page.

Sponsors

SERIAL SPONSORS OF THE ELLIOT PLAYS
Laura Cowperthwaite
LiveWork Denver

PRESENTING PRODUCERS
Joseph H. Thompson Fund

PRODUCTION BENEFACTORS
Elizabeth and Jim Neid

PRODUCTION PATRONS
Rhonda Knop and Tim McManus
Jennifer Heglin