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''Real Women Have Curves'' is a
stage play A play is a work of drama, usually consisting mostly of dialogue between characters and intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. The writer of a play is called a playwright. Plays are performed at a variety of levels, f ...
by Josefina López and is set in a tiny
sewing Sewing is the craft of fastening or attaching objects using stitches made with a sewing needle and thread. Sewing is one of the oldest of the textile arts, arising in the Paleolithic era. Before the invention of spinning yarn or weaving ...
factory A factory, manufacturing plant or a production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. ...
in
East Los Angeles East Los Angeles ( es, Este de Los Ángeles), or East L.A., is an unincorporated area in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 118,786, a drop of 6.1% from 2010, when it was 126,496. For statistical purpo ...
in September 1987. It is marked by the issues of gender politics and the Latina
immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, ...
experience. The story is told from the point of view of Ana, the youngest employee at the factory. Ambitious and bright, Ana yearns to go to college, but does not have the money. The action follows the course of a week at the factory, as the women talk about their lives, loves and deepest desires while attempting to meet impossible production deadlines. Within that week at the factory, the woman face many challenges such as the
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is a federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. ICE's stated mission is to protect the United States from the cross-border crime and illegal immigration tha ...
(called ''La Migra'' in Spanish slang), troubles with their husbands and other male characters mentioned in the play, judgement from other characters, as well as yearning for dreams that do not seem possible to fulfill. In the
playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...
's notes, López writes about how she grew up in Los Angeles herself. With the threat of ''la migra'' looming over her childhood, she once saw a meter maid in a corner store and immediately attempted to "act white" out of fear that the official looking person could deport her. After the 1987
Simpson-Rodino Amnesty Act The Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA or the Simpson–Mazzoli Act) was passed by the 99th United States Congress and signed into law by U.S. President Ronald Reagan on November 6, 1986. The Immigration Reform and Control Act altered U. ...
, López was able to become a legal resident. She reflects on the undocumented people she knew who were afraid to register themselves for fear that the act was a trick. "They, like me, couldn't believe that after hiding and being persecuted for so long they were finally going to have the freedom to live and work in this country." She recounts that before she went to college she worked in a garment factory; those experiences inspired ''Real Women Have Curves''. In 2002, the play was adapted into a film of the same name, directed by
Patricia Cardoso Patricia Cardoso is an award-winning filmmaker and anthropologist who was the first Latinx woman director to have a film included in the Library of Congress's National Film Registry and to receive a Sundance Audience Award. Her directing credit ...
and starring
America Ferrera America Georgina Ferrera (; born April 18, 1984) is an American actress. Born in Los Angeles to Honduran parents, Ferrera developed an interest in acting at a young age, performing in several stage productions at her school. She made her featu ...
as Ana.


Characters

*Ana: the young
feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
and recent
high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
graduate. She is politically
active Active may refer to: Music * ''Active'' (album), a 1992 album by Casiopea * Active Records, a record label Ships * ''Active'' (ship), several commercial ships by that name * HMS ''Active'', the name of various ships of the British Royal ...
and concerned; she is waiting on her financial aid to come through so she can attend college at her dream school,
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...
. She sometimes sneaks away from her work to the bathroom where she has a hidden journal and pen that she writes her true feelings in. At the beginning of the play she is ashamed to be working at the factory, but by the end she realizes how much the women in the factory have taught her that her years of education could not. Getting her temporary residence card soon. *Estela: the owner of the Garcia Sewing Factory, behind on her payments, kind but hardworking. Described in the play's intro as "plain-looking" and "plump". She is afraid to apply for amnesty because she owes money on some sewing machines, and thus spends most of the play's action being nervous, afraid and driven to complete her large order. She has a huge crush on a man the group jokingly calls "El Tormento"; he takes her for a date and behaves inappropriately, making sexual advances that a smarter woman would have seen coming. Eventually pays off her debts and dreams of owning her own retail boutique one day. *Carmen: the oldest of the women,
mother ] A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of ...
of Ana and Estela, described as "short" and "large". She is a conventional example of a Latina mother; has a talent for
storytelling Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own stories or narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cultural pr ...
and a tendency to use a harsh, blunt tone. She speaks her mind on all issues. Uncomfortable within her body, makes judgment on other characters’ appearances, especially her two daughters. By the end of the play she learns to accept herself and embrace her body. Recently became a US resident under the 1987 Simpson-Rodino Amnesty Act. *Pancha: Smart, sassy, described as a "huge woman". She is very comfortable with herself despite the fact that she cannot have children, something her social conditioning has raised her to expect from life. Her character is, like Carmen, rather conventional, believing that Ana's
education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...
will be a turn-off for her future
husband A husband is a male in a marital relationship, who may also be referred to as a spouse. The rights and obligations of a husband regarding his spouse and others, and his status in the community and in law, vary between societies and cultures ...
. Believes that a woman should endure anything a man does to her if she loves him. López hints that Pancha might be in a sometimes abusive relationship but it is never directly mentioned. Recently became a US resident under the 1987 Simpson-Rodino Amnesty Act. *Rosali: often acts as the mediator of fights within the group, a little thinner than the others probably because she is constantly
dieting Dieting is the practice of eating food in a regulated way to decrease, maintain, or increase body weight, or to prevent and treat diseases such as diabetes and obesity. As weight loss depends on calorie intake, different kinds of calorie-red ...
. She is described as "sweet and easygoing" by the playwright. Recently became a US resident under the 1987 Simpson-Rodino Amnesty Act.


Production History

* Victory Gardens Theatre in Chicago, IL, October–November 1993 * Depot Theatre in Westport, NY, 2012 Season * Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, CA, September–October 2015 * Douglas Morrisson Theatre in Hayward, CA, August–September 2016 * Women's Theatre Project in Fort Lauderdale, FL, August 2017 * Garry Marshall Theatre in Burbank, CA, October–November 2018 * Dallas Theatre Center in Dallas, TX, April–May 2019 * Center Players Dessert Theatre in Freehold, NJ, July–August 2019 * The Public Theatre in San Antonio, TX, September–October 2019 * San Francisco Playhouse in San Francisco, CA, March–April 2020


References

{{reflist 1990 plays American plays adapted into films Hispanic and Latino American culture in Los Angeles Hispanic and Latino American plays Plays based on actual events Plays set in the 1980s Plays set in Los Angeles Working-class literature Working class women