How to Make An American Son
Directed by Ben Villegas Randle
June 8-25, 2023
Affinity Nights
Pride Night – June 8th, BIPOC Night – June 16th, Latiné Night – June 23rd
**Performances take place at Imago Theatre – 17 SE 8th Ave, Portland, OR 97214**
Father and son, Mando and Orlando, are living different versions of the American Dream. Honduran-born Mando built a successful janitorial business, and can pay for his son’s fancy private school. Over-privileged Orlando enjoys the fruits of his father’s labor, but is embarrassed by his old-fashioned ideas and line of work. When the business faces turmoil just as Orlando is going through a crisis of his own, the two must face tough truths about citizenship, business, love, and the importance of family, in order to keep their dreams alive in a society that won’t let them truly belong.
THE CAST
AFFINITY NIGHTS
MAT CHATS
Mat chats are post-show opportunities for the audience to take a deeper dive into the world and themes of the play with artists, experts, and educators. They take place on the stage five minutes after the Sunday matinees.
Date: Sunday, June 11, 2023
Guest Speaker: christopher oscar peña
How to Make An American Son Playwright christopher oscar peña be back in town and will be our first Mat Chat speaker. He’ll be discussing on the world of the play, his experience during the Playwright Convening, life as a screenwriter, and MORE! Join us for this extra special Mat Chat.
Satellite: Beyond the Page
One of Profile Theatre’s on-air offerings is Satellite: Beyond the Page where we dive in to the world beyond the play with various guests and topics that gives the listener more insight. Our current Satellite series orbits this production of How to Make an American Son.
In Part I, playwright crhistopher oscar peña tells the real-life story that inspired Son, and explains why he often calls the show “a love letter to my father.” In Part II, actor Matthew Sepeda talks about his experience performing a character that is essentially the playwright as a teenager….with the playwright in the room. And in Part III, American Son director shares his approach to using staging in order to communicate the shifting dynamics of power and privilege, from which the play derives most of its dramatic tension.
Click the button below to listen to this series and catch up on past episodes from other productions!
