Lucía Fuentes

by J. Lynn Jackson

Hernán Espinoza from Mexico walks Japan’s Shikoku pilgrimage path to open his heart. A Buddhist nun and others test his intentions. When lured to a shortcut, dark demons from Hernán's past leave him lost. Is he alive or dead, a man or a woman, a saint or a sinner, in Japan or not? In search of light, Hernán continues to the end of the circular Shikoku path, which is also the beginning.

Lucía Fuentes is both...

Hernán Espinoza from Mexico walks Japan’s Shikoku pilgrimage path to open his heart. A Buddhist nun and others test his intentions. When lured to a shortcut, dark demons from Hernán's past leave him lost. Is he alive or dead, a man or a woman, a saint or a sinner, in Japan or not? In search of light, Hernán continues to the end of the circular Shikoku path, which is also the beginning.

Lucía Fuentes is both triggered and inspired by the truth-tellers of the global #MeToo reckoning and by the families of 43 boys disappeared in Mexico.

Lucía Fuentes is a semi-finalist for the 2021 Woodward International Playwriting Prize and for the 2024 Playwrights Foundation Bay Area Playwrights Festival.

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Lucía Fuentes

Recommended by

  • Melissa Hillman: Lucía Fuentes by J. Lynn Jackson
    “

    Usually when there is a man seeking atonement for hitting a woman I say eff that guy, but I've never encountered a play around this topic where I was so drawn in like LUCIA FUENTES. I cared about his path. I was compelled by his journey. I genuinely wanted him to find that forgiveness. This is a gorgeous play with richly drawn characters and a script that's a director's dream.

    Usually when there is a man seeking atonement for hitting a woman I say eff that guy, but I've never encountered a play around this topic where I was so drawn in like LUCIA FUENTES. I cared about his path. I was compelled by his journey. I genuinely wanted him to find that forgiveness. This is a gorgeous play with richly drawn characters and a script that's a director's dream.

    ”
  • Jim Kleinmann: Lucía Fuentes by J. Lynn Jackson
    “

    As Co‐Founder and Artistic Director for PlayGround, a leading playwright incubator and theatre community hub, I wholeheartedly recommend J. Lynn Jackson's Lucía Fuentes. PlayGround selected Lucía Fuentes as one of three plays for our inaugural Free-Play Festival. The dramatized reading of the play had the festival’s best attendance and ticket sales.

    As Co‐Founder and Artistic Director for PlayGround, a leading playwright incubator and theatre community hub, I wholeheartedly recommend J. Lynn Jackson's Lucía Fuentes. PlayGround selected Lucía Fuentes as one of three plays for our inaugural Free-Play Festival. The dramatized reading of the play had the festival’s best attendance and ticket sales.

    ”
  • Richard Perez: Lucía Fuentes by J. Lynn Jackson
    “

    "From the very first page, I was swept away by J. Lynn Jackson's epic adventure, Lucia Fuentes. Hernan, our intrepid protagonist and his journey into a realm where the ordinary meets the extraordinary, reminded me that each of us carries within us the potential for heroic journeys and personal growth."

    "From the very first page, I was swept away by J. Lynn Jackson's epic adventure, Lucia Fuentes. Hernan, our intrepid protagonist and his journey into a realm where the ordinary meets the extraordinary, reminded me that each of us carries within us the potential for heroic journeys and personal growth."

    ”
View all 4 recommendations

Character Information

A doubling plan is provided for a cast of three to seven actors. All characters can be cast with women, consistent with a core theme of the play and in line with the original Kabuki tradition. An optional ensemble of nuns, flamenco dancers and boys appear as useful. Character descriptions allow for (encourage) all-BIPOC and flexible identity casting, keeping in mind the reveals of two parenthood relationships need to be believable but not obvious.

Actors might double as follows: Actor 1: Hernán. Actor 2: Red Henro, Abbess, María. Actor 3: Gold Monk, Jesús, Silver Henro.

  • Hernán
    A prickly pilgrim from Mexico.
    May be the father of the Red Henro (revealed near end).
    Speaks a few words of Spanish and a few words of Japanese.
    Dialogue references significant walking and movement.
    50
    Latinx / Mexican
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      40s,
      50s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Latinx/o/a or Hispanic
  • Red Henro
    An enigmatic pilgrim from Japan.
    Presents as a masculine cis-male; gender identity is revealed near the end.
    May be the daughter of Hernán (revealed near end).
    Speaks a few words of Japanese and a few words of Spanish.
    Dialogue references significant walking and movement.
    25
    Asian / Japanese
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Asian, Pacific Islander, or Asian American,
      South Asian or South Asian American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Female,
      Non-binary
  • Gold Monk
    The guardian of Temple 1.
    The father of the Abbess (revealed near end).
    Speaks a few words of Japanese.
    100
    Asian / Japanese
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      50s,
      60s,
      70s+
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Asian, Pacific Islander, or Asian American,
      South Asian or South Asian American
  • Abbess
    The spiritual leader of Temple 1.
    The daughter of the Gold Monk.
    Speaks a few words of Japanese and Spanish.
    Blind.
    75
    Asian / Japanese
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      50s,
      60s,
      70s+
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Asian, Pacific Islander, or Asian American,
      South Asian or South Asian American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Female,
      Non-binary
  • María
    An extreme athlete from Spain.
    Speaks a few words in Spanish.
    Dialogue references "obvious" Spanish identity (could be a reference to a flag, costume, an accent, etc.)
    Dialogue references physical capacity for zip-lining and extreme sports.
    Dialogue references "younger Penelope Cruz" appearance (which could be in jest).
    Dialogue references significant walking and movement.
    25
    Spanish
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Female,
      Non-binary
  • Jesús
    An extreme athlete from Spain.
    Speaks a few words in Spanish.
    Dialogue references "obvious" Spanish identity (could be a reference to a flag, costume, an accent, etc.)
    Dialogue references physical capacity for zip-lining and extreme sports.
    Dialogue references "younger Antonio Banderas" appearance (which could be in jest).
    Dialogue references significant walking and movement.
    25
    Spanish
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s
  • Silver Henro
    A fast-paced silent pilgrim.
    All dialogue is in hand gestures.
    Dialogue indicates significant walking and movement.
    50
    Any Race
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      40s,
      50s

Development History

  • Reading, Berkeley Play Cafe, 2021
  • Reading, Whimsy Farm, 2019

Production History

  • Community Theater, Town Hall Theatre (Lafayette, CA), 2024
  • Workshop, Miyoko Sakatani and Playland Productions, 2022

Awards

  • Homegrown Achievement
    Theatre Bay Area
    2024
  • Town Hall Theatre New Voices
    Town Hall Theatre
    Selection
    2023
  • PlayGround Free-Play Festival
    PlayGround
    Selection
    2022
  • Woodward International Playwriting Prize
    Cultural Stages: The Woodward International Drama and Dance Initiative
    Semi-Finalist
    2021