Jose Nateras

Jose Nateras

​Jose's work has been produced by Mudlark Theatre, Rabid Bat Theatricals, L.U.C.'s Studio Theatre, as a part of The Gift Theatre’s TEN Festival, and The Arc Theatre's "ArciText Festival" in 2015 and 2016. A number of his full length plays (including the full length musical, “Bibliophile”) have been performed as Staged Readings, and his short pieces have been featured in various...
​Jose's work has been produced by Mudlark Theatre, Rabid Bat Theatricals, L.U.C.'s Studio Theatre, as a part of The Gift Theatre’s TEN Festival, and The Arc Theatre's "ArciText Festival" in 2015 and 2016. A number of his full length plays (including the full length musical, “Bibliophile”) have been performed as Staged Readings, and his short pieces have been featured in various Showcases and Short Play and New Works Festivals. A resident playwright with ALTA Chicago's 'El Semillero' (residing at Victory Gardens), he's written a number of short films, pilots, and full length films, and is also a novelist and contributor for The A.V. Club and elsewhere.

Plays

  • Bibliophile: A New Musical by Jose Nateras
    Cast: 
    7–10
    ·
    Genre: comedy, dark comedy + 2 more
    ·
    Keyword: LGBTQ, books + 7 more
    Genre: comedy, dark comedy, musical, mystery/thriller
    Keyword: LGBTQ, books, Latinx, gentrification, thriller, Chicago, gay, dramedy, family
    Andres is having a bit of a hard time following a tough breakup. An aspiring novelist, he finds himself directionless and struggling to write. Instead, Andres fills his days reading horror novels by his favorite author, Ted Deacon, and working along side his cousin at his aunt's bookstore. When a twist of fate brings Ted Deacon into his tia's shop, Andres finds himself reinvigorated as the two writers...
    Andres is having a bit of a hard time following a tough breakup. An aspiring novelist, he finds himself directionless and struggling to write. Instead, Andres fills his days reading horror novels by his favorite author, Ted Deacon, and working along side his cousin at his aunt's bookstore. When a twist of fate brings Ted Deacon into his tia's shop, Andres finds himself reinvigorated as the two writers forge a surprising connection; unknowingly setting into motion a deadly turn of events that just may have been a long time coming. Full of humor, pain, and tons of music, 'Bibliophile: A New Musical' will make a strong case for the commonly held piece of advice: " You Should Never Meet Your Heroes."

    Book & Lyrics by Jose Nateras
    Music & Additional Lyrics by Michelle J. Rodriguez
  • Imogen by Jose Nateras
    Cast: 
    15–19
    ·
    Genre: adventure, comedy + 5 more
    ·
    Keyword: Latinx, family + 4 more
    Genre: adventure, comedy, dark comedy, drama, fable/folktale, fantasy, young audiences
    Keyword: Latinx, family, fairy tale, fairies, ghosts, children
    After the tragic death of their mother, Imogen, Ophelia, and Orlando find themselves on the doorstep of their eccentric Tia Celia who lives just outside the town of Arden Grove. It's a weird house. A weird town. And their Tia Celia? She's the weirdest of them all. But when the children of the town begin to disappear and suspicion falls on Tia Celia, it is up to Imogen and her siblings to bring to...
    After the tragic death of their mother, Imogen, Ophelia, and Orlando find themselves on the doorstep of their eccentric Tia Celia who lives just outside the town of Arden Grove. It's a weird house. A weird town. And their Tia Celia? She's the weirdest of them all. But when the children of the town begin to disappear and suspicion falls on Tia Celia, it is up to Imogen and her siblings to bring to light the darker magics at work in the woods outside of town.
  • The Smoking Mirror (Part 1 of The Tetzcatlipoca Cycle) by Jose Nateras
    Cast: 
    7
    ·
    Genre: dark comedy, drama + 3 more
    ·
    Keyword: Latinx, Mexican American + 7 more
    Genre: dark comedy, drama, fable/folktale, horror, mystery/thriller
    Keyword: Latinx, Mexican American, family, LGBTQ, horror, ghosts, mythology, gothic, Modern Gothic
    When Julio, a struggling artist, gets entangled with a mysterious Patron who promises to make his dreams come true, it seems too good to be true. Despite his family's misgivings and personal tragedy, Julio finds himself unable or unwilling to deny the opportunity to pursue his dreams... but at what cost? Will the love of those closest to him be enough to save Julio from this Patron's dark secrets and...
    When Julio, a struggling artist, gets entangled with a mysterious Patron who promises to make his dreams come true, it seems too good to be true. Despite his family's misgivings and personal tragedy, Julio finds himself unable or unwilling to deny the opportunity to pursue his dreams... but at what cost? Will the love of those closest to him be enough to save Julio from this Patron's dark secrets and the darkness inside himself? A fast paced, darkly comedic tale of family, culture, and accountability that aims to push the boundaries and expectations of genre.

    Part I of "The Tetzcatlipoca Cycle"
  • Two Reed - Part 2 of The Tetzactlipoca Cycle by Jose Nateras
    Cast: 
    6
    ·
    Genre: dark comedy, drama + 4 more
    ·
    Keyword: Latinx, Mexican American + 7 more
    Genre: dark comedy, drama, fable/folktale, horror, melodrama, mystery/thriller
    Keyword: Latinx, Mexican American, twins, siblings, family, LGBTQ, horror, ghosts, mythology
    When Izzy, a struggling musician, moves in with her straight laced twin brother, Hector; tensions between the two siblings are already high. Things only escalate after the household cat turns up dead. As stranger and stranger happenings begin to reveal secrets and betrayals, not to mention a family legacy that's gone denied for far too long, Izzy and Hector find themselves caught in the center of a deadly...
    When Izzy, a struggling musician, moves in with her straight laced twin brother, Hector; tensions between the two siblings are already high. Things only escalate after the household cat turns up dead. As stranger and stranger happenings begin to reveal secrets and betrayals, not to mention a family legacy that's gone denied for far too long, Izzy and Hector find themselves caught in the center of a deadly cycle. Will the two of them be able to resist repeating their parents mistakes, or are they doomed to pay the price for the sins of their father? Ultimately a tale of family, culture, and accountability, "Two Reed" is a fast paced, darkly comic, play that's bound to chill and entertain.

    Part II of "The Tetzcatlipoca Cycle"
  • Near & Nigh (Part 3 of The Tetzcatlipoca Cycle) by Jose Nateras
    Cast: 
    1–2
    ·
    Genre: drama, experimental + 2 more
    ·
    Keyword: Latinx, LGBTQ + 3 more
    Genre: drama, experimental, fable/folktale, verse
    Keyword: Latinx, LGBTQ, Mexican American, mythology, poetry
    Vacillating between Poem, Academic Lecture, Drama, and Ritual, "Near & Nigh" explores the intersections of Identity and Culture, Mythology and Academia, Destruction and Creation. The third and final play in 'The Tetzcatlipoca Cycle,' "Near & Nigh" follows the journey of a Mexican-American Poet/Academic as he struggles to embrace the sense of conflict within himself as well...
    Vacillating between Poem, Academic Lecture, Drama, and Ritual, "Near & Nigh" explores the intersections of Identity and Culture, Mythology and Academia, Destruction and Creation. The third and final play in 'The Tetzcatlipoca Cycle,' "Near & Nigh" follows the journey of a Mexican-American Poet/Academic as he struggles to embrace the sense of conflict within himself as well as between him and the world he lives in. Will he be able to bridge the gap separating past and present so as to find a desperately needed opportunity for change, growth, and understanding?

    Part III of "The Tetzcatlipoca Cycle"
  • The ARC Trials by Jose Nateras
    Cast: 
    20
    ·
    Genre: adventure, drama + 3 more
    ·
    Keyword: Latinx
    Genre: adventure, drama, mystery/thriller, science fiction, young audiences
    Keyword: Latinx
    The ARC Trials is a sci-fi play set in a classroom aboard an interstellar ship where the instructors are Artificial Intelligence. Students are taught about 'Earth That Was' and 'Tierra Nueva', where they're headed, but something isn't quite right aboard the spaceship. Important information is missing from the kids' lessons, questions go unanswered, memories are missing from...
    The ARC Trials is a sci-fi play set in a classroom aboard an interstellar ship where the instructors are Artificial Intelligence. Students are taught about 'Earth That Was' and 'Tierra Nueva', where they're headed, but something isn't quite right aboard the spaceship. Important information is missing from the kids' lessons, questions go unanswered, memories are missing from their heads, and as the students get older they disappear from the ship and from each others memories. It's up to a young girl on board named Cressida to get to the bottom of the mystery before it's too late.