Policarpa: Apocalypse Sur Amerikka by Diana Burbano
In the near future, an inexplicable plague infests La Gran Colombia. Ingrid Bolivar--the brilliant, mad ex-wife of Colombia's leader--is the only one who knows that the plague is carried by young women of the streets, whom she adopts and uses as weapons against the government. Policarpa, a girl with magical gifts, is supposed to be Ingrid's secret apocalyptic weapon. But when Policarpa falls in love...
In the near future, an inexplicable plague infests La Gran Colombia. Ingrid Bolivar--the brilliant, mad ex-wife of Colombia's leader--is the only one who knows that the plague is carried by young women of the streets, whom she adopts and uses as weapons against the government. Policarpa, a girl with magical gifts, is supposed to be Ingrid's secret apocalyptic weapon. But when Policarpa falls in love with a top government official, she resists becoming an instrument of destruction and instead seeks to become a savior through sacrifice.
Rooted in traditional Latin American magical realism, the nightmare magic science fiction world of Policarpa exists in a neither here-or-there.
Policarpa has been developed by The Drama League's Rough Draft series, Theatricum Botanicum Seedlings, Oregon Shakespeare Festival Black Swan Lab Latinx Play Project, and Milagro Theatre’s Ingenio play reading series. It received an Honorable Mention for the Jane Chambers Playwriting Award and was a finalist for the Bay Area Playwrights Festival.
Policarpa was a part of The Drama League’s Rough Draft series in May 2017, where it was developed by Melinda Hall. Also developed at Theatricum Botanicum Seedlings 2017 and Oregon Shakespeare Festival Black Swan Lab Latinx play project 2017. It was the inaugural play for Milagro Theatre’s Ingenio play reading series 2018, and was recorded for The Parsnip Ship, 2018 with Hall at the helm.
It received an Honorable Mention, Association for Theatre in Higher Education’s 2017 Jane Chambers Playwriting Award and is currently a semi-finalist for the Eugene O’Neill Playwrights Festival 2018 and a finalist for the Bay Area Playwrights Foundation Festival 2018.