Latin Theatre in New York City

Most human culture begins as religious ritual at home and in our communities. Rituals offer a transcendent experience that helps people grow through the stages of life in their community framework. In the pre-literate world, rituals were an important teaching method.

Theatre is one step removed from religious ritual, but still tries to inspire a transformation in the audience.

All the world’s civilizations have their own unique theatre traditions. In Mother Africa, ancient Egyptian passion plays go back as far as 2,000 BC. Native Americans, including the Maya, Aztec, and Inca cultures, had their own theatre traditions. India, China, and Southeast Asia have rich theatre traditions too.

European Theatre

European theatre traditions begin with Aeschylus “The Persians” at the Greek Theatre of Dionysus in 472 BC. During the Middle Ages in Europe, religious theatre was used as a preliterate teaching tool, until it got rather unreligious and was banned. Those religious theatre traditions live on today in Christmas traditions across the Latin world.

Italian Commedia dell’arte, which we now call slapstick physical comedy (or TikTok or YouTube), became popular in the 1500s-1700s.

Latin Theatre

Latin theatre builds on Spanish Golden Age traditions (1590-1681) when all levels of society, from royals to street people, went to the theatre.

New York Theatre

All New York Theatre used to be called “Broadway” because that’s where many theaters are. Off-Broadway got going in the 1950s. Off-Off-Broadway got going in the 1960s.

It begins with Thomas Kean and Walter Murray’s Shakespearian and operatic theatre in the old Financial District in 1750. The first successful African American theatre was the African Grove Theatre which started at 38 Thomas St in Civic Center in 1821.

The first national American theatre was the short form comedy of minstrel shows from around 1850-1870. That racist nonsense still troubles us. In New York City, short form comedy evolved into vaudeville, radio, movies, television, and MTV. YouTube and Tik Tok are contemporary forms.

“Direct from Broadway” became a theatre marketing slogan when productions began national tours after the U.S. Civil War (1861-65). At the time all New York theatre was called Broadway theatre.

Latin theatre in New York City builds from Teatro Puerto Rico (1948-1994) which thrived with the Puerto Rican Great Migration of the 1950s.

Native American theatre traditions become part of Chicano theatre in the 1960s-70s.

Harlem Renaissance 3.0

Today what we call the Harlem Renaissance 3.0, is creating unprecedented opportunities for the “other” New York ~ artists of color. We are the 69%, and together, we are all New York City.