Su Teatro is an American professional theatre. It is the third-oldest
Chicano
Chicano (masculine form) or Chicana (feminine form) is an ethnic identity for Mexican Americans that emerged from the Chicano Movement.
In the 1960s, ''Chicano'' was widely reclaimed among Hispanics in the building of a movement toward politic ...
theater company in the United States and the oldest theater company of any kind in
Denver
Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
,
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...
. Productions explore the Chicano experience in America with an emphasis on preserving cultural heritage and advocating for social justice.
Created in 1972 as a student theater group at the
University of Colorado at Denver
The University of Colorado Denver (CU Denver) is a Public university, public research university located in downtown Denver, Colorado. It is part of the University of Colorado system. Established in 1912 as an extension of the University of C ...
, it is now housed in the Denver Civic Theatre in the
Santa Fe Arts District.
The Su Teatro Cultural and Performing Arts Center features a 320-seat main theatre, an art gallery, and a small studio theatre.
History
Su Teatro was formed in a University of Colorado at Denver reading class in 1972 by faculty member Rowena Rivera.
In protest against the university's policy of placing Chicano students in remedial reading courses, Rivera focused her teaching on drama, asking students to read plays while also creating and directing original work.
An early production, ''El Corrido del Barrio'', explored and protested the 1973 destruction of the primarily Hispanic
Auraria neighborhood in order to build campuses for the University of Colorado at Denver,
Metropolitan State University
Metropolitan State University (Metro State) is a public university in the Minneapolis–St. Paul, Minnesota metropolitan area. It is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. , and
Community College of Denver
Community College of Denver (CCD) is a public community college in Denver, Colorado. The main campus is at Auraria Campus and it has two other locations in the Denver metropolitan area. CCD focuses on underserved, first-generation, and minor ...
. ''El Corrido del Barrio'' has remained in the company's repertory and was performed as part of its fiftieth anniversary celebration.
In 1989, the company established a permanent home at the then-abandoned Elyria School in Northeast Denver.
Supported by a bridge loan of $790,000 from the City of Denver, Su Teatro moved to the Denver Civic Theatre in February 2010.
As of 2016, the company had produced over forty original works devoted to exploring the Chicano experience onstage.
The company celebrated its fiftieth anniversary in May 2023 under the leadership of artistic director
Tony Garcia.
References
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External links
* Official website: http://suteatro.org/
* Art District on Santa Fe official website: https://denversartdistrict.org/
Theatre companies in Colorado
Chicano art
1972 establishments in Colorado
Performing arts centers in Colorado