From: http://www.chusma.com


What does CHUSMA mean?

The Aztlan Spanish/English Dictionary defines "ChUSMA" as :



(1) n "Undesirables"

(2) v "Undocumented"

(3) n "Outcasts"

(4) v "Outlaws"; usage: "Mira, ay viene la Chusma!"; trans., "There goes the Neighborhood!!!!!!!!!!!"

"ChUSMA" in Spanish slang signifies "Societies’ Unwanted Elements," or "Outcasts." In some regions this word is used to demean and put down the so-called lower classes, poor, and forgotten. We reclaim this word in the name of Chespirito, Cantinflas, Charlie Chaplin, la India Maria, la Chilindrina, and those who have come before us to give it a new definition :


ChUSMA: (chews-mah!) adj. Noun, method of identifying oneself—working class, the homeless, undocumented workers, women, children, our families… who make up who we are. Todos somos ChUSMA!!!

Who is ChUSMA for?

ChUSMA goes with everything! High in cultura, low in cholesterol and corporate globalization ChUSMA goes with hamburgers, tacos, pizza, ignorance, evolution… ChUSMA‘s shows are for any city or campus that have Chicanos, Latinos, and anyone interested in laughing. We are sure you know many who fit this description. The ones lurking in the dark corners afraid to show their tan faces because they just can’t relate to the Opera. Bring them into the light by booking us for your next major event. (And we are not just talking about 5 de Mayo, we also do Quinceñeras)



What has ChUSMA done lately?

2005 has taken ChUSMA from Chicago, Illinois to UC Davis, Riverside, all the way to the community of El Sereno, Califas. In 2004, ChUSMA along with cast of students and professional actors previewed their most recent play, "The Wizard of Aztlan" @ the Performing Arts Center at Cal State Northridge. They also toured their "Naco Show" to Wyoming and Oregon. 2003 took ChUSMA to Michigan, Wisconson, Washington, and up & down the state of California.

2002 took ChUSMA through an extensive tour of Northern and Southern California(*many places listed below). In that year ChUSMA's play "The Wizard of Aztlan" was chosen for production out of a national search for new plays by Teatro Humanidad of Texas. In Spring 2001, ChUSMA completed their Northwest tour throughout Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and Northern California. In 2000, ChUSMA performed in the states of Washington, in Oregon for the NACCS 2000 Conference, California, and New Mexico for the 2000 La Voz Theater Festival of the Americas in Santa Fe in their "United States of Aztlan" West Coast Tour. ChUSMA has also performed in Mexico City, Chiapas, and at high schools & universities all over California.

ChUSMA has work-shopped with Agosto Boal Technique Theatre of the Oppressed in New York, The San Francisco Mime Troupe, and Olivia Chumacero (A veteran of El Teatro Campesino). Members of ChUSMA have worked with Ping Chong in Undesirable Elements. ChUSMA has shared the stage with Culture Clash, Tierra, Ozomatli, Aztlan Underground, El Teatro Campesino, Quetzal, and Maldita Vecindad. The Latino Initiative at the Mark Taper Forum commissioned ChUSMA to write its play The Wizard of Aztlan. In July of '99 ChUSMA presented "The Mission" written by Culture Clash at the Aztlan Cultural Arts Foundation in Los Angeles. Since then, ChUSMA has continued to present to the community through events, shows, and workshops.


*2003 L.A. Weekly "Pick of the Week"*

Mixing Aztec mythology with Mexican carpa (traveling tent shows), Chicano teatro and Hollywood's version of the L. Frank Baum classic "The Wizard of Oz," the theater troupe ChUSMA has crafted a provocative yet whimsical sociopolitical fable, which it presents as a staged reading this Saturday(3/1/03).First envisioned in 1994 by group founders and Cal State Northridge alums Alberto Ibarra and Gustavo Chavez (Marisol Torres joined later), it took an inspiring 1997 trip to Chiapas, Mexico, home to the Zapatista liberation movement, to finally kick-start a script. For many Chicanos, myself included, the nation of Aztlan ("ahst-lahn), the Southwestern US locale from where the Aztecs are believed to have originated, symbolizes a political, cultural, and spiritual touchstone connecting us to our native roots. "Beyond the physicality of it," Ibarra asserts, however, Aztlan is "a state of mind" shaping the path of social justice for America's indigenous people's.

When Latin American revolutionary Concencia doubts herself and her commitment, she begins a pilgrimage north to Aztlan's wizard, the Aztec god Quetzalcoatl ("ket-sahl-ko-aht"). Along with her newfound comrades, disgruntled landless farmer Lencho, disillusioned union organizer Tin Tin (melding Oz's Tin Man with 1940's Mexican movie comic Tin Tan) and disreputable immigrant smuggler Animo, Concencia challenges the wicked general "El Ouch," NAFTA, the INS, and American economic and cultural imperialism. In true Zapatista fashion, Concencia eventually brings her struggle for truth, justice, and the indigenous way back to her own community, putting a whole new pin on Dorothy's original recognition that "There's no place like home."--Martin Hernandez

Brief Performance History:


2005
migrant student conference, uc riverside, june 30

"padres contra cancer" LA, June 22

Semillas del Pueblo, el sereno, ca, june 18

Whittier Central Library, CA May 5

Cesar Chavez Walk, East Los Angeles

MECHA Nationals, Cal State Northridge

Pilsner College, Chicago, Illinois


2004
Festival de la Gente, LA, CA October 30

UC Riverside, Youth Theater Workshop, June

Oregon State University, May 16
University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY April 16
Lecture, CSU, Northridge, CA March 24

"The Wizard of Aztlan" @ CSU, Northridge, CA March 5
2003
University of Wisconson, November

Michigan State University, Lansing, MI, October 16
"Farce of July," Casa del Mexicano, LA, CA July 4
UCLA, May
"The Naco Show" Washington State University, March 7
Mecha Nationals, Berkeley, CA March
Wizard of Aztlan Reading, Tia Chucha's Cafe Cultural, March 1 *LA Weekly Pick of the Week*(scroll to bottom for text)
2002
"The Naco Show" Mendocino College, November 15
"The Naco Show" Sonoma State College, November 16
"Latino Heritage Month," Woodbury University, CA October 8
"Road to Chilango-landia," Galeria Coyolxauhqui, LA, CA August 10
"The Naco Show" Galeria Coyolxauhqui, Los Angeles, CA June 28, 29
"The Naco Show" UCLA, Festival of Chicano Classics, June 27
Sol Festival, Griffith Park, CA June 22
Eastside Café, El Sereno, CA, May 17
Migrant Workers Conference, Santa Paula, CA May 18
"The Naco Show" MACLA, San Jose, CA April 22
Stanford University, CA April 22
"The Naco Show" Mission Cultural Center, San Francisco, CA April 20
"The Naco Show" La Peña Cultural Center, Berkeley, CA April 19
"Raza Youth Conference," Cal State Northridge, CA April 13
"Cesar Chavez Commemoration," Pitzer College, April 4
"The Naco Show," Tia Chucha's Café Cultural, Sylmar, CA March 16
"Mujeres de Maiz," LA, CA March 10
"The Naco Show," El Centrito, Oxnard, CA March 9
"La Carpa Show," Galeria Coyolxauhqui, LA, CA February 16
2001
"Big Mountain Benefit," Galeria Coyolxauhqui, LA, CA November 10
"Dia de los Muertos," Galeria Coyolxauhqui, LA, CA November 3
"A Conscious Groove Thang," Self-Help Graphics, LA CA October 18
"Hecho en Califas," Mission Cultural Center, San Francisco, CA September 15
"The Mission" California Plaza, LA, CA August 4
"Farce of July," Xicano Records & Film, Agua Dulce, CA July 4
"The Wizard of Aztlan," Imix Bookstore, LA, CA June 22
"Chiapas Coalition "98 Fundraiser," Self-Help Graphics, LA, CA June 16
Los Angeles Children’s Theater Week, 2nd Stage, Hollywood, CA May 12
Cinco de Mayo, Dominguez Hills High School, Compton, CA May 3
“Naco Tour” Sac State University, Sacramento, CA April 19
“Naco Tour,” Central Washington University, Washington April 17
Raza Youth Conference, UC Davis, CA March 31
“Cesar Chavez Celebration,” Pitzer College, Claremont, CA March 29
Mexican-American Conference, Boise State University, Idaho March 14
Chicano Night, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon March 2
Quinto Sol Fundraiser, Los Angeles Theater Center, LA, CA February 26
El Salvador Earthquake Relief, Lafayette Park, LA, CA February 24
Upperbound Youth Conference, USC, LA, CA February 24



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