This year, Latino Theater Company proudly celebrates 40 years of storytelling, creativity, and community.
As Hispanic Heritage Month comes to a close, many continue to extend the celebration beyond its official dates by uplifting the Latino community, amplifying voices and recognizing the enduring cultural impact that thrives even in challenging times. Among them is the Latino Theater Company (LTC), which this year marks its 40th anniversary, a significant milestone in its ongoing commitment to storytelling and representation on stage.
Founded in 1985, LTC has created a space dedicated to telling new stories and expanding artistic opportunities for underserved communities. Over the years, the company has continued to explore the U.S. Latina/o/x experience through bold, contemporary works while showcasing local playwrights whose voices address vital social issues. Its productions highlight the diverse perspectives of Latina/o/x, First Nation, Black, Asian American, Jewish American and LGBTQ+ communities, reflecting the company’s ongoing commitment to inclusion and representation in the performing arts.
CALÓ News spoke with Jose Luis Valenzuela, who is an award-winning theater director, and has been a visionary and an advocate for Chicanx/Latinx Theater for over 30 years. He has directed critically acclaimed productions at major theaters both internationally and nationally. And he is also the artistic director leading TLC, in which they recently celebrated their 40th milestone anniversary.
“It’s an accomplishment for any company to be able to create work and still be present after 40 years, especially in times where it is increasingly difficult for any arts organization to survive. I’m grateful that we have been able to create our artistic work while also serving our community throughout our lifetime as a company,” Valenzuela said.
In a critical time where several Latino communities are being targeted by the Trump administration, Valenzuela believes that it is more important than ever to highlight stories about Latinos by Latinos. “We are invisible in the mainstream media. Chicanos and Latinos in the United States – we just don’t exist in the media. And if we are represented, we’re represented as negative stereotypes,” he said. “So it is our responsibility to represent Latinos as more than just the stereotypes that have been assigned to them. And in these times where the community is under attack and people are fearful, it’s necessary that they have a space where they feel seen, secure and within the community.”
He shared that one of his favorite plays performed at the theater has been “Tacos La Brooklyn” by Joel Ulloa, as described by Valenzuela as a beautiful and important play and wonderful experience. “It brought different communities together. The play centered on a Korean American taquero who was raised by Mexicanos in Boyle Heights and later gets accused of cultural appropriation by a Chicana influencer. People of these cultures and beyond came and were very supportive and excited to see an example of how different cultures relate to each other in Los Angeles,” he said.
LTC operates the Los Angeles Theatre Center (LATC), a historic landmark, and five-theater performing arts complex, in the heart of Downtown LA. Since 2007 they have been running operations at the LATC and have produced 155 plays, created over 4,125 local jobs, and have helped 938 nonprofit organizations by providing space and the resources of their theater.
TLC also offers programs like the Impact Initiative, which provides free access to tickets for all Latino Theater Company plays, plus opportunities to attend master classes and artist discussions for all community college students. The Impact Initiative began at East Los Angeles College (ELAC) and has since expanded across the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD), building a community of students from diverse campuses united by a shared passion for the arts.
“The Impact Initiative is creating a space where Latino students feel like they belong. They’re being exposed to Latino theater and through that are learning about their history that is rarely highlighted in their classes and departments and even in the media. It’s important for them to know their history because it connects them to their identity and to who they are as Latinos,” he shared. “We’re also providing them with a space where they feel like they belong and a place where they can feel at home. Students come to the theater to watch shows, some of them have joined our front of house and technical staff and have performed on our stages. They’re also creating a community between themselves and students from the other community colleges. It’s becoming a large and very supportive network.”
Galilea Salinas, who was part of the Impact Initiative as a student, said that the program broadened her opportunities as a college student but also as a young actress. She said she was able to tour shows that Valenzuela brought to her school and all around L.A.
Salinas grew up in a small town outside of San Francisco, where she always felt surrounded by a predominantly white community. When she began working in her hometown’s industry, she often felt out of place, though she didn’t give it much thought at the time. It wasn’t until she moved to L.A. to pursue her dreams that she fully recognized those feelings of difference.
“LATC is a beautiful theater, I almost feel like I’m family. I have worked on two different shows since and it’s made me feel more confident walking through the door as an actor knowing that there is space where I can take up space and that there is a community of actors like me who are actually trying to pursue it and we don’t have to fit into the small category,” Salinas said.
She also believes that there’s a need for more Latina representation in the performing arts industry and shared some advice with the younger generations who want to follow in her footsteps. “Don’t back down, if you want it just go for it and try and work hard. I think I’ve learned that it’s so important to stay consistent and work on your craft but also stay consistent in a way that you continue to watch shows, you continue to support your friends and you’re taking classes or reading a play, working, but most importantly just keeping the creative flow going,” she said. “In this journey it’s a privilege to find your people and write together something important but also fun and exciting.”
Another equally transformative program is the Imaginistas Initiative, which is commissioning 25 new plays that center Latino experiences, from immigration and identity to Afro-Latino stories and gender exploration, while rewriting how stories are told in the American theater. The LTC’s Circle of Imaginistas is a five-year-long commission-oriented writing circle aimed at producing new, relevant plays from both established and early- and mid-career Latinx voices that address important issues of our times.
Not only is the program helping share stories and creating intentional conversation on crucial topics but it’s also changing the narrative of how Latino stories are told. “We have produced six of the 11 Imaginstas commissions and if you take a look at each of those productions, they are completely unique from one another, stylistically and topically,” Valenzuela said. I spoke about ‘Tacos La Brooklyn’ which is a mix of cultures and a thoughtful consideration of how they relate to each other. ‘A Girl Grows Wings’ by Marisela Orta is a play with no words and tons of beautiful imagery that talks about DACA and the journey of Dreamers in the United States. ‘Ghost Waltz’ uses a variety of beautiful music to tell the story of Juventino Rosas, a forgotten indigenous Mexican composer. ‘The Last Play’ by Rickerby Hinds is a meta theatrical piece exploring Afro Latinidad in the theater world. ‘Mascogos’ by Miranda Gonzalez illuminates a hidden chapter of Afro Mexicano history using time travel as a device. ‘The Little King of Norwalk’ by Israel Lopez Reyes is a hilarious modern fable and an examination of power in Latino communities.”
He also told CALÓ News how important it is to have different stories that show the vastness and complexity of the Latino community. “We are more than the stereotypes that the mainstream media has decided we are. And if they are not going to tell our stories then it is our responsibility to create our own. We have to alter the narrative that has been told about Latinos in the United States,” he said.