When Rick Najera began acting, he had a hard time finding roles beyond gangsters and drug lords. Determined to free himself from stereotypes, he decided to write his way into Hollywood.
The result has been a successful career that has included writing gigs for iconic television shows including In Living Color and Mad TV. In 2005, Najera made Broadway history by writing and starring in his own show: Latinologues on Broadway, a collection of comedic and poignant monologues about the Latino experience in America.
Najera has returned to the theater with a new interactive comedy, Sweet 15 My Quinceañera! which opens on July 20 at a brand-new theater, The Hub in Pinecrest. The show debuted in San Diego and also played in Chicago before coming to Miami. It is being presented by Broadway Factor, the award-winning team behind The Amparo Experience, Miami’s longest-running immersive play, and The Hub.
Najera hopped on to the Jitney to talk about his new play, his career, and his advice for young Latino artists in this interview, which has been edited and condensed for style and clarity.
What’s different about this Sweet 15 My Quinceañera production from previous versions?
Rick Najera: The main difference is the show is more relevant and timelier and that it reflects the people and city it’s in – Cubans and Miami. It’s what I call necessary theater. Latinos are the largest minority in this country but so seldom are we seen or recognized. This is a celebration of that experience and our families.
Why did you focus on this traditional Latino celebration?
Quinceañeras are a $49 billion-a-year industry. It’s a real ceremony with a huge significance in a young woman’s life. It’s Christmas, New Year’s, and birthdays all rolled into one. Quinceañeras have deep roots in our community; these ceremonies are unique to Latino families and go back hundreds of years.
What’s unique about this show?
It’s Cuban with an all-Cuban cast, but it’s in English, so everyone can attend. It’s a universal story.
What’s the central theme?
It’s about family and love. About a man trying to return to his family and a young girl grappling with her father’s absence. It’s about understanding the family dynamic to find forgiveness and healing, all the while being funny and entertaining, which is much like my family. I come from a funny, argumentative, complicated family. The only unifying thing in my family was love. I think the play reflects this.
Sweet 15 isn’t a typical play. How would you describe it?
It is more interactive and personal than most plays. We get audience members to help create the experience. They become part of the show and part of the party; they get up and dance. We use the audience as another character in the play.
What do you want audiences to take away from this play?
They will experience a Latin party that goes hilariously wrong. But at the same time, it has a lot of heart. This play is in the end a love story – a father’s love for his daughter.
You are considered a Latino trailblazer in Hollywood. What do you attribute your success to?
My success is that I don’t feel I’m successful. I have not so-called “made it.” I’m still on that journey looking for artistic satisfaction. I think artists get a vision of perfection but our inability or weakness stops us from perfection so we have to feel “the agony and ecstasy” of creation. But that’s our strength as well.
What advice would you give young Latino writers trying to enter the field today?
I would say stay hungry and never think wherever you are in your career that you have “made it.”
And the last piece of advice: Remember it’s about the audience. Serve them. cares about them. They spend their hard-earned money; they take the time to travel to see your show. Give them their money’s worth. Entertain them, let them escape into another world. Give them hope to show not life as it is but life as it should be.
If You Go: Sweet 15 My Quinceañera! runs July 20 – Sept. 22 at The Hub, 5950 N. Kendall Dr., Pinecrest. Tickets start at $49. For reservations and showtimes, click here or call 305-667-6667.
