LA CUCARACHA at Potrero Stage

When orange predator Sam from the US invades a celebration of life in Mexico, June bug Salma joins forces with bug-loving human Lila to lead the resistance and serve sweet justice.

LA CUCARACHA, written by J. Lynn Jackson and directed by Richard Perez, opens PlayGround's fringe-style San Francisco Free-Play Festival at Potrero Stage. Performances are August 1 at 6pm, August 2 at 2pm, and August 3 at 2pm.  Front row sponsor tickets are sold-out. General admission tickets ($10-$30) are still available at this link. 

La Cucaracha celebrates the nature of love, life, death and sweet justice. Bay Area Theatre collective Latinx Mafia says La Cucaracha is "a sharp, hilarious, and dangerously timely new play. This play comes swinging with humor, heart, and heat. You will laugh. You will squirm. You might even check your visa status." The play is in English and is appropriate for adult/teen audiences. 

Mexico/US-based playwright J. Lynn Jackson’s  plays include La Cucaracha, Charles Darwin – Her True Story, Lucía Fuentes, and The Red Sweater. His plays have been developed/presented with PlayGround, Oficina de Proyectos Culturales, Latinx Mafia, Playland Productions, Town Hall Theatre, JUST Play Productions and others. Jackson’s a Playwrights Foundation and Woodward International Playwriting Prize semifinalist and a member of the Playwrights’ Center, the Dramatists Guild, Theatre Bay Area and Berkeley Play Cafe.

La Cucaracha's director, Richard Perez, is a nationally recognized director, actor, and educator with a focus on new play development. He has held leadership roles as Associate Artistic Director at Chicago Dramatists and Artistic Director at Bloomington Playwrights Project. Currently Artistic Director of Town Hall Theatre in Lafayette, Richard has collaborated with leading theatres including Goodman Theatre, Actors Theatre of Louisville, The New York Fringe Festival, and The Kennedy Center.

Courtney Sutherland is La Cucaracha's Stage Manager. They were Stage Manager for productions at The I Can Do That! Performing Arts Center, Masquers Playhouse ("Loose Knit"), SLO Repertory Theatre ("The Marvelous Wonderettes", Staged Reading: "Expecting Isabel") and Cal Poly's Orchesis Dance Company. Courtney graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and is currently gearing up for a fellowship at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. They are very thankful to be a part of "La Cucaracha"!

La Cucaracha's all-star and all-Latinx cast includes: 

Aisha Rivera (bug Salma), they/them. Aisha is an Artist, Writer, and Actor. Aisha is the current Poet Laureate of Napa County. Their Spanish adaptation of "It's a Wonderful Life" premiered with Shakespeare Napa Valley in 2023. Favorite acting credits include Yerma (Shotgun Players), Cymbeline (Berkeley Shakespeare Company), and Dead Man's Cellphone (Upstage Napa Valley). Their newest play "Belly of the Beast" is also premiering in SF Playground's Free Play Festival (2025).

Isabella E. Lowry (human Lila), she/her. Isabella made her professional debut on A.C.T.’s Toni Rembe stage this past winter in A Whynot Christmas, directed by Pam MacKinnon. She first discovered her love for acting at ACT's Young Conservatory in the summer of 2022 and has been passionately training ever since. She dedicates her performance to all the young bug loving Latinas out there and her familia en El Salvador!

Janelle Aguirre (human Claudia), she/her. Janelle is a Bay Area artist whose recent credits include playing Barbara Grant in "A Perfect Arrangement" with Pacifica Spindrift Players, Clare Ganz in "Rumors" at Coastal Repertory Theatre, and Ms. Shields in "A Christmas Story" at Town Hall Theatre. She is a part of the acting pool for SF's sketch writing group, KILLING MY LOBSTER, and feels blessed to get to play in this production of "La Cucaracha".

Noe Flores (human Sam), he/him. Noe is a homegrown comedic Bay Area actor with raíces in Mexico and El Salvador. Stage credits include Ghosts of Bogotá (AlterTheater) and Brilliant Lies (Firescape Theater). His screen work includes Spin Junkies and Start with Where. Noe is currently training in improv at All Out Comedy in Oakland and sometimes performs with the San Francisco sketch comedy troupe Killing My Lobster. He loves characters that make audiences laugh, squirm, and think.

Eric Esquivel-Gutierrez (human Chuy; bug Ricky), he/him. Eric is a Bay Area actor and teaching artist. His most recent credits include The Future Liberals Want or; Resume-Building Post-Apocolypse (Awesome Theatre) and a developmental reading of "Nos Llegamos Aqui Solos" (Teatro Vision). Eric is reigniting his time on stage after a year hiatus to focus on completing a degree from California State University, East Bay in Human Development. Follow him on Instagram @happy__himbo. 

Michelle Navarrete (human Mon), she/her. Michelle is a Salvadoreña-San Franciscan actor, theatre artist, and educator.  From singing out her abuelita's favorite rancheras to belting out show tunes, she has always followed her fire within. After receiving her BFA in Acting from Marymount Manhattan College, she continued her career in NYC performing and producing theatre. Michelle has worked in the SF Bay Area with numerous theatre companies and also in TV/film. 

Hector Zavala (bug Gael), he/him/they. Hector is a multifaceted artist and international creative force with an expansive career spanning theater, film, and dance. As an actor, dancer, set designer, technical director, and producer, Hector’s work has graced stages across Mexico and the U.S., including standout performances in La Leyenda de Georgia McBride and the bilingual solo show Seeking the Last Gay Man. Hector’s work is rooted in cultural integrity, queer visibility, and transformative artistry.

Logan Christian (bug Diego), he/him. Logan wanted to be an actor since age nine. Taking singing and acting lessons in high school, followed by dancing in college, Logan has been able to make that dream a reality. Productions with Diablo Valley College have included Head Over Heels, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Witness for the Prosecution, as well as various dance shows in which he performed many styles of dance such as salsa, modern, hip-hop, and ballet. 

Bert Ramirez (bug Dragon; human Fred), he/him. Bert has been active with the theater since retiring in Mexico in 2009, starring in many productions including as Trekkie and Nicky in Avenue Q, Dr. Scott in Rocky Horror Picture Show, and Mother Superior in Nunsense A-men. After a 31-year career with the fire service, Bert lives in Puerto Vallarta with his wife, Cindy.

Front-Row supporters who help La Cucaracha resist-play-live include: Playland Productions, Carlos Barón, Pilar Perez, Nicté Escalante, Leopoldo and Valorie Villela, Ed Martinez and Doug Brewster, Miyoko Sakatani, Gates McKibbon, Casey Lupton, Mae Chesney and Peter Rothblatt, Diane Foster and Peter Hannigan, Don Spencer at 82, John Glynn and Tina Monaco-Glynn, Ellen Flood & Liza Bippus, James Shay and Steven Correll, Pilar and Dwight Meier, Raquiba Labrie, Emily Golenberg, Jan Schmuckler and Jim Martin, Julie Soloman and Adam Rossi, Ruel Walker and Bertrand Vandeville, Bert and Cindy Ramirez, MyCantina, Sandra L. Ramirez, Cindy and Chuck Lucas, Luis & Cindy Sanchez, Holly Barker Lee (Sotheby's International Realty), Carolyn Crane, Maurice Monette, Oficina de Proyectos Culturales, Wake UP Sonoma, El Centro del Poder Popular, La Luz Center and Sonoma Community Center.

“It is not worthwhile to leave this world without having had a little fun in life.”  - Frida Kahlo