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Lineup Set for 14th Annual CROSSING BORDERS (CRUZANDO FRONTERAS) FESTIVAL

The festival will run from Thursday, July 31 to Sunday, August 3.

By: Jun. 26, 2025
Lineup Set for 14th Annual CROSSING BORDERS (CRUZANDO FRONTERAS) FESTIVAL  Image
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Two River Theater’s celebrated Crossing Borders (Cruzando Fronteras) Festival of new plays by Latine playwrights will take place from Thursday, July 31 to Sunday, August 3 in the Joan and Robert M. Rechnitz Theater. Now in its 14th year, this annual event joyfully showcases the richness, diversity, creativity, and talent of Latine theater artists. All festival events are open and free to the public.

“This year's festival showcases four returning writers all working at the top of their game and crafting deeply compelling stories about our current moment,” explains the festival’s award-winning curator, José Zayas. “We get to travel from Miami to California and from Atlantic City to spaces deep in the collective imagination of our country as we watch these beautifully drawn characters connect with the world around them in captivating and surprising ways.” 

“The plays range from a delightfully raunchy and politically savvy adaption of the classic Noel Coward play Private Lives, to a haunting play about a mother and daughter preparing for the disasters of the world only to find that the biggest disasters are the ones closest to home; from a bittersweet exploration of a young friendship destroyed by class and time all told though the creation of a new comic book hero, to a madcap and hallucinatory journey into the world of casinos and beauty pageants,” Zayas continues. “These are bold, funny and thrillingly imaginative stories full of joy and hope.  It is my pleasure to once again invite our audiences to experience the work of these wonderful writers and to be part of the development of these new plays.” 

coLAB Arts, a partner on the festival for the past few years, will lead a mural project for the duration of the festival that focuses on the strong ties between the festival’s mission and its audience. 

FESTIVAL SCHEDULE

Thursday, July 31 at 5PM:

Community Kick-Off Celebration
Live music on the plaza with food, fun, and feasting!

Thursday, July 31 at 7PM:

The Myth of the Two Marcos 
by Tony Meneses, directed by José Zayas 
When Marco meets Marco in 1997 Albuquerque, an unlikely friendship begins between two boys with the same name but vastly different personalities and outlooks on life. When they discover a mutual love of comic books, the local comic shop becomes a sanctuary for both teens as they’re introduced to an Aztec superhero who becomes their guide through a time long forgotten. 

Friday, August 1 at 5:30PM

STORIES FROM THE HEART
A One-of-a-Kind Sharing
Throughout the school year, Red Bank Middle School's 7th and 8th grade AVID [Advancement Via Individual Determination] students have been crafting original pieces in weekly writing sessions with Project Write Now.  A new addition to the Festival, this thrilling showcase will feature poems, stories, and all-around love from these young storytellers. This is your chance to hear the words and voices of our incredible neighbors!

Friday, August 1 at 7PM:

Miss America Pretty
by Iraisa Ann Reilly, directed by José Zayas 
Who wants to be Miss America when you could have the whole Universe? Cristina is an Atlantic City casino worker living in the shadow of generations of pageant queens. With a scholarship and a better future for her family hanging in the balance, Cristina has one glamorous chance to prove that she deserves the crown. Steeped in memory and surrealism, Miss America Pretty examines conformity, grief, and how far we’ll go to reinvent ourselves for the sake of systems that exclude us.

Saturday, August 2 at 2PM:

Disaster Preparedness 
by Eliana Pipes, directed by Taylor Reynolds 
Mitigation. Preparedness. Response. Recovery. Mama and Honey like to be ready for anything. When Mama comes face to face with the Ghost of her own mother and Honey begins to think about moving on, the two women start to question their strategies. Exploring motherhood and caretaking, the third play in Pipes’ New America Cycle reminds us that there are some disasters we’ll never see coming.

Saturday, August 2 at 8PM:

Performance from Xol Azul Band, a five piece band formed in 2002 with its original lineup lead by singer and bassist Gidalthi Guillen, guitarist Gil Cruz, keyboardist Fabian Rojas, percussionist Javier Medel and drummer Susu Leon. Their sound represents the new Latin rock breed singing in Spanish/English. With their CD “Sale el Xol” XAB has captured American and Hispanic music lovers of all sorts.

Sunday, August 3 at 2PM:

Vidas Privadas 
by Christina Pumariega, directed by Eddie Torres
Celia loves Clayton. America loves Cesar. Divorcees Celia and Cesar (still) love each other. But when they all honeymoon in adjacent hotel rooms in Ibiza, the café hits the fan. Hearts and tempers flare rocketing from old world to the new, from passion to politics in a no-holds barred immigrant debate where Cesar and Celia ask if change is actually possible. A fresh, funny, Cuban reinvention of Noël Coward’s Private Lives.
 




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