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Jose, Can You See?: Latinos on and Off Broadway
Jose Can You See Latinos on and Off Broadway Author:Alberto Sandoval-Sanchez, Univ of Wisconsin Pr "Alberto Sandoval-Sanchez is among the most interesting and original minds at work in performance studies and American studies. Jos, Can You See? is a landmark achievement, an important contribution to 20th century American cultural history. Quite simply, there is no other critic of Latino popular culture who speaks with so much wisdom and w... more »it, so much eloquence and expertise."-David Roman, University of Southern California "A superb book that will be immensely useful to anyone interested in Latino theater and its relation to mainstream theater. I have not seen any work of the scope, depth, clarity and personal commitment as this one."-Silvia Spitta, Dartmouth "I don't know any other book that provides us with such an ample and innovative view of Latino theater and the image created by Broadway/Hollywood of Hispanics in the United States."-Efran Barradas, University of Massachusetts, Boston In two acts, complete with overture and intermission, Alberto Sandoval-Snchez shines his spotlight on representations and stereotyping of Latinos on stage. In act one, Jos Can You See? scans the way Latinos get typecast on Broadway and in popular culture-from enduring icons like Carmen Miranda and Desi Arnaz to full- scale musicals like West Side Story and A Chorus Line. In act two Sandoval-Snchez offers a fresh perspective on how Latinos/as represent themselves in their own theatrical productions by introducing a whole body of relatively unknown Latino plays. Suggesting that all these plays pose a response to popular culture's stereotypes, he discusses the ways in which Hispanic theater both confronts the dangers of assimilation and validates Latino traditions and culture. From Carmen Miranda and Desi Arnaz to Kiss of the Spider Woman and Zoot Suit, Sandoval-Snchez explores the evolution of theatrical images of Latinos/Latinas on and off Broadway, from stereotypical representation to self- representation.« less