About the Project
Funded by Hollywood Pantages Theatre and County Supervisor Lindsey P Horvath.
Aztlan: (m)otherland is a play exploring the horror of state violence. It follows a journalist and his colleague as they work their way through an anti-war march in an unspecified year. Other characters appear as commentators on the action. The play incorporates poetry in English and Spanish; Brechtian and Beckettian techniques; and references to psychedelic rock and horror cinema. It is inspired by the events surrounding the Los Angeles County Sheriffs killing of Los Angeles Times Mexican-American journalist Ruben Salazar during the National Chicano Moratorium Against the Vietnam War on August 29, 1970 – and the aftermath of his killing through the present day. CONTENT WARNING: death, flashing lights, loud sounds.
The ensemble is directed by the play’s writer Gustavo Alberto Garcia Vaca. Gustavo is an interdisciplinary visual artist/writer whose artwork is in the Collections of MoMA New York, LACMA, and the Bibliotheque Nationale de France.
The cast features –
- Crismar Chacín-Ruiz as Bobi Diles/Hanoi Juana/Ana/La Llorona. Crismar is an LA-based actress in film, TV and theater. Raised in La Guaira, Venezuela, and graduated from The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Los Angeles in 2023. Her credits include; voice actress in Malditos (HBO Max) and Two Graves (Netflix), and the upcoming premiere of the short-film POLY at Dead Center Film Festival on June 12th. She holds strong passion and desire to represent Venezuelan voices through her work.
- Seth Alexander Ernsdorf as The Host/The Agent. Seth is an artist and actor living in Pasadena. He has spent decades working in precast concrete fabrication and sculpture through his studio, Ernsdorf Design Inc. In 2023, he decided to step back in front of the camera and returned to acting. Whether he’s shaping a physical piece of stone in the shop or diving into a new character for a film project, Seth is simply driven by a deep love for storytelling and creating.
- Alan Corvaia as Victor. Alan was born and raised in Venezuela, and graduated with a BA in Theater Arts from LMU. He has also trained abroad, expanding from The Michael Chekvov Studio in Germany to The Academy of Dramatic Art in Croatia. Recent productions include: LA Times reviewed “Escape From Godot”; “Romeo and Juliet” at the Santa Monica Playhouse; and Ghost Road Company’s “A Working Title of Disparate Parts” at the Wende Museum.
- Alejandro Bravo as Zanzibar. Alejandro is an actor born in Acapulco and raised in Los Angeles, working across film, television, commercials, voice-over, and theater. Known for his versatility and grounded presence, he is drawn to stories that carry soul, tension, and truth. While active in every medium, theater remains his deepest passion.
Production Team
