Estela Scarlata

Estela "Piqui" Scarlata (March 23, 1942 – August 3, 2023) was an Argentine set designer and playwright. She cofounded the Bilingual Foundation of the Arts with Carmen Zapata and Margarita Galban in 1972.[1] She also worked for the Los Angeles Theatre Academy as a costume and set designer until 2019.[2]

Estela "Piqui" Scarlata
Estela Scarlata in 1994.
Born(1942-03-23)March 23, 1942
Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Died(2023-08-03)August 3, 2023 (aged 81)
Mar de Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina
NationalityArgentina, US
Other namesPiqui
Occupation(s)Set designer, costume designer, stage manager, art restorer, playwright
Years active55

Early life

Estela "Piqui" Scarlata was born in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina on March 23, 1942. Her family has Italian, Hungarian, Spanish, and Brazilian heritage. She moved to Los Angeles, California in 1965.[3]

Career

Scarlata began her career as an art restorer in Santa Monica before becoming a set designer at Teatro 6 Actores, a 99-seat theatre in Hollywood, California. In the early 1970s, Scarlata became one of the first women to work as a carpenter at CBS Channel 2.[4]

In 1972, Scarlata co-founded the Bilingual Foundation of the Arts (BFA) with Managing Producer Carmen Zapata and Artistic Director Margarita Galban, and served as its Production Manager/Technical Director and Set Designer-in-Residence. She continued to work with BFA, which was housed in the decommissioned Lincoln Heights Jail, for 37 years, during which time she designed sets for between 150 and 200 plays.[5]

Scarlata has authored several plays. In 1975, she worked with dramatist C. Bernard Jackson to translate her play La Factoria into Wanted: Experienced Operators, a musical about undocumented sweatshop workers.[6] In the late 1980s, Scarlata also wrote a number of children's plays, including Rainbow Red, The Wiseman of Chichen Itza, and Young Moctezuma, some of which toured LAUSD schools.[7] In 2008, she wrote Memorias del Tango, a musical about her family in Argentina.

Scarlata also served as Festival Coordinator for Reader's Theatre, a program she began at BFA in 1984 and ran until 2008, which featured a series of plays with audience discussion and feedback.[8]

From 2011 to 2019, Scarlata worked as set and costume designer for the Los Angeles Theatre Academy (LATA). She also wrote and adapted several plays for the program.[9]

Estela Scarlata receiving the Official Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic from the Ambassador of Spain to the United States Antonio de Oyarzabal y Marchesi in 1999.

Awards

Scarlata won the Drama-Logue Award for Artistic Achievement in Set Design for Doña Rosita La Soltera, shared with David Barber, in 1980,[10] The House of Bernarda Alba in 1997[11] and 1998, and The Misfortunes of a House in 1998.[12] In 1999, Scarlata was knighted by his majesty King Juan Carlos of Spain, and received the Official Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic for her commitment to preserving the Hispanic language and culture through performing arts.[13]

Theatre productions

Title Venue Year(s) Notes
Los signos del zodiaco Golden Gate Theatre 1972
El Quelite Golden Gate Theatre 1973
Wanted: Experienced Operators Inner City Cultural Center, Fresno Convention Center, Al J. Williams Theatre, several venues 1975 Play cowritten by Estela Scarlata.
Doña Rosita la soltera Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1980 1980 Drama-Logue Award for Artistic Achievement in Set Design shared with David Barber.
Rainbow Red Bilingual Foundation of the Arts, several LAUSD schools 1980–1986 Written by Estela Scarlata.
The Wiseman of Chichen Itza Bilingual Foundation of the Arts, several LAUSD schools 1988–1990 Written by Estela Scarlata.
Young Moctezuma Bilingual Foundation of the Arts, several LAUSD schools 1989 Written by Estela Scarlata.
La Celestina Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1992
The House of the Spirits/La Casa de los Espiritus Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1996
The House of Bernarda Alba Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1997–2007 1997 and 1998 Drama-Logue Award for Artistic Achievement in Set Design.
The Misfortunes of a House Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1998 1998 Drama-Logue Award for Artistic Achievement in Set Design.
Our Lady of the Tortilla Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1998
Parade of Strange Images Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1998
Too Many Tamales Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1999–2007
Maria La O Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1999–2007
Witless Lady/La Dama Boba Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1999
Guantanamera Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1999
Blood Wedding Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 1999
Rosalba y los Llaveros Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2000 In collaboration with Danza Floricanto and Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department
La Venganza de Don Mendo Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2001
Salon Mexico Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2001–2005
Lorca y Las Mujeres Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2002
El Alcalde de Zalamea Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2002
Juventud, divino tesoro/Divine Treasure of Youth Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2002
Los Clasicos Enredos Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2003
Don Juan Tenorio Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2003
Fiesta del Dia de los Muertos Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2004
Reader's Theatre Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2004 Estela Scarlata served as Festival Coordinator for this event.
Zarzuelas Under The Stars Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2004
Fiesta del Dia de los Muertos Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2004
Solamente Una Vez/You Belong to my Heart Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2003–2004
Don Quixote: The Last Adventure Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2004
Fiesta del Dia de los Muertos Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2004
New Works Festival Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2005
La Zapatera Prodigiosa/The Shoemaker's Prodigious Wife Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2005
Yerma Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2006
Sucedio en la Habana/It Happened in Havana Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2006
Un Domingo en la Alameda/A Sunday in the Alameda Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2006
Las Leandras Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2008
Erendira Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2008
La Jaula de las Locas Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2008
La Verbena de San Antonio Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2008
Memorias del Tango Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2008 Play written by Estela Scarlata.
El Fieston de las Calaveras Bilingual Foundation of the Arts 2008
El Bicentenario de la Independencia y centenario de la Revolucion de Mexico Elysian Park Amphitheatre 2010
The Immigrant Elysian Park Amphitheatre 2010–2019 Play written by Estela Scarlata.
Too Many Skeletons Elysian Park Amphitheatre 2010–2019 Play adapted from La Difunta Familia Diaz
LATA Choir Elysian Park Amphitheatre, homes of disabled residents of Solano Canyon 2010–2019 Costumes designed and built by Estela Scarlata.
The Lion Sleeps Tonight Elysian Park Amphitheatre 2010–2019 Play adaptation of the songThe Lion Sleeps Tonight by Estela Scarlata.
Don Quijote de la Mancha Elysian Park Amphitheatre, Studio Theatre Playhouse 2010–2019 Adaptation by Estela Scarlata.
La Leyenda del Maiz Elysian Park Amphitheatre 2010–2019 Adaptation by Estela Scarlata.
Sounds of Music Elysian Park Amphitheatre 2010–2019 Play adaptation of film musical Sounds of Music by Estela Scarlata.

References

  1. ^ Urquijo-Ruiz, R. E. (2010). Staging the self, staging empowerment: An overview of Latina theater and performance. In N. E. Cantú & M. E. Fránquiz (Ed.), Inside the Latin@ experience: A Latin@ studies reader (pp. 160). Palgrave Macmillan. https://digitalcommons.trinity.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1117&context=mll_faculty
  2. ^ "Meet our staff!", edited by Alexandrea Owens-Flores, Los Angeles Theatre Academy, www.losangelestheatreacademy.org/lata-staff.
  3. ^ Scarlata, Estela. "Voces del Teatro: An Oral History of Latinx Theatre in Modern Los Angeles (1960s to Present).” Interview by Liane Schirmer. Vimeo, uploaded by Latinx Theatre Alliance—Los Angeles, 30 July 2022, Scarlata.Estela.VDTFinal.PhaseTwo.2022 (vimeo.com).
  4. ^ Ibid.
  5. ^ Ibid.
  6. ^ Warfield, Polly. "Theatre/Teatro in Grassroots Musical." Drama-Logue Theatre Reviews, 2 Apr. 1981, Backstage ed.
  7. ^ Ibid.
  8. ^ Kuhn, Sarah. "BFA's New Works Festival Engages the Audience." Backstage, 5 Nov. 2019, www.backstage.com/magazine/article/bfas-new-works-festival-engages-audience-35166/.
  9. ^ Ibid.
  10. ^ Melville, Lee. "3rd Annual Theatre Awards for Outstanding Achievement." The Hollywood Drama Logue, 10–16 Jan. 1980, vol. xi-no.2 ed., p. 1+.
  11. ^ Gottlieb, Shirle. "21st Drama-Logue Award for Outstanding Achievement in Theatre." Drama-Logue, 1–7 Jan. 1997, vol. xxix-no.1 ed., p. 1+.
  12. ^ Gottlieb, Shirle. "Drama-Logue Awards." Drama-Logue, 22–28 Jan. 1998, vol. xxix-no.4 ed., p. 1+.
  13. ^ Ibid.