Customer Reviews

Action

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It's dissapointing to read reviews by readers who don't comment on the book but rather the title, using this as an opportunity to disagree with how "Nuyorican" is defined as it is put in context to this anthology. I teach drama at a University in the mid-west, and I have to say, this is an incredible collection of plays-- linking together time, place, race, and genre, from Pinerro to Rux. The reality is, few plays are published these days, unless they are written by Terrance McNally. Gone are the days when anthologies of plays chronicled a genre, a happening, a moment in history just left of commercial theater. Here is an anthology, produced by a Puerto Rican tenured professor of Shakespeare, and a notable African American novelist, who have come together under the umbrella of a small lower east side venue for poetry and theater located in what was once one of the most neglected allbeit ethnically diverse neighborhoods in New York City ( A neighborhood that has been claimed by many ethnic groups over the last 100 years, most often associated with the European Jewish immigrant and their descendants) It is named, I believe, the Nuyorican Poets Caffe because it was founded by Puerto Rican New Yorkers ( in the 1970's, when the neighborhood was already undergoing yet another change) but I believe the Cafe always had it's doors open to all people, and this book reflects that. If Ntozake Shange (an African American poet) doesn't understand the language of music and the pathos of being that is the Lower East Side, if Amiri Baraka (who was on the lower east side way back when he was a Beat poet and was called Leroi Jones, hanging out with other l.e.s. residents such as Allen Ginsburg), and if Miguel Pinerro, Eugene Rodriguez, Frank Perez, Gloria Feliciano,Raul Santiago Sebazco, Eva Gasteazoro, Janis Astor de Valle, and Pedro Pietri (all of whom are Latino, live in NY and are included in this book) don't have a right to be in this anthology, then I think our definitions of Nuyorican are too narrow. Nuyorican or "New York Puerto Rican" is the name given the cafe, not the exclusive segregated "members only" sign hanging above it's door, and this book is an amazing testament to that.

I've read many reviews of this book and I have to say that I don't feel they did it justice. As any other compilation, obviously many themes, pieces and artists will be omitted, so we all have to let that go. On the other hand, this book is just a mere mirror image of what the Nuyorican's has become: a place, a home, where questions on identity, culture, religion...etc, are being raised on an on-going basis. This book, just like the Cafe is for everyone and includes everyone, not just Puerto Ricans. Anyone who asks, "where is the true nuyorican flavor?" just doesn't understand what the meaning of the word is and I invite him/her to drop by the Nuyorican Poets' Cafe to catch a show and/or a poetry jam. Puerto Ricans fom the island should buy and read this book. Theater enthusiasts should too. It opens a new door into the magical world of theater that has been bolted down shut for too many years. Speaking about doors that suddenly open, please read Janis Astor del Valle's piece "Transplantations...", I think Puerto Ricans from the island would be very interested in this performance piece. She is very Puerto Rican and very Nuyorican. The book in general has its weaknesses, but I, unlike other people that need musical instruments and salsa to be mentioned in plays for them to have "flava'", have plenty to think about with the flavor of the themes incuded in these plays and performances.

"Action: The Nuyorican Poets Cafe Theater Festival," edited by Miguel Algarin and Lois Griffith, brings together 20 theater pieces by a culturally diverse group of female and male artists, all of whom have been affiliated with the cultural institution mentioned in the book's title. Although the Cafe's name indicates its origins in the Nuyorican (New York Puerto Rican) experience, the Cafe has evolved to include people of all ethnicities (as does this anthology). In addition to featuring Puerto Rican, Nicaraguan, and Cuban artists, the anthology also features the work of individuals who chronicle the African-American, Chinese-American, and lesbian/gay experience.

This is an exciting anthology. The pieces in the book are grouped into several sections: "Inner City Tragedy and Politics," "Gender Plays," "Hip Hop and Rap," "Monologues and Performance Pieces," "Comedy and Satire," and "Musical Epics." The authors represented include both well-known names in literature (Amiri Baraka, Miguel Pinero, Ntozake Shange, etc.) as well as many names that were new to me (Gloria Feliciano, Eva Gasteazoro, etc.).

There are some real standouts in this strong collection. I loved Ishmael Reed's "Savage Wilds," an outrageously funny satire of TV, politics, and criminal justice. Ntozake Shange's "I Live in Music" is a powerful, painful piece that can be seen as a companion/sequel to her classic "for colored girls. . . ." Miguel Pinero's "Playland Blues" is a gritty, naturalistic exploration of underaged prostitution, sexual orientation issues, violence, and the quest for real love. But the piece that impressed me the most was probably Alvin Eng's "The Goong Hay Kid," a superb play about a Chinese-American "punk-rapper and performance artist" who tries to maintain his artistic integrity in a world of consumeristic ethno-exploitation. "Action" is essential reading for those interested in multicultural studies, the urban experience, and innovative theater.

As a Nuyorican what disappoints me most about this book is precisely that it has lost, even betrayed, the sense of what a Nuyorican is. Although all terms are malleable, it is still disturbing when one changes beyond original recognition and intent. Being Nuyorican does not mean that everyone in the world can be one anymore than everyone can be Chicano by simply proclaiming himself/or herself one. To think that way seriously dishonors the experiences of people like me. Worse, this desire for inclusion ends diluting, if not excluding the integrity of Nuyorican thought and expression. I know that many others feel disappointed not only about the book but what has happened to the Nuyorican Poets Cafe. It's not about salsa; it's about authenticity. It is also about literary politics: I don't want people who have no idea of what it is to live in the South Bronx, Loisaida, or El Barrio writing to me about it. I don't want these people appropriating my life, experiences, symbols and images to further their literary careers.

Where are the Nuyorican writers? The title suggests that we are going to be treated to the many New York-based Puerto Rican poets and
dramatic performers that fequented, and made
famous, this Nuyorican institution. But this is not the case.

The book is disappointing, one would even say deceptive and bogus. Although the writers presented in the anthology merit praise, the reader's expectations are not met because missing is precisely a genuine Nuyorican flavor. For teachers of this literature, the text is farily useless.