Teacher Guide
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Teacher Guide by Alvaro Saar Rios directed by Michelle Lopez-Rios guide created by Brenda Gonzales, Alyysa Mohn, and Oskar Westbridge Table of Contents Welcome/Summary ............................................................................................................................................ 3 A History of Lucha Libre .................................................................................................................................. 4 Finding Your Inner Luchador/a ........................................................................................................................ 5 Hall of Fame ......................................................................................................................................................... 6 Make Your Own Mask ...................................................................................................................................... 8 "Me On the Map" Activity .............................................................................................................................. 12 Spanish Vocabulary in Luchadora! .................................................................................................................. 20 Exploring the Music of the Show .................................................................................................................. 21 For Further Reference ..................................................................................................................................... 23 2 Hello and Welcome! Thank you for choosing to attend a production of Alvaro Saar Rios’ Luchadora! with your students. The play’s main characters, Vanessa and Nana Lupita, represent an important tradition of women defying expectations placed on them due to their genders. We think that it is a tradition that demands respect and attention, and we are very excited to have the chance to share it with you. Throughout this packet, you will find materials created specifically to add to you and your students' experience of seeing Luchadora! We have written articles that explain deeper facets of the play’s subtext and context, as well as activities that allow students to engage with the themes and narrative of the play in a more active, hands-on fashion. Luchadora! is produced as part of Chicago Playworks for Families and Young Audiences. Founded as the Goodman Children’s Theatre in 1925 and recognized as a pioneer of theatre for families, Chicago Playworks welcomes more than 30,000 students and families to our highly- celebrated productions each season. Today we are dedicated to reflecting our audience’s experience in an urban, contemporary, and multi-ethnic environment. --------------------------- Summary Luchadora! is the tale of family history and a young girl defying gender norms. Nana Lupita tells Vanessa the story of when she was young, back in 1968 during the Vietnam War. As a girl, she found out a big secret about her father: he was a Lucha Libre wrestler! He became a great champion of his time, but, eventually, he had to stop his career to take care of his family, and because his body was ailing. He had to back out of a fight with Dragon Azul, the other great wrestler of the time. Lupita, finds out that El Hijo, the son of Dragon Azul, has challenged her father to a match. In secret, she to wrestle El Hijo in place of her father. As Vanessa hears the story from her grandmother. The women develop a bond that will continue for generations to come. 3 History What is Lucha Libre? Lucha Libre is a type of professional wrestling that originated in Mexico. The style of wrestling includes the use of rapid acrobatic techniques; “high-flying” maneuvers, some of which have been adopted in the United States and elsewhere; fighting choreography; and contestants who wear masks. Luchadores are traditionally more agile and perform more aerial maneuvers than professional wrestlers in the United States. A luchador or luchadora is an entertainer who usually comes from an extended wrestling family, as well as an actor that develops a story line. They never take off their mask or unveil their real name unless they're forced to give up. Losing their mask means loss of dignity and status, as well as the loss of the fight. The Rules: A match involves two opponents where one must pin the other for a count of three, then either knock them out of the ring for a count of twenty, force submission, or get them disqualified for some other reason. An additional way of winning is with the use of violence, better known as “exceso de ru-dezas,” a rule in which the referee awards the winner the title. A luchador or luchadora is disqualified when they use an illegal move such as the “piledriver.” Mascara Dorado begins a Huracan Rana. 4 Finding your inner Luchadora and Luchador! In this activity students are instructed to create a character backstory and make their own Luchador and Luchadora name. Students are encouraged to be as creative and detailed as possible to make their characters believable. Luchador/Luchadora Example Names: “Hijo del Santo” - Son of the Saint “El Cardo”- The Thistle “Blue Demon” “Yellowtail” “La Mascara Rosa”- The Pink Mask “Dragon Azul”- Blue Dragon Luchador/Luchadora names can be in English OR Spanish. If you come up with a name that seems cool, try using Google Translate, to see how it sounds in another language!! Written Prompt Have you ever pictured yourself as a Luchador or Luchadora? Ever wanted to become a superhero and save the day? Now is your chance to imagine what it takes to become one by making up your own Luchador and Luchadora name and origin backstory! You can make it sound as cool as you want and give as much detail as you want, the goal is to make your story sound unique to you! Common Core W.2.3 Write narratives in which they recount a well-elaborated event or short sequence of events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure. W.2.5 With guidance and support from adults and peers, focus on a topic and strengthen writing as needed by revising and editing. W.2.8 Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question. W.3.3Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences. 5 Lucha Libre Hall of Fame El Santo: (September 23, 1917 – February 5, 1984) Rodolfo Guzmán Huerta, more widely known as El Santo, or in English The Saint, was a Mexican Luchador enmascarado, film actor, and folk hero., is one of the most famous and iconic of all Mexican luchadores, and has been referred to as one of “the greatest legends in Mexican sports.” His wrestling career spanned nearly five decades, during which he became a folk hero and a symbol of justice for the common man through his appearances in comic books and movies. Mil Mascaras: Born July 15, 1942, Máscaras is one of the original “Big Three” of the lucha libre tradition in Mexico (the other two being El Santo and Blue Demon). He is considered one of the most influential wrestlers of all time for enhancing and popularizing the lucha libre style around the world both in the ring and as the star of 20 films. He is also an accomplished artist and cultural ambassador from his native country and has appeared on three of its postage stamps. Blue Demon: (April 24, 1922 – December 16, 2000), Alejandro Muñoz Moreno better known by the ring name Blue Demon (Demonio Azul in Spanish), was a Mexican film actor and luchador enmascarado (Spanish for masked professional wrestler). Blue Demon was one of the original “big three” of the lucha libre tradition in Mexico (the other two being El Santo and Mil Máscaras). He was affectionately referred to as “Blue” and was known for his signature blue mask. 6 Lucha Libre Hall of Fame Rey Mysterio: Born December 11, 1974, Rey Mysterio is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand and in his first United States Championship reign. Mysterio is known for his high-flying Lucha libre wrestling style, which is credited with having helped kick-start the emergence of cruiserweight wrestling in the United States in the mid-1990s. Xóchitl Leyva Sánchez: Born February 20th, 1973, She is better known in Lucha Libre as the Luchadora Tiffany. As with a lot of Lucha Libre stars, Tiffany comes from a wrestling family. Her father Jesse Rojas “El Vasco”, a famous Luchador, her mother was the original La Diabolica and her brother Jessy is also a Luchadore. Tiffany was trained by her father and made her professional wrestling debut on July 18, 1993 at the Arena Solidaridad in her hometown, Monterrey. She has held the Northern Women’s Wrestling Title, the National Women’s Wrestling Title twice, the AAA Reina de Reinas and the AAA World Mixed Tag Team Wrestling Championship with Chessman. Irma González: Born on August 20th, 1936 Legendary Luchador Irma Gonzales as trained by Jorge Rojas, Tarzán López, Gori Guerrero and Raúl Romero, and made her lucha libre debut on August 20, 1955 at Cancha San Pedro in Puebla City, Puebla, Mexico. During her career she held the National Women’s Wrestling Title, the UWA World Women’s Wrestling Title (twice), and the National Women’s Tag Team Wrestling Titles (with Irma Aguilar). Irma also appeared in a few Mexican wrestling films like Las Luchadoras contra el médico asesino (1963). 7 Making Your Own Mask Materials Scissors Mask Template