Artist Bio

(Bio as of June 2004)

Luis Alfaro most recently collaborated with the Goodman on the 2006 Latino Theatre Festival. He is a writer/performer who works in theater, performance art, poetry and journalism. Mr. Alfaro is the recipient of a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation fellowship. He is the first playwright to receive two Kennedy Center Fund For New American Plays awards in the same year [2002]. His plays include Straight as a Line; Black Butterfly, Jaguar Girl, Piñata Woman and Other Super Hero Girls, Like Me; Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner; Body of Faith; Bitter Homes and Gardens; Hero; and LadyBird. He is the director of new play development at the Mark Taper Forum Theater in Los Angeles, where he develops and produces new American plays. Recent projects include Kia Corthron’s Slide Glide The Slippery Slope, Alec Mapa’s Mapa Mia, Jessica Goldberg’s Sex Parasite and Universes’ Slanguage. His solo performance work has been seen throughout the United States, England and Mexico. His newest performance, No Holds Barrio, will be seen in the 2004 Goodman Latino Theater Festival in July. A highly anthologized short story and poetry writer, he is featured in over 20 anthologies. His short film, Chicanismo, was produced by PBS and nominated for an Emmy award. His solo spoken-word recording, down town, was recorded and released by SST/New Alliance Records. He is a member of New Dramatists and the recipient of, among others, two Rockefeller Foundation MAP grants, NEA/TCG Playwrights Fellowship and a University of California Regents Lecturer Appointment. He was co-director of the Taper’s Latino Theatre Initiative from 1995-2003. Mr. Alfaro was trained in workshops, most notably and life-changing were the experiences with María Irene Fornés, Paula Vogel, Eduardo Machado, Mac Wellman and Scott Kelman.

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