ALMA is about the relationship between an immigrant generation, a parent, and then a child who is part of the first generation growing up in the United States and their differences and understanding of The American Dream and what is possible for them... One thing that I think people can really take away, regardless of how they enter this story, is gratitude for the people who nurture us, who sacrifice on our behalf, and get us to where we are. And that's what this story means for me. I'm hoping that will ring true for others as well."

~ Benjamin Benne, ALMA Playwright

Regional Premiere

Digital Playbill Available HERE!

We are welcoming the new year with the third production in Curious’ 25th Anniversary Season: the Regional Premiere of Alma by Benjamin Benne! This real, poetic, heart-warming piece is the next chapter in our exploration of what it means to be an American today, focusing on what it’s like to be a first-generation American, especially when your hopes and dreams differ from your parents’.

“Who does the American dream belong to?” Alma and her daughter, Angel, made 16 wishes long ago: good health, love, carne asada every day, perfect SAT scores, and a spot at UC Davis, to name a few. But now that Angel is 17, she’s got a different vision for her future than her immigrant single mom. This poetic, funny, and timely piece was developed at the Denver Center Theatre Company’s New Play Summit in 2020.

The Acoma Series | The Living Room
January 14, 2023 at 4 pm MST

Join Curious for our Mid-Season Kickoff Event, The Living Room! You’re invited to meet one of the rising stars in American Theatre, Benjamin Benne, recipient of Arizona Theatre Company’s National Latinx Playwriting Award, the Kennedy Center’s KCACTF Latinx Playwriting Award, American Blues Theater’s Blue Ink Playwriting Award, the Robert Chesley/Victor Bumbalo Playwriting Award, the Playwrights’ Center’s McKnight Fellowship in Playwriting and Many Voices Fellowship. You will have the opportunity to engage with Alma playwright Benjamin Benne and director Denise Yvette Serna as well as other theatre lovers in your community. Tickets are $125 for this exciting fundraising event benefitting our 25th Silver Anniversary Season!

Dates & Times

DateTimeAdditional Information

The Denver Public Library recommends these library resources to enhance your theater experience.

READ 

Border Wars by Julie Hirschfeld Davis & Michael D. Shear    

A behind-the-scenes account from New York Times reporters on the planning and reverberations of the Trump administration approach to immigration policy. Alma’s life and future have been taken over by the cacophony of messages and threats arising from the politics and uncertainty of her family’s life in her adopted country.

WATCH 

Paddington, dir. Paul King (2015)

While Paddington is a delightful movie appropriate for people of all ages, the film also contains unanticipated commentary on race, immigration, colonialism, and kindness to people different from ourselves. Paddington learns that the reality of London life doesn’t always live up to what he dreamed it would be in his former life in Peru, a theme mirrored by the character Alma, who is often baffled by the choices her daughter makes about her future and the direction her life is going.

LISTEN 

Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar 

Alma poetically and poignantly tackles the existential uncertainty of life for an undocumented mother from Mexico and her teenage daughter, a United States citizen, during the Trump era. In comparison, Ayad Akhtar weaves stories about a father (an immigrant of Pakistan), his son and others as they experience what it is like to be in an America that elected Trump as President. An autofiction read by the author, Homeland Elegies is a thought provoking and lyrical read.

DOWNLOAD

Saint Judy dir. Sean Hanish (2018)

Saint Judy examines the challenges of life for immigrants in the United States from a different angle than Alma. Just as Angel laments the Catch-22 of waiting until adulthood to sponsor her mother’s citizenship and potentially being denied since she as an adult no longer needs her mother for support, Asefa Ashwari faces deportation that threatens her safety. Judy Wood, her lawyer, must tackle an unjust system and change the minds of the legal system to save Asefa and women like her. Stream it on Kanopy, free to all Denver residents with your library card.

Will there be an intermission for this show?
No, there will not be an intermission for this performance.

What is the runtime for this show?
The runtime for this show is roughly 80 minutes.

Will this production be in Spanish?
No, this production is predominantly performed in English but with some Spanish mixed in as it follows two Latinas.

Will there be a Post-Show Conversation?
There are only PSCs after select performances each week. Please check the Dates & Times section for more information on when these will be!

In Media

  • ALMA: Getting to the heart of immigration issue

    by John Moore

    "Immigration is a very large issue. “Alma” is an intentionally very small story of an undocumented Mexican immigrant and her now 17-year-old American daughter, Angel. They both face important upcoming tests that reveal a deep disparity between their dreams for the future..."

  • Dream Team

    by Toni Tresca

    "Curious Theatre Company continues its 25th season with the regional premiere of ‘Alma,’ exploring the ‘American Dream’ through the eyes of an immigrant mother and her daughter. Immigration may just be a political talking point for some Americans, but for others, it’s a tangible reality. That much is evident in Benjamin Benne’s Alma, a play examining the contours of the so-called “American dream” through the perspectives of..."