Bocón’s productions seek to tell stories that matter to the families of San Diego. We are inspired by the many people who make up our multicultural community and strive to honor them by reflecting characters and narratives similar to their own and showcasing a window into cultures outside of our own.
PREVIOUS PRODUCTIONS
SELF-CONCHAS
OCTOBER 2018
Developed by Crystal Mercado and Wendy Maples, written in collaboration with Veronica Burgess, Carlenne Lacosta, Reanne Lacosta, Wendy Maples, Crystal Mercado, Nicole Odiawa, Natalia Ovalle, Mel Rico, Sinaí Rico, Natalie Tommasino, Alejandra Villanueva, and Sofia Zaragoza.
Directed by Wendy Maples and Crystal Mercado
Self-Conchas is an original bilingual play for young audiences (ages 10 and up) about a San Diego we think we know and the San Diego we really live in. Meet Concha, Shelly, and Consuelo: three soon-to-be sixth graders in the South Bay. Separately, middle school seems like a scary thing to get through. Together, they discover it’s even harder to navigate middle school in 2018. Through an exploration of immigrant stories, changing hormones, and new friendships, Self-Conchas invites you into the San Diego that they grow into; the San Diego that feels like family.
Self-Conchas was developed in July 2018. Over the course of six weeks, middle school girls, LatinX voices, and female brains were invited to participate in a creative process that would entail script ideation, character development, and storyboarding which resulted in a fully realized script. All workshops, readings, and script facilitations were lead by Crystal Mercado and Wendy Maples, veterans of devising socially relevant work for young audiences.
SAFA'S STORY
FEBRUARY 2018
Written & Directed by Catherine Hanna Schrock
Produced by Blake McCarty & Crystal Mercado
Inspired by a local teenager and her experiences as a Zimbabwean immigrant, Blindspot Collective and Bocón invited children and families to Safa’s Story, a new play in the style of Augusto Boal’s Forum Theatre. Safa is a fifth grader with a big imagination and an even bigger heart. Through music and storytelling inspired by Safa's African roots and American upbringing, audiences meet her caring mother, kind teacher, and energetic friends — as well as a new classmate who may be up to no good. Designed for young people to consider the complexities of difference and prejudice, Safa's Story initially ends in heartbreak before audiences embark on an empowering journey to change the ending of the play.
BOCÓN
FEBRUARY 2017
Written by Lisa Loomer
Directed by Crystal Mercado
BOCÓN follows Miguel, a big-mouthed boy on a magical and treacherous journey from his home in Central America across the border of lights into the United States. With his guitar in hand, a Quetzal feather to protect him, and the unlikely friendship of La Llorona, Miguel inspires audiences of all ages to find their voice and to tell their unique story proudly.
Director Crystal Mercado illuminates the necessity of this piece, “In a time when immigrants are being targeted by our administration, fears of raids on undocumented people, and concerns about unaccompanied minors crossing borders to go to schools, it is more important than ever to tell and hear these stories, and remember that we are a nation of immigrants. These children are our children, they are our students, they are our community members, and this is our country’s story.”
