About the Story
Hilary Bettis says...
The Ghosts of Lote Bravo is about what people will do to survive and to protect their families.
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Dignity is everywhere. In the dirtiest, rawest of places, there is depth and beauty and humanity. There are lost souls desperate for and worthy of a voice. And they should be the ones on our stages and screens, not those who already have the microphone.
I want to write the people who scare us the most in society, because I think that if we can really start to understand why they scare us and what they represent and see their humanity, then we can have a more nuanced understanding of ourselves and each other and the world that we live in.
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I wrote this play specifically for an American audience to root for an immigrant to cross the border illegally by the end of the play.
About Hilary Bettis
Hilary Bettis writes plays, TV and movies.
She is a 2018 WGA Award nominated writer, two-time recipient of the Lecomte du Nouy Prize from Lincoln Center, and a 2015 graduate of the Lila Acheson Wallace Playwright Fellowship at The Juilliard School. Bettis has received fellowships and residencies from many theatres and competitions around the country. Her plays have been recognized by the Kilroys every year since its inception. (The Kilroys List recognizes un- or under-produced plays by female and trans playwrights.)
Other plays include Mexico and Alligator . She is currently working on a commissioned bilingual play Queen of Basel (formally Magic City) with Michel Hausmann/Miami New Drama.
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The Ghosts of Lote Bravo received a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere at the Unicorn Theatre in Kansas City, MO, Borderlands Theater in Tucson, Arizona.Her play, Alligator, received an Off-Broadway production with New Georges and The Sol Project, and was nominated for a 2017 Drama Desk for Best Music in a Play.
As a screenwriter, Bettis has written and produced three short films. B’Hurst and The Iron Warehouse have screened at multiple film festivals across the globe. Amarillo By Morning, her directorial debut, is currently in post-production. Hilary has also been a Story Editor on FX’s show The Americans.
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The Story
Juanda is a mother searching for her missing daughter Raquel, lost in the shady streets of Cuidad Juarez’s criminal underground. The police are no help. Juanda’s job at a local factory, or Maquiladora, does not allow her time off to search.The only one she can turn to is La Santa Muerte. Part ancient goddess, immortal and eternal, La Santa Muerte is the patron saint of gangsters, drug dealers, and smugglers. For the right offering she will grant wishes, even if it is not what her devotee wants. La Santa Muerte shows Juanda Raquel’s real story. Juanda learns that her daughter has reserves of determination, hope, and love that she knows nothing about.
Character Breakdown
RAQUEL CANTU: 15. Works at a maquiladora.
JUANDA CANTU: 38. Raquel's mother. Also works at a maquiladora.
"EL RELOJ": 16. A sicario. (Drug cartel hitman)
CAMILLE: 53. Works at a maquiladora.
PEDRO LOPEZ: 40. Police officer.
ROBERTO CASTILLO: 26. Police officer.
MAN IN A BLACK HAT: An old man.
LA SANTA MUERTE: 25-45. Fierce. Street.