La Jolla Playhouse Announces Next Without Walls (WOW) Production: TAXILANDIA: SAN DIEGO

This new, in-person version of the piece will run October 11 – November 6.

By: Sep. 28, 2022
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La Jolla Playhouse Announces Next Without Walls (WOW) Production: TAXILANDIA: SAN DIEGO

La Jolla Playhouse announces its next Without Walls (WOW) production: Taxilandia: San Diego, created, developed and directed by Modesto 'Flako' Jimenez, written and performed by local artist Bernardo Mazón Daher, presented in partnership with Oye Group. Developed during the Playhouse's Digital Without Walls (WOW) series in 2020, this new, in-person version of the piece will run October 11 - November 6, with performances taking place Tue/Wed/Thu at 11:00am and 1:00pm; and Fri/Sat/Sun at 11;00am, 1:00pm and 3:00pm. Tickets ($25) and more information and are available at LaJollaPlayhouse.org or by calling 858-550-1010.

Welcome to Taxilandia: San Diego. With Sal as your host, this show is an intimate, multimedia experience - a car ride that immerses you in the sounds, sights and dynamic history of local neighborhoods in Sal's dear South Bay San Diego. Experience National City, Chula Vista, and San Ysidro from Sal's backseat as he wrestles with the layers and questions that come when a neighborhood changes, confronting social stigmas and the realities of gentrification. Watch him testify to what is here now, how it came to be, and what can be here tomorrow. Weaving a dramatic tapestry that interconnects generations, social classes, races and cultures, Sal's Taxilandia: San Diego explores our notion of what it means to be a local, an immigrant, or a resident of a place; challenging us to answer: "What is my personal roadmap of home, and what are the footprints around us?"

"Taxilandia embodies every aspect of the WOW program-it's immersive, it's site-specific, and it takes audiences on a literal adventure far outside the confines of a traditional theatre," said Christopher Ashley, the Rich Family Artistic Director of La Jolla Playhouse. "We're so pleased to partner with Oye Group and Bernardo Mazón Daher to develop a San Diego version of this piece that guides participants on a fascinating journey through the many facets of San Diego's South Bay."

Taxilandia: San Diego is an intimate car-ride experience, with up to three audience members per performance. Audience will meet Sal for their ride at the 8th Street Trolley Stop. The expected duration is approximately 90 minutes, and includes a ride on the trolley, with fare included in the ticket price. Masks are required for all passengers, and can be provided upon arrival, if needed.

Originally developed in Flako Jimenez's own neighborhood of Bushwick, Brooklyn, Taxilandia was inspired and drawn from his nine years driving a taxicab and his documentation of conversations with passengers, residents, locals, and immigrants to the neighborhood. The Oye Group now works with companies all over the country to develop local versions of the piece specific to each city.

Since its inception in 2011, Without Walls (WOW) has become one of San Diego's most popular and acclaimed performance programs. This signature Playhouse initiative is designed to break the barriers of traditional theatre, offering immersive, site-inspired and digital works that venture beyond the physical confines of the Playhouse facilities. Over the last decade, the Playhouse has commissioned and presented a series of immersive and site-based productions at locations throughout the San Diego community, including Susurrus (2011), The Car Plays: San Diego (2012), Sam Bendrix at the Bon Soir (2012), Accomplice: San Diego (2013), El Henry (2014), The Grift at the Lafayette Hotel (2015), The Bitter Game (2016), What Happens Next (2018), and five WOW Festivals in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2022. The Playhouse's 2023 WOW Festival will take place April 27 - 30 at The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park, in association with the San Diego Symphony.

Bernardo Mazón Daher (he/him/his) is a border brat bred in the San Diego South Bay. He has been making theatre around the country in both premier, prestigious productions alongside grassroots, community-based projects. Bernardo has also organized for public health causes and voting campaigns in Hispanic communities throughout California. His work dovetails activism and art in pursuit of social progress. He has been a fellow amongst arts leaders around the Americas and founded a nonprofit for Latinx artists back home. He is currently working with the municipal government to activate a theater and production studio for the public. Bernardo is an all-around storyteller driven for advocacy, creating spaces where different peoples intersect to listen, learn, labor, love, and play together.

Oye Group is a Brooklyn based production company that serves as an incubator for artists both native and immigrant to New York City. They present an eclectic mix of theater, dance, poetry, music, video installations and film, through festivals and productions. They curate work that sparks a dialogue over political and social issues critical to our community's growth. They work with emerging artists to create, play, and grow in an environment that challenges and supports them. They also provide quality arts education programming that gives their Brooklyn community the tools to generate forward-thinking art.

La Jolla Playhouse is a place where artists and audiences come together to create what's new and next in the American theatre, from Tony Award-winning productions, to imaginative programs for young audiences, to interactive experiences outside our theatre walls. Founded in 1947 by Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire and Mel Ferrer, the Playhouse is currently led by Tony Award winner Christopher Ashley, the Rich Family Artistic Director of La Jolla Playhouse, and Managing Director Debby Buchholz. The Playhouse is internationally renowned for the development of new plays and musicals, including mounting 105 world premieres, commissioning 60 new works, and sending 33 productions to Broadway - including the hit musical Come From Away - garnering a total of 38 Tony Awards, as well as the 1993 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre.




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