2014 marks the fifth consecutive year that Tijuana based theater company Tijuana Hace Teatro (Tijuana Does Theatre) conducts the project Escuela de Espectadores (Audience School) where a group of people is invited to see theater throughout one year in Tijuana. Once a month a meeting takes place in order to discuss the plays seen during that period in order to learn about the theater business and what it entails. Up to this day, the group has seen 43 plays thanks to different collaborations with various cultural institutions.
Sunday Oct. 12, Audience School increased its reach taking the experience across the border to San Diego. The Tijuana Cultural Center sponsored a van for the San Diego travels to Moxie Theatre. Fifteen people saw ‘A Discourse on the Wonders of the Invisible World’.
A post-show discussion was held both in English and Spanish with patrons and Tijuana Audience School members conducted by Artistic Director Delicia Turner Sonnenberg and Mexican actor Jorge Rodríguez.
Other theater companies have raised their hand to also be a part of the project: Diversionary Theatre, San Diego Repertory Theatre and La Jolla Playhouse will welcome Audience School members October and November.
“This new connection is the opportunity to start opening doors in the strong geographic point that is the Tijuana-San Diego border, in order to have a cultural exchange with these theatrical experiences. This will also influence the way theater is being made as well as how it is being perceived,” said Ramón Verdugo, Tijuana Hace Teatro co-director
The fifteen people that make up Audience School are part of a grant/scholarship program that takes care of the admission costs to each performance throughout the year. Performances include local, national and international theater pieces that come to Tijuana as part of a tour or a festival. The group is made up of college students, housewives and young and older professionals.
“Thanks to Audience School, San Diego will see that Tijuana represents a potential audience. This will become a real cultural exchange, specially a scenic one,” said Jesus Quintero, Tijuana Hace Teatro co-director.
