Marissa Chibás

Marissa Chibás
Born1961 (age 62–63)
New York City, NY
NationalityCuban American
EducationSUNY Purchase
Known forTheater Artist, Filmmaker, Author
Notable workDaughter of a Cuban Revolutionary, Shelter, Finding Shelter, A Cuban Documemory, Mythic Imagination and the Actor

Marissa Chibás (born 1961) is a Cuban American writer, actress, filmmaker, and director.[1][2]

Chibás created the feature-length documentary film A Cuban Documemory[3] and the short film Finding Shelter[4][5][6], inspired by her play Shelter. Her most recent feature screenplay, 72, was selected for Sundance's feature film development track in 2022.

Personal life

Born in New York City, Marissa Chibás was raised by Cuban exiled refugees Raúl Chibás and Dalia Chibás.[7] Her father was a Cuban politician and military officer who co-wrote and signed the 1957 Cuban Revolution Manifesto with Fidel Castro and Felipe Pazos, and later defected to the United States as an anti-Castro activist. Her mother was Miss Cuba runner-up in 1959.[8]

Career

Theater and film acting

Chibás appeared first on Broadway in Brighton Beach Memoirs.[9][10] Her next Broadway credit was in Abe Lincoln in Illinois.[11] Her most notable off-Broadway and regional productions include Danton's Death,[12] Nilo Cruz's Two Sisters and a Piano,[13] and Chay Yew's adaptation of The House of Bernarda Alba.[14] Chibás co-adapted the award-winning CNP/Poor Dog Group production of Gertrude Stein's Brewsie and Willie and presented it at the 2011 RADAR Festival.[15] She played Edgar in CNP's inaugural production of King Lear at The Brewery.[16]

Her solo show, Daughter of a Cuban Revolutionary, the one-woman play tells a tale centered on the three towering figures in her life, zigzagging her own stories and key episodes in the history of her illustrious family.[17] The New York City premiere directed by Mira Kingsley took place at the DR2 Theatre,[18] followed by a tour of the production over the next several years to Miami, the Guadalajara Feria Internacional de Libro,[19] the Edinburgh Fringe Festival,[20] ArtsEmerson,[21][22] and finally was produced at the Goodman Theatre.[23]

In 2017, she co-created and performed in a video installation Nostalgia at Fabrica de Arte in Havana in collaboration with Cuban visual artist Aissa Santiso, which was also presented at Plaza de la Reza in Los Angeles.[24]

Most recently on stage, Chibás performed as the character Lourdes in the world premiere of Octavio Solis's Scenes with Cranes, directed by Chi-wang Yang and produced by the CalArts Center for New Performance at REDCAT in 2022.[25]

Her notable film and TV credits include Law & Order, Henry Fool, Cold Feet, and Zohra, which was nominated for several awards at the Official Latino Film and Arts Festival and Women's Only Entertainment Film Festival. Her silent film/performance piece Clara’s Los Angeles was presented at REDCAT's NOW Festival and her short Clandestino was featured on the LibroTraficante radio show.[26]

Writing and filmmaking

In 2016, Chibás wrote the play Shelter, produced by CalArts Center for New Performance and Duende CalArts. Shelter is a movement-based theatrical performance.[27] The play was featured on NPR's Code Switch in an article called "Child Migrants' Harrowing Journey Brought To Life On Stage".[28] In 2019, Chibás made a short film documentary Finding Shelter,[29] inspired by her play Shelter. It won Best Documentary Short at the San Diego Latino Film Festival and screened at the Official Latino Film and Arts Festival.[30]

In 2021, Chibás created a feature-length documentary film called A Cuban Documemory. She won the Best Documentary Award at the 2021 Cuban American International Film Festival.[3]

Her feature screenplay 72 is in development. It was selected for Sundance’s feature film development track[31] and as an Athena Film Festival Awards finalist.[32][33]

Chibás' play Daughter of a Cuban Revolutionary is featured in the 2nd edition of the anthology Contemporary Plays by Women of Color, edited by Roberta Uno and published by Routledge in 2017.[34]

Teaching

Chibás is on the School of Theater faculty at the California Institute of the Arts.[35] She is the Director of Duende CalArts established in 2009. Duende CalArts is a Latinx initiative at CalArts Center for New Performance that collaborates with innovative Latinx and Latin American artists.[36]

Recognition

Chibás is the recipient of a TCG Fox Fellowship in Distinguished Achievement (2016),[37] and a Sundance Institute Screenwriting Fellow (2022).[31]

References

  1. ^ "Marissa Chibas". HowlRound Theatre Commons. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  2. ^ Grobar, Matt (2022-03-02). "Sundance Institute Sets Fellows For Latest Screenwriting Intensive". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  3. ^ a b "A Cuban Documemory". Toronto Film Mag. 2021-05-22. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  4. ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray (2019-08-20). "NewFilmmakers Los Angeles Unveils Lineup For Latinx & Hispanic Cinema Festival". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  5. ^ "CalArts Center for New Performance - » Finding Shelter – A DocumentaryCalArts Center for New Performance". CalArts Center for New Performance. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  6. ^ "Documentary shows the plight of young immigrants". ABC7 Los Angeles. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  7. ^ Pace, Eric (2002-09-20). "Raúl Chibas, 86, Castro Ally Who Fled to Miami in Motorboat". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
  8. ^ "Daughter of a Cuban Revolutionary". CalArts Center for New Performance. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
  9. ^ "Actress Marissa Chibas in a scene fr. the first replacement cast of the Broadway play "Brighton Beach Memoirs." (New York)". NYPL Digital Collections. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
  10. ^ "Actors Marissa Chibas & Peter Michael Goetz in a scene fr. the first replacement cast of the Broadway play "Brighton Beach Memoirs." (New York)". NYPL Digital Collections. Retrieved 2023-09-04.
  11. ^ "Abe Lincoln in Illinois – Broadway Play – 1993 Revival". IBDB. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
  12. ^ "Danton's Death at Alley Theatre Large Stage 1992". abouttheartists.com. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
  13. ^ Saltzman, Simon (January 7, 1999). "Cruz Control: Cuban Playwright Takes Two Sisters From Sundance to the McCarter". Playbill. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  14. ^ Ehren, Christine (June 11, 2002). "L.A's Mark Taper Stages Yew's Bernarda Alba With Sandra Oh July 14-Sept. 1". Playbill. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  15. ^ "Theater review: 'Brewsie and Willie' at Los Angeles Street Loft". Los Angeles Times. 2011-06-17. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
  16. ^ "King Lear". CalArts Center for New Performance. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
  17. ^ "Daughter of a Cuban Revolutionary". CalArts Center for New Performance. Retrieved 2023-09-04.
  18. ^ Hernandez, Ernio (May 9, 2007). "Daughter of a Cuban Revolutionary, By and Starring Marissa Chibas, Begins in NYC". Playbill.
  19. ^ "Catálogos de contenidos FIL 2009 by Feria Internacional del Libro de Guadalajara FIL". 2009-11-19. Retrieved 2023-08-13 – via Issuu.
  20. ^ "Daughter of a Cuban Revolutionary". CalArts Center for New Performance. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  21. ^ "Daughter of a Cuban Revolutionary | Apr 27- May 1 at ArtsEmerson". ArtsEmerson. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  22. ^ Goodwin, Jeremy D. (April 24, 2016). "Political upheaval, personal discovery in 'Daughter of a Cuban Revolutionary'". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2023-09-04.
  23. ^ "Marissa Chibás comparte lo que es ser 'Hija de un revolucionario cubano'". Chicago Tribune. 2019-10-09. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  24. ^ "Nostalgia | Marissa Chibás". marissachibas.com. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  25. ^ "Scene with Cranes". CalArts Center for New Performance. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  26. ^ Elist, Jasmine (2011-09-08). "New Original Works Festival showcases artists who cross lines". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  27. ^ "ShelterCalArts Center for New Performance". CalArts Center for New Performance. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  28. ^ Marisol Meraji, Shereen (April 7, 2016). "Child Migrants' Harrowing Journey Brought To Life On Stage". NPR.
  29. ^ "Documentary shows the plight of young immigrants". ABC7 Los Angeles. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  30. ^ "Finding Shelter Directed By Marissa Chibas – OFFICIAL LATINO". Archived from the original on 2023-08-13. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  31. ^ a b Grobar, Matt (2022-03-02). "Sundance Institute Sets Fellows For Latest Screenwriting Intensive". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  32. ^ "Athena List". Athena Film Festival. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  33. ^ Lewis, Hilary (2023-02-28). "Athena Film Festival Reveals 2023 Winners of Black List-Inspired Athena List (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  34. ^ Uno, Roberta; Calhoun, Kristen Adele; Alvarez, Daniela; Khalil, Kassandra L. (2017), "Marissa Chibas", Contemporary Plays by Women of Color (2 ed.), Routledge, pp. 36–38, doi:10.4324/9781315641584-5, ISBN 978-1-315-64158-4, retrieved 2023-08-13
  35. ^ "CalArts School of Theater".
  36. ^ "Duende CalArts". CalArts Center for New Performance. Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  37. ^ "CalArts' Marissa Chibas Awarded Fox Foundation Fellowship |". Retrieved 2023-08-13.