Theatrical and Documentary Reading
In 1974, Oscar (aka “El Cuervo”) and his sister Marietta were arrested and tortured by agents of the Chilean military dictatorship. Despite the extreme violence, resisting despair, Óscar turned his experience in Chile’s concentration camps into a work of art: from Tres Álamos to Puchuncaví-Melinka, via Ritoque (the Region of Valparaíso), he decides to stage a new play each week in the camps’ dining halls, transforming the lives of hundreds of prisoners.
Guided by their father’s narrative, Cosme and Oscar Jr. set out in search of former fellow prisoners, friends who had shared with him those playful attempts at survival. They visited the camps where he was imprisoned and tortured, retracing his steps throughout his two years of political imprisonment and theatrical activities.
CUERVO is the theatrical, audiovisual, and testimonial adaptation of this story: a staged reading enriched with drawings and sketches, shadows and silhouettes, and images filmed in Chile by his sons half a century later. A documentary performance that juxtaposes Chile of the 1970s and today, exile and the difficulties of returning, weaving through memory and highlighting the impact of art as a means of resistance and resilience in the face of oppression.
Presented in Partnership with Under the Radar – utrfest.org
Event Details
Pregones Theater
575 Walton Ave, Bronx, NY 10451
(b/w 149 & 150 Streets)
Subway #2, 4, 5 to
149 Street & Grand Concourse
Just one block from the station!
Questions? Call us at 718-585-1202
January 15-17, 2027
Created by:
Teatro Aleph
OSCAR JR. CASTRO, The youngest member of the Chilean theatre family Teatro Aleph, Óscar Jr. Castro grew up on stage. Afterseveral years working as first assistant director for La Comète Films (Jour de Gloire – live feature on Arte.tv; Georges sauve le monde – presented at Théâtre Monfort), he co-founded in 2017 a collective of directors, screenwriters, and art directors La Piscine Films, together with his creative partner Jeanne Sigwalt. Together, they have co-directed numerous music videos with the support of the French National Centre for Cinema (CNC), including: Les Louanges feat. Ichon – Sur la Mélodie (2023); Bro feat. Ichon – T’étais pas là (2023); Dada – Demain (2024); Hiru – La lluvia cae (2025). In 2023, he directed his first fiction short film, Rocket’s Stadium, selected for the official competition of the Grenoble Outdoor Short Film Festival (Festival du Film Court en Plein Air de Grenoble) and the Gindou Film Festival.
STANLEY WEBER, With a classical training that took him through the Conservatoire National Supérieur d’Art Dramatique in Paris and the prestigious London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), He was first noticed in the international TV series Borgia. Since then, he has appeared in several English-language series such as Outlander and Black Mirror. For cinema, he has worked in France under the direction of Claude Miller and Martin Provost, and abroad in films such as Pilgrimage. On stage, he has performed notably in Le Pays Lointain at the Odéon, directed by Clément Hervieu-Léger, and in Anna Christie, directed by Jean-Louis Martinelli at Théâtre de l’Atelier.
JEANNE FRENKEL, French theatre director, illustrator and visual artist, Jeanne Frenkel supports and manages film, stage, and musical projects. Her career began in graphic design, creating album covers, music videos, and concert scenography (2010–2015). Her exploration of theatre and stage creation seeks to delve into themes of design and space, bridging event production and stage direction with her own Installations and audiovisual creations.
LOU ROTZINGER, French composer and multi-instrumentalist, Lou Rotzinger was born in Paris in 1987. A self-taught musician, he composes for films and documentaries and has performed on stage with numerous artists. (Anna Chedid, Les Nuits du Lou, Marc Melià, Romeo Poirier, Loïc Fleury, Vincent Moon). He has worked as a composer on soundtracks for creations by La Comète (metacinema), Jeanne Frenkel, and Cosme Castro. He has released three studio albums and collaborated with numerous audiovisual, stage, and photographic artists.
This program is made possible, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council, and the New York State Council on the Arts, with the support of the Governor’s Office and the New York State Legislature. For a full list of our funders, click here.
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The actors and stage managers employed in this production are members of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers in the United States. This Theater operates under an Actors’ Equity Association Off-Broadway NYC-LOA.