Projects
14/48 Hollywood Festival
THEATRE
14/48 Hollywood
Los Angeles, CA | Nov 2023
Directed by Various
Deborah Cortez as ensemble
In the span of 48 hours, 14 new plays are written, cast, directed, rehearsed, scored, designed, & premiered. The festival kicks off with the selection of a theme the night before, and seven writers each write a 10-minute play based on the randomly drawn theme. The plays are then drawn at random by seven directors who cast their plays by randomly drawing the names of actors from the 2023 Actor Roster. Directors meet with musicians from the 14/48 Band and designers from the 14/48 Design Team to create the worlds of each play on stage. Each play undergoes a quick tech rehearsal with our stage crew before it is performed for audiences at 7:30 PM and 9:30 PM. The whole process repeats itself the next day, producing 14 new plays in 48 hours.
Domestica Realidad
THEATRE
La Lengua Teatro en Español
San Francisco, CA | Aug 2023
Directed by Virginia Blanco
Deborah Cortez as Monica/Mariana/Coach
Doméstica Realidad is a captivating piece where comedy and social awareness merge into an unforgettable theatrical experience. It’s a collective creation about the unresolved conflict between women and the domestic space. Three domestic situations explore hierarchical relationships, contradictions, and conflicts in an activity historically relegated to the female universe. A nauseating smell, the source of which is unknown, reveals that something in the house is rotting. Three possible variations of a state of affairs, with no temporal order, no apparent succession. A house, which is maintained as background, gives a general framework to the story, the place that enables these contradictions, dominations, and abuses: "What happens indoors, stays indoors", says one of the characters. These stories come from a documentary work that included interviews with employees and employers, telephone surveys, readings, and discussions of research on domestic employment. Doméstica Realidad deals with intimate, generational, and political dilemmas that come into play in the ‘domestic’ arena.
Press for Domestica Realidad
CONVOY 31000
THEATRE
Theatre Lunatico
Berkeley, CA | Nov 2019
Directed by Tina Taylor
Deborah Cortez as Josefa
CONVOY 31000 is the story of the resilience, determination, and immense sacrifice of a group of women who worked together to resist Hitler’s occupation of France during World War II. Based on the true histories of 230 women who were arrested and sent to Auschwitz as political prisoners for their brave stand against Nazi forces, this original Theatre Lunatico production takes audiences from a small cafe on the banks of the Seine to the forest hide outs of the Maquis and the horrors of Auschwitz. Only 49 of the women survived, but their actions were essential to the war on fascism, and their compelling and all too timely story cries out to be heard.
Press for CONVOY 31000
Strange Ladies
THEATRE
B8 Theatre Company
Concord, CA | September/October 2019
Directed by JanLee Marshall
Musical direction by Becky Potter
Deborah Cortez as Lucy
Susan Sobeloff’s captivating world premiere drama, Strange Ladies, tells of the hazards and punishments suffered by one group of intrepid advocates, the women’s suffrage supporters of the early 20th century. Their efforts would ultimately lead to the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920, but not before much societal division, pain, and loss. Based on real participants in the suffrage movement, the playwright depicts six characters who reflect the whole spectrum of women.
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Drunk Theatre | Bread & Butter
WEB SERIES
Co-produced by Deborah Cortez in association with 51st Street Theatre Company
Oakland/Martinez, CA | Spring/Summer 2019
Directed by Kenneth Matis
Deborah Cortez as Drunk Narrator
Inspired by Drunk History from Comedy Central, this web series is based on the play Bread & Butter by Eugene O’Neill. Deborah tells the plot of the play in a drunk state leading to funny re-enactments by other actors and actresses from around the Bay Area.
No Quiero Verte
SHORT FILM
DPLawlorArts
Oakland/San Francisco, CA | October 2018
Written and Directed by Douglas Lawlor
Deborah Cortez as Silvia
Hiding away from her aggressive history, Silvia is ready to start a new life when she receives an unexpected call to her hotel room. Pieces of her past are in desperate need of her.
The Rover
THEATRE
Role Players Ensemble
Danville, CA | April 2018
Written by Aphra Behn
Directed by Eric Fraisher HayesDeborah Cortez (Murphy) as Angellica Bianca
The Rover or The Banish'd Cavaliers is a play in two parts that is written by the English author Aphra Behn. It is a revision of Thomas Killigrew's play Thomaso, or The Wanderer (1664), and depicts the amorous adventures of a group of Englishmen in Naples at Carnival time. According to Restoration poet John Dryden, it "lacks the manly vitality of Killigrew's play, but shows greater refinement of expression." The play stood for three centuries as "Behn's most popular and most respected play." The Rover features multiple plot lines, dealing with the amorous adventures of a group of Englishmen and women in Naples at Carnival time.
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Dead Man’s Cell Phone
THEATRE
Ross Valley Players
Ross Valley, CA | Mar 2018
* Helen Hayes Award - Outstanding New Play *
Written by Sarah Ruhl
Directed by Chloe Bronzan
Deborah Cortez (Murphy) as Jean
Dead Man's Cell Phone explores the paradox of modern technology's ability to both unite and isolate people in the digital age. The play was awarded a .
Press for Dead Man’s Cell Phone
