Mala Cast and Creative Announcement

The Old Globe
Announces Cast and Creative Team for
Mala
by Melinda Lopez
Directed by David Dower

The Globe will present both English- and Spanish-language performances
during the five-week limited engagement

Performances begin May 7 and run to June 12, 2022
with the English-performance opening
featuring Melinda Lopez on Thursday, May 12
and
the Spanish-performance opening
featuring Yadira Correa on Thursday, May 19

PHOTO EDITORS: Photos of Mala can be found here.

SAN DIEGO (April 22, 2022) — The Old Globe announced today the cast and creative team for Mala by Melinda Lopez (adaptation of Yerma, Becoming Cuba) and directed by David Dower (original production of Mala and Founding Artistic Director of ArtsEmerson). The Globe will present both English- and Spanish-language performances during the five-week limited engagement. Performances begin May 7 and run to June 12, 2022. The opening dates for Mala are Thursday, May 12 for the English performances featuring Lopez (Many Colors Make the Thunder King at Guthrie Theater) and Thursday, May 19 for the Spanish performances featuring Yadira Correa (Romeo and Juliet at The Old Globe). Correa will also serve as the understudy for the English performances. The production will play in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Globe’s Conrad Prebys Theatre Center. For Mala tickets and a schedule of the Spanish and English performances, visit www.TheOldGlobe.org.

She was always the good daughter. But now her mother, in the twilight of her life, calls her “mala”—bad to the core. Melinda Lopez’s funny, brutally honest, and ultimately cathartic solo play Mala is an irreverent exploration of how we live, cope, and survive in a challenging moment, and what happens when we strive to be good but don’t always succeed. TheaterMania calls it “deeply affecting,” while The Boston Globe named it “one of the best plays of the year. Piercingly honest and exquisitely moving.”

“Mala is a gorgeous and touching play about caregiving, parenthood, and the cycle of life,” said Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein. “Melinda Lopez has drawn on her own experiences to fashion a powerful solo show that’s life-affirming and deep. That she will be in San Diego to perform her own work is a gift to our audiences. But we’re also grateful for her translation of her play into Spanish, which will have a number of performances during Mala’s run, performed by a Globe family member, Yadira Correa. This will allow the Globe to deepen its commitment to serving the Spanish-speaking audiences of San Diego, an important part of our city and our constituency. We are happy to make this lovely piece of theatre, and excited to share it with the widest part of our community.”

In addition to director David Dower, the creative team for the Globe’s production of Mala includes scenic design by Alexander V. Nichols, costume design by Faith A. James, lighting design by Jason Lynch, original music and sound design by Arshan Gailus, casting by Caparelliotis Casting, and production stage management by Jynelly Rosario.

Mala, written by Melinda Lopez, originally opened in 2016 at ArtsEmerson in Boston. The world premiere was directed by David Dower and performed by Lopez.

Mala will play in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Globe’s Conrad Prebys Theatre Center in San Diego’s Balboa Park (1363 Old Globe Way). Performances run May 7 – June 12, 2022, with the official English-performance press opening featuring Melinda Lopez on Thursday, May 12 at 8:00 p.m. and the Spanish-language performance press opening featuring Yadira Correa on Thursday, May 19 at 8:00 p.m.

The English performance schedule is Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m., Thursdays and Fridays at 8:00 p.m., Saturdays at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and Sundays at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.

The Old Globe will present Mala in Spanish on the following dates: Thursday, May 19 at 8:00 p.m.; Saturday, May 21 at 8:00 p.m.; Tuesday, May 24 at 7:00 p.m.; Saturday, May 28 at 2:00 p.m.; Wednesday, June 1 at 7:00 p.m.; Sunday, June 5 at 7:00 p.m.; Friday, June 10 at 8:00 p.m.; and Sunday, June 12 at 2:00 p.m.

Tickets are available online at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE (234-5623), or in person at The Old Globe Box Office in Balboa Park. Regular ticket prices start at $30. The Vicki and Carl Zeiger Insights Seminar, scheduled for Tuesday, May 10, 2022 at 6:00 p.m., will provide patrons an exploration of the themes and background of Mala from selected artistic company members. For additional information, visit www.TheOldGlobe.org.

After its run on The Old Globe’s stage, Mala will embark on a invitation-only spring Globe for All Tour, which will visit multiple venues across the binational region. The tour will run from June 15 to June 19 and will perform in English at Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility and at the San Diego Rescue Mission; and in Spanish at the following venues: San Diego Rescue Mission, Lauderbach Park, Otay Mesa-Nestor Branch Library, and Centro Cultural de Tijuana (CECUT) in Tijuana, Mexico. Additional information on the binational partnership with CECUT will be announced at a later date.

In alignment with the State of California, which has removed mask and vaccine requirements for indoor events, effective March 21, 2022, The Old Globe will not require patrons to provide proof of vaccination or to wear masks while attending shows or events in either our indoor or outdoor venues. However, the theatre still strongly recommends mask-wearing while at the Globe, and patrons should feel comfortable wearing a mask anywhere on our campus if they choose.

Mala is supported by production sponsor Globe Guilders. Mala is a recipient of a 2022 Social Impact Theatre Grant from The Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation. Financial support for The Old Globe is provided by The City of San Diego. The Theodor and Audrey Geisel Fund provides leadership support for The Old Globe’s year-round activities.

Spanish translation licensed by Audible.

Bios and photos of all participants can be found at www.TheOldGlobe.org/Press-Room.

The Tony Award–winning The Old Globe is one of the country’s leading professional not-for-profit regional theatres. Now in its 87th year, the Globe is San Diego’s flagship performing arts institution, and it serves a vibrant community with theatre as a public good. Under the leadership of Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein and the Audrey S. Geisel Managing Director Timothy J. Shields, The Old Globe produces a year-round season of 16 productions of classic, contemporary, and new works on its three Balboa Park stages, including its internationally renowned Shakespeare Festival. More than 250,000 people annually attend Globe productions and participate in the theatre’s artistic and arts engagement programs. Its nationally prominent Arts Engagement Department provides an array of participatory programs that make theatre matter to more people in neighborhoods throughout the region. Humanities programs at the Globe and around the city broaden the community’s understanding of theatre art in all its forms. The Globe also boasts a range of new play development programs with professional and community-based writers, as well as the renowned The Old Globe and University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program. Numerous world premieres—such as 2014 Tony Award winner for Best Musical A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Bright Star, The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, and Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas!—have been developed at The Old Globe and have gone on to highly successful runs on Broadway and at regional theatres across the country.

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