MILAGRO THEATRE PRESENTS
CITY WITHOUT ALTAR
A PERFORMANCE ACKNOWLEDGING TRAGEDY AND CELEBRATING LIVES LIVED
ORLANDO REYES CABRERA, SHALEESA MORENO, LIZ KECK, FALYNN VICTORIA BURTON, BIANCA JORDAN CHA-CAMP AND EMMANUEL KYEI-BAFFOUR IN A SCENE FROM CITY WITHOUT ALTAR. KAT LEON/PSU VANGUARD
“One of the most important things is for people to tell their stories and not let those stories be silenced or suppressed.” 6
ARTS & CULTURE
KAT LEON History is written by the victors—an adage which often seems to ring true. Whether you agree with this statement or not, there are most definitely stories throughout history which go untold. Portland-based Milagro Theatre’s current production, City Without Altar, tells one such story. The play, which runs May 13–28, details the events of the Parsley Massacre, which occurred in the Dominican Republic in 1937. Despite the importance of the event in both Haitian and Dominican history, the tragedy is under discussed outside of the country where it happened. Si Mon’ Emmett—the San Francisco-based theater educator, actor, arts activist and director of City Without Altar—admitted that she herself wasn’t aware of the event until she read the script for the play. “I did not know [about the massacre] at all, and that is such a common experience for people,” Emmett said. “Anyone who has asked, ‘What is City Without Altar?’...I explain to them the Parsley Massacre of 1937. They have no idea that this is some-
thing that happened.” The Parsley Massacre happened on the border of the Dominican Republic and Haiti on Oct. 2, 1937. Although tensions existed between Dominicans and Haitians before 1937, the border was more of a formality, and the lives of both peoples were closely intertwined. This ended in 1937, when Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo demanded that his troops kill Haitians—and Dominicans of Haitian descent. According to the San Francisco Bay View, “any person who was dark-skinned or ‘looked’ Haitian, who could not pronounce ‘perejil’ (Spanish for parsley) was killed.” Armed with machetes to maintain the facade that Dominican farmers were driving out Haitian cattle thieves, Dominican soldiers killed thousands of Haitian men, women and children in a genocide which lasted up to eight days. The author of City Without Altar, Jasminne Mendez, highlighted the importance of bringing light to the event.
PSU Vanguard • MAY 25, 2022 • psuvanguard.com
