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

Marissa Chibás
Born1961 (age 62–63)
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

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

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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

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Theater and film acting

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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

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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

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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

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

References

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  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.