Zoot Suit Research Paper

Zoot Suit is a play, written by Luis Valdez, based on the Sleepy Lagoon murders and the Zoot Suit riots of the nineteen forties. In this play, Valdez embodies Chicano culture and social injustice. Upon reading the play, it is very apparent that the main source of injustice is institutional racism and it is shown in the court scenes of this play. It starts with the “Opening of the Trial” (Act I,Scene 9) and in this it proves that the court itself has already set up Henry and the gang for failure. They failed to show any human decency in which they did not allow the boys to wear clean clothes or even fix their hair.

Theatre became important to Greek cultures when it became a part of the festival honoring the god Dionysus (The god of wine and fertility).”( Greek Mythology in Theater by Bruce Tucker October 27, 2016) The theater festival was founded to bring unity among the Attican tribes.( Greek Mythology in Theater by Bruce Tucker October 27, 2016) Athens was the main center of these traditions. Everyone came to sing and dance in hope for a good harvest. At one point, a Greek named Thespis began to sing praises to the god, with others responding, which led to the actor and chorus. During the festival everyone would dance and sing in a circle, in the middle of which was the altar to Dionysus. Over time the festivals started giving thanks to other themes, and eventually had nothing to do with Dionysus or any god, but began to turn into classical Greek plays. (First Ancient History, Oxford University Press 2000 pg.166)

Theatre flourished in Greece, particularly in Athens, between c. 550 BC and c. 220 BC. During its beginnings theatrical performances were part of Dionysia, a festival held in honour of the god Dionysus. The plot of the plays was always inspired by Greek mythology, a theme that is still common today. Many modern plays and movies have been directly based on or incorporated elements of Greek mythology or simply mythology in general. Every play had a chorus, though the size and importance of it varied. The

In the play Zoot Suit, the author Luis Valdez deals with the central theme of injustice and uncanny law enforcement through the life of Mexican-American gangster Henry Renya. Essentially, the Hispanic 38th street men, which is led by Henry, are accused of a crime they did not commit. One can determine that they were wrongfully sentenced because of their race and their choice of clothing. Throughout the play, Luis Valdez depicts how injustice has become a part of the life for Mexican-Americans through the portrayals of the Sleepy Lagoon Murder, their attire, misconduct during the trial, and racism.

As Donald J. Trump said, “The Theatre must always be a safe and special place”, and for once he is right, the Theatre is a special place place, where people and objects transform in front of our eyes. One element that helps make a play great, is if it effectively uses its sacred space. The definition of sacred space according to our lecture is, “A physical space that feels almost magical, sometimes it may transform or appear before our eyes.” Sacred space is not required to incorporate the entire stage either, it can just be certain parts of the play. I remember in reading the book The Lord of the Flies, that one of the boys when the world would get too intense for him, he would hide in a hole in a tree and calm down; that was his sacred space. Sacred spaces are used effectively throughout all forms of art. One item that is used frequently in safe spaces in the act of rituals. Our lecture definition of Ritual is, “Something that repeats. Each repetition feels the same and different at the same time”, kind of like how Star Wars The Force Awakens was basically just A New Hope. Joking aside Rituals are very important in literature, like for example in Lord of the Flies again, the kids would participate in ritual when they would kill a kid or a pig and chant “Kill the Pig, cut its throat, bash her in, drink its blood.” Throughout the four plays we watch the themes of Rituals and Sacred Space flowing through the veins of these stories, that carry the meaning of the works.

Racism runs rampant around the world and many people judge others by their looks and ethnicity. This can be seen many times in the play, “Zoot Suit” by Luis Valdez. Zoot Suit is a play about Henry Reyna and his street gang being accused and put on a mass trial for a murder that they didn't commit and being found guilty for it. In the play, Henry Reyna and his gang are discriminated by U.S. Navy sailors and the judge from their trial even though they were supposed to uphold justice and order. In the real world this can be seen with President Trump and his discrimination towards other races such as mexicans and middle easterners. Discrimination occurs in both the real world and in the play from the people who are suppose to uphold justice.

Theatre  represented  a  culture  and  values  found  in  Greek  society.  Theatre  was  also  a  way  for

Greek drama was performed in the late 6th century BCE in ancient Greece. Tragedians like Euripides wrote very influential and popular plays such as the Bacchae. Greek tragedies lead to Greek comedies such as Aristophanes’ Lysistrata. Many of the Greek dramas have similar concepts, one of being duality. Without duality, the nature of our lives and the environment around us remains unbalanced.

During the Medieval ages, Christian thought was the driving force behind the advances in theatre that took place, and helped to shape theatrical practices both in and out of the church service. Theatre during the medieval ages began during the church service, as a way to further exemplify God and keep the attention of and reach out to as many church-goers as possible. This was done through the practice of liturgical drama. It is important to note that before the implementation of liturgical drama, theatre had previously been banned by the church because it was deemed offensive to the church, church practices, and its ideals, mainly in Roman theatre (Robinson). Now the same church that decided against theatrical

The reason we still have theatre today is purely because of Roman and Greek dramas. Even just the term “play” comes from Latin’s “ludus” meaning to play. Nowaday we still use this entertainment to distract our people from surrounding issues. Comedy is

The theatre that you are most familiar with today generally comes via the movie version of an originally staged play. But if we go back further, we find that most of the theatre that is written and performed today can be traced back to Greek origins through various

Ancient Greek Theater is the first historical record of “drama,” which is the Greek term meaning “to do” or “to act.” Beginning in the 5th century BC, Greek Theater developed into an art that is still used today. During the golden age of the Athenians plays were created, plays that are considered among the greatest works of world drama. Today there are thousands of well-known plays and films based on the re-make of ancient drama.

Greek theatre and medieval drama were both very popular artistic events in their own periods of performance. However, from ancient Greece to the renaissance, time has set them apart in terms of methodology; their practitioners use a creative process based off of different mindsets. Therefore, the significant time lapse between the two genres has had an evident impact on the way theatre was perceived and presented. In comparing aspects such as religious motivations, conditions of violence and character development, the distinct theatrical natures of Greek theatre and medieval drama will be made apparent.

Is ritual still alive? Ritual is a dramatic performance that tells a story of gods and honoring them. While Zoot Suit does not honor a god, it does honor Mexican American and the injustice they faced in the 40s. So is ritual still alive in our modern theatre? The answer is yes, but it is not entirely the same as early theatre. There’s no doubt that early theatre has impacted our modern theatre. We use early theatre history to understand, acknowledge and use it in our modern theatre. Although theaters have evolved, we go back to perform and talk about early places. Most commonly Shakespeare play’s. Today’s theatre we still talk about the remarkable play Oedipus Rex and Everyman. Both plays from Greek and Medieval theatre. In some point in the

Theater, especially realism, is suppose to show real life experience.,but real life experiences can also be seen as a metaphorical theatrical performance. Some of my daily activity seem like a theatrical performance, but one occasion that has the strongest elements of theater happens every Sunday. The Catholic mass, which is a holy tradition for every catholic worldwide, has many theatrical elements that accept the ideas of theater that we learn in class like audience interaction, liviness, use of literary, visual, and heard experiences. This tradition also differ from an actual play by the use of belief and disbelief.