Goat in the Road's Carlota
Carlota comes, Carlota goes, Carlota sings, Carlota haunts
the generations that follow.
In Goat in the Road's new fantastical and immersive
musical, Carlota, audiences are swept away into an intergenerational
story about love, misunderstanding, and forgiveness between the streets of New
Orleans East and the beaches of Matanzas, Cuba.
Carlota follows several storylines of the descendants
of Carlota Ruiz de Gonzales. The story begins with her great-great
granddaughter, Carlota James, who leaves New Orleans at the request of her
dying grandmother to return her grandfather's ashes to Cuba. As she ventures to
find her long lost relatives, we are brought back memories of her past and the
past of various members of her family tree.
The script was written by Carolina Caballero, Shannon
Flaherty, Denise Frazier, Grace Harmon, Richon May, and lead by Chris
Kaminstein. This feels like a very important story for struggling family
dynamics, generational immigrant experience, and interpersonal connection. While
several scenes in this show depict simple and relatable moments, such as a
mother-daughter argument or a first date at Burger King, the scale of the time
jumps and mystery surrounding the matriarch of the family make this story feel
like a Homeric epic.
It's a very intricate weaving of storylines all being
revealed as Carlota James makes her way to Cuba, and while it could easily
become too confusing for the average viewer, the production makes it very clear
when and where we are in each scene both visually and emotionally. It all ties together
beautifully in one of the final songs, "All the Times, All the Places," in
which Carlota Ruiz, Puri, and Carlota James deconstruct pieces of the set to
build a tree, symbolically and visually establishing themselves as branches connecting
the timelines and family dynamics of the story.
Lilian Lombera's performance as Carlota Ruiz drives home the
intense and sacred connection this story reaches for. Carlota, hardened by
years of slavery and separation from her son, is delivered wonderfully in Lombera's
grit and determination in everything she does, feeling both true to life and
mythic in nature.
What makes this play feel alive and exciting is the beautiful
music written and performed by Denise Frazier, Yusa, and Peter J Bowling. Featuring
traditional and modern styles of Caribbean music, the joy and vitality of
Carlota's family tree passes onto the audience. In the final number of the
show, the cast invites the audience to sing along and passes out shots of rum,
inviting us to join in the celebration. In addition to the jubilation, there
are moments of deep sadness and reflection in the music, particularly when Katy
Cacao was on stage. Her gut-wrenching belts brought the audience into an epic
whirlwind of emotion. An overall glorious survey of musical and storytelling
range grounded in Cuban American style.
Carlota is playing through March 14 at CANOA, which
is located at 4210 St. Claude Ave. Tickets are available at goatintheroadproductions.org.
