A San Antonio-based comic actor by way of Chicago, homegirl Ruby Nelda Perez is an old friend of Denver's Su Teatro ensemble and artistic director Tony Garcia. And when she brings her touring one-woman show Doña Rosita's Jalapeño Kitchen to Su Teatro beginning tonight for a weekend run, it won't be the first time. The rollicking kitchen confab is a longtime favorite with a Denver Chicano community that never tires of Perez's topical show about a barrio restaurateur deliberating over whether or not to sell her building to mall developers while sitting at the counter among her chiles and tortillas. Hilarious stories and characters come and go, all covered over with a sauce of cultural pride and a big ladleful of funny.

It's a favorite with women, who happily yell “Don't sell!” to the musing Doña Rosita from their seats, notes Su Teatro's Tanya Mote. "It's not like any other theater you've seen," she explains. "The people who bring their friends to the theater for the show are all women. It's like a girls' night out, and Ruby's so down to earth. It's exciting for them to meet a successful actor who's just like them.

“All of the characters are prototypical figures they can recognize from the barrio, and the tension in play, when they come to buy out the kitchen, especially resonates in this community."

Come sit in the kitchen with Doña Rosita at 7:30 p.m. today through Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at Su Teatro at the Denver Civic Theatre, 721 Santa Fe Drive; for tickets, $17 to $20, visit suteatro.net or call 303-296-0219.
Nov. 14-16, 7:30 p.m.; Sun., Nov. 17, 2 p.m., 2013