Su Teatro's Wolf at the Door Is a "Terrifying" Fairy Tale About Resilience

"Combing our culture's superstitions with the scary stories we were raised is the scariest thing you could do," says Magally Luna. "To me, this play is terrifying. I don't relate to the clown in the drain, but I can relate to the wolf at the door."

Luna is referring to Su Teatro's season opener, Wolf at the Door, in which she plays the character Rocío. Written by the prolific playwright Marisela Treviño Orta and directed by the theater's managing director, Micaela Garcia de Benavidez, Wolf at the Door "reveals secrets that we grow up with within Latin American culture," adds Luna. 

The play is a part of Orta's trio of fairy tales, which includes The River Bride and Alcira, that are inspired by Latin American mythology and folklore. Wolf at the Door is set in a remote Mexican ranch house, and tells the story of Isadora, a woman who recently wed the incredibly abusive Séptimo and now lives with him and Rocío, their maid. Then Yolot, a magical wolf lady, shows up at their door, pregnant and terrified.

"It is a Grimm fairy tale in the true sense," Benavidez says. "Wolf at the Door utilizes supernatural Aztec mythology and is set in a hacienda in Mexico once upon a time. Although it alludes to the 1800s, it is at a time when they could be far away from the world and utterly abandoned."
Su Teatro has been following Orta's work for years. The organization presented the world premiere of her first play, Braided Sorrow, back in 2008. "I really connect to Marisela’s work," Benavidez says. "I've loved reading her different pieces over the years, and I actually first saw Wolf at the Door as a reading at the Latinx Theatre Commons 2015 Carnaval of New Latinx Work in Chicago. It's a really strong female-centered piece. We were interested in producing her full trilogy of mythological Latino fairy tales and started with The River Bride [in 2018], because that was the first one that was ready. It's taken us a bit to get back to this one, but she was in town recently and we had a conversation that helped it quickly come together."

At the heart of Wolf at the Door lies a compelling story of resilience and transformation. The play explores the complexities of its characters, portraying them not as one-dimensional heroes or villains, but as deeply flawed individuals who grapple with their own demons.

Cast member Natalie Fuentes, who plays Yolot, emphasizes the rich character development within the play. She notes how the small cast of four, consisting of three women, "aren't necessarily strong women in the traditional sense. They all have their own values, which drive them individually. Seeing the three of them together shows a big human picture of a variety of women. Yolot is ferocious in their intensity, while Isadora is a bit more naive and caring, while Rocío is just so motherly. We all go through so much trauma dealing with Séptimo's character, but the play shows how each of us can grow and fight back."

The rehearsal process for Wolf at the Door was not just about memorizing lines and blocking scenes; it was an exploration of the human psyche. Under the guidance of Benavidez, the cast dove deeply into the motivations of their characters, dissecting their actions and reactions. 

"We actually spent the first two-and-a-half weeks on tablework as a group," says Paola Miranda, who plays Isadora. "Since we know those stories very well, the play is about discovering why these people are the way they are and understanding that villains are not always aware that they're villains. Even my character, who is abused by her husband, is the way she is for a reason, and so we had to do that work to understand the poetry behind it all."

And while the creative team grappled with the obvious nature of the play's title, it also came to be understood as somewhat poetic, too. "The first thing that stood out to me when we read the play was its title. 'The Wolf at the Door' seems so literal when the wolf lady shows up, and then we're constantly referencing wolves sitting on the hill and watching the house," explains Fuentes. "But who is the wolf? Is it us? Is it the actual animals approaching? Is it Séptimo? You’ve got to figure that out, which is a testament to how strong the writing is."
Everyone on the team is looking forward to seeing how the audience responds to the production. Su Teatro's audiences are renowned for being extremely attentive and vocal during performances. According to Benavidez, you never have to guess how the crowd is feeling, because they are going to let you know throughout the show.

"I'm curious to see what emotions come from the audience, because there are so many ways it could go, and I don't think the story is what people might expect from a fairy tale," says Camilo Luera, who is the fight coordinator and plays Séptimo. "I’m not interested in people forgiving Séptimo at the end, but I do want them to understand him."

Timing is everything in theater, and Su Teatro has strategically set Wolf at the Door's run during spooky season. "It is very smart to do this in October because it's such a haunting tale," says understudy Lucinda Lazo. "People who want to see something spooky should come to this play, but be warned, it might be a little more than you asked for — the play's circumstances are truly horrifying."

As Wolf at the Door takes center stage at Su Teatro, audiences can expect a gripping journey into the heart of Latin American culture, mythology and the human spirit. Orta's unique ability to unmask the secrets and superstitions of Latin American culture through her writing is set to captivate theatergoers and leave them with a profound sense of the darkness that resides within us all.

"Marisela doesn't shy away from showing a lot onstage; front and center are two full childbirths, a naked woman in a stable and abuse, and we're not shying away from showing these things onstage," Fuentes says. "It’s a fairytale where the princess wins by fighting. Even though this play is so mythological, otherworldly and magical, all of the characters are so human — they run the gambit of human experiences and show how your background affects who you are as a person."

Wolf at the Door runs Thursday, October 12, through Sunday, October 29, Su Teatro, 21 Santa Fe Drive. Find tickets at suteatro.org.