Las Nuevas Tamaleras

After the passing of her mother, playwright and director Alicia Mena was moved to write Las Nuevas Tamaleras, a play that honors her mother’s legacy and preserves her family’s rich cultural traditions. Since its premiere in 1990 at Houston’s Latino Playwright Festival, Las Nuevas Tamaleras has become a holiday favorite performed around the state. The one-act comedy centers on three Mexican-American women who try their hand at making tamales for the very first time. Things don’t go as planned, however, when the ghosts of the legendary tamale experts Doña Juanita and Doña Mercedes decide to pay the three tamaleras a visit. This year’s production, staged at Our Lady of the Lake University’s Thiry Auditorium, will star Mena as Doña Mercedes and Ruby Nelda Perez as Doña Juanita. The tamaleras will be played by Patricia Zamora, Sonya M. Rodriguez and Kristina Keller.