THE HANGOVER REPORT – José Rivera’s new play THE HOURS ARE FEMININE articulates the painful process of assimilation

Hiram Delgado, Maribel Martinez, and Donovan Monzón-Sanders in INTAR Theatre’s production of “The Hours Are Feminine” by José Rivera (photo by Valerie Terranova).

Undoubtedly one of the prominent Puerto Rican playwrights of his generation, José Rivera has had a long and illustrious career in the theater (I still remember first seeing his wild 2000 play References to Salvador Dalí Make Me Hot). Over at the intimate quarters of INTAR Theater in Hell’s Kitchen — a premiere Off-Broadway presenter of Latin voices in American theater — theatergoers will be able to catch Rivera’s new play The Hours Are Feminine. Set in Long Island during the 1960s, it tells the story of a newly-relocated Puerto Rican family struggling to get a foothold (psychologically, financially) in American culture and society.

Overall, Rivera does a compelling job of articulating the the painful process of assimilation. Plenty of his individual scenes crackle with tension and high emotion, particularly those depicting the family’s volatile interactions with their racist, lascivious Italian-American landlord, who lives just a stones throw away in the house next door. At other times, however, Rivera’s writing tends gets bogged down in trite melodrama, which is admittedly part of the work’s charm. This results in some tonal inconsistencies — notably between harsh realities and wholesome optimism — that the play as of now leaves unaddressed and simply juxtaposed. Nevertheless, the play is rich in detail and the theatrical depiction of the language barrier between the characters is handled elegantly.

Rivera directs his own play, doing an admirable job of navigating INTAR’s tight playing space (the efficient set design is by Izzy Fields). He’s also elicited some passionate performances from his fine cast. The chemistry between the two women — the soulful Maribel Martinez as the homesick Puerto Rican wife and the spirited Sara Koviak as the vivacious Italian-American next door — is especially lovely in the scenes where the characters inch their way towards a life-changing friendship. Rounding out the cast are Hiram Delgado and Robert Montano as their respective hot-headed husbands and Dan Grimaldi as the aforementioned hostile landlord.

RECOMMENDED

THE HOURS ARE FEMININE
Off-Broadway, Play
INTAR Theatre
2 hours, 10 minutes (with one intermission)
Through June 9

Categories: Off-Broadway, Theater

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