Emiliana: A Revolution Cabaret
by Ground Floor Theatre

Aug. 13 - Aug. 29

Mexico City, 1940s — By day, Silvia Ibarra is a well-bred doctor’s daughter preparing for life as a respectable wife. By night, she becomes Emiliana, a cabaretera who worships Emiliano Zapata and dreams of returning her grandfather’s land to the campesinos. When her double life is exposed, Silvia’s future is thrown into turmoil. Inspired by the prostitute melodramas of Mexico’s Golden Age of film, Emiliana reimagines the genre through a lens of social justice for Indigenous, femme, and queer communities.

Developed through GFT Writes, Emiliana: A Revolution Cabaret will make its world premiere including several performances in Spanish. Telling the story of a respectable young woman with a secret life as a cabaret singer, Torres explores many themes relative to current life with heart and soul.

“GFT Writes gave me the opportunity to develop a full play from scratch," said playwright Jessica L. Peña Torres. "Emiliana was born out of a joke with a dear friend and collaborator, Tenzing Ortega, about writing a show where a sex worker who dressed as Emiliano Zapata for her act. We laughed at the idea of exploring Zapata’s sexuality through my own rendition of him as a cabaretera.”

Peña Torres continued, “After Tenzing passed in 2023, I wanted to keep working on this idea. As I developed it through GFT Writes, I was guided by my colleagues’ generous feedback, the theatre’s supportive environment, and Tenzing’s voice in my head. Bringing this piece to a full production at GFT is a small way of honoring Tenzing and our ridiculous idea. I hope Austin audiences find it as fascinating as we did.”

Emiliana: A Revolutionary Cabaret features Jessica L. Peña Torres as Emiliana, Rai González as Citiali, and Diana Patricia Guizado as Musician.

"I am so excited to be directing at Ground Floor Theatre for the first time with this incredible new play,” said director Mateo Hernandez. “Emiliana is a play about owning your truest self and the stories that come along with it. It is a raucous, hysterical, and deeply moving night at the cabaret - come along for the ride!"

With direction by Hernandez, the production team includes scenic design by Daniel Ruiz Bustos, lighting design byLuis Sandoval, costume design by David Arevalo, property design and set dressing by Gustavo Hernandez, sound and video design by Eliot Fisher, intimacy direction by Andy Grapko, and Megan Thornton as dramaturg. Graphics design byErica Moreno with Mia Gomez-Reyes as production stage manager and Analisse Quiñones as stage manager.

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Emiliana: A Revolution Cabaret
by Jessica Peña Torres
Ground Floor Theatre

August 13 - 29, 2026

Ground Floor Theatre, Austin