QUARTER RICAN

by Gabriel Diego Hernández

Drama

A young father in the playground, eleven-month-old baby in tow, engages another parent in the park in a conversation about neighborhoods, parenthood, and culture, processing some of his traumas and insecurities along the way as he tries to predict the factors that will shape his child’s Latinx identity. Meanwhile, his alter-ego, a swaggering hip hop jester named MC Plátano, comments on the action, fills in some of the blanks, and asks us some difficult questions.

“QUARTER RICAN es una revelación teatral que satisfice el gusto musical más exigente debido a su estética, ritmos, actuaciones y, sobre todo, los temas tan profundos que aborda...Y como último detalle se debe destacar la refrescante postura que permite atisbar una fragilidad masculina que se manifiesta en la preocupación paternal por brindar a su hijo un legado cultural que le permita convertirse en una gran persona.”

—La Guia Cultural
“It’s a laugh-out-loud comedy that tackles serious issues such as gentrification, ethnic identity and the extent to which parents can change who their children grow up to be...The humor is rich and earthy, poking good-natured fun at foibles and stereotypes...The show includes a dozen original songs that run from comedic and sarcastic to soulful and introspective... It’s the best kind of theater: a play that feels more like a conversation.”
—NJ Arts

Casting:

Cast of Characters
(3 Actors)

DANNY — Anxious and self-centered, but also thoughtful and wants to be a good person. Obsessed with all things race, ethnicity, and culture. Filled with doubts and questions about himself, his identity, and his son’s identity. Hyperverbal. An instigator. Uses humor to help make sense of the mini-traumas of his past. Half Puerto Rican, half Jewish. Whitish Latino, late-20s to early-40s. Must speak good enough Spanish to pronounce the Spanish words in a convincingly native way. Must be an excellent rapper and singer.

MC PLÁTANO — Brash, irreverent, tough, cynical, searing wit, Queer, Afro-Latine. Our host for the evening. DANNY’s alter-ego. All of DANNY’s potential coolness, none of DANNY’s hangups and neuroses. Any gender, but nonbinary/trans folks to the front of the line. Must speak good enough Spanish to pronounce the Spanish words in a convincingly native way. Must be an excellent rapper and singer.

DJ QUENEPA — Generates the soundscapes of MC PLÁTANO’s world, creates beats for all of the songs in the show, in constant conversation with MC PLÁTANO and the piece at large, harmonizes in many of the sung moments of the show. Chameleonic, lends their voice briefly to a number of different minor characters in the play — an old classmate, an old classmate’s mom, an additional narrator. Any race, any gender.

Place
Washington Park, on the border of Union City and Jersey City, NJ.

Time
Sometime in the 2010s or 2020s.

Author’s Note
Rapped lyrics are indented further than regular dialogue.
Sung lyrics are indented in Small Caps.
A / indicates an overlapping line.
Music Materials
Required sheet music and performance tracks will be provided digitally by TRW with all valid licenses to perform Quarter Rican.

Author

GABRIEL DIEGO HERNÁNDEZ

Gabriel Diego Hernández is a hip hop artist, actor, poet, educator, and playwright who originally hails from Hoboken, New Jersey. After receiving a bachelor's degree in Latin American Studies and a master's degree in Education, both from Yale University, he returned to his hometown to teach drama and direct shows at middle/high schools for a decade before transitioning full-time into the performing arts world and focusing on his own work as an actor and writer. QUARTER RICAN is his first full-length play. Gabriel lives in Jersey City Heights with his wife and writing partner Rachel and their two children...[FULL BIO]

Author

Rachel Elmer

Rachel Elmer is an educator, songwriter, and recovered performer based in Jersey City, NJ. As a singer, she has performed around the country and at more weddings than she can count; as a songwriter, she has written for everyone from up-and-coming hip hop artists needing a hook to middle schoolers performing in their school play. She is a graduate of Yale University and Rutgers University’s Master of Information program, and devotes her non-creative time to helping teenagers tell their stories. QUARTER RICAN is her professional writing debut in musical theatre...[FULL BIO]