“Divided by Zero” interview series: Luis Zaragosa


“Divided by Zero” is a brand new interview series, both traditional interview and video interview getting you into the head and heart of the ZU family.  “Divided…” will feature five sporadically posted interviews featuring veteran members and members new to the ZU family.  Our first interview features Luis Zaragosa, comic, firebreather, and Globe-trained actor who has performed in well over 20 productions with the company.

 

Divided By Zero – Luis Zaragosa

 

How long have you been involved with Zero Untitled and what was your first production?

            Let’s see, my first production was a Christmas special called “Twas the FLOP Before Christmas” and that was 3 years ago…4 years ago…3 years ago…(laughs) a long time ago.

 

 (Zaragosa pictured with Barry Berryhill in “Twas the FLOP Before Christmas”)

 

What is your best memory of any ZU production?

            Hands down, performing in the streets of London.  Just busting out Shakespeare in “All the World’s a Stage”.

 

What kind of future project would you like to dabble in?

            Honestly, my three favorite roles were me playing silent because I’ve got a speech problem most of the time and I have a hard time memorizing lines on top of all the other stuff I do.  So I do “silent” and “creepy” pretty well so I would say more horror especially since that is something we haven’t done in a season or so, so more horror would be pretty awesome.

 

If you can play any role in any show for ZU, what would it be?

            Hmm, well I’m really good at comedy, but I love playing the psycho.  I’ve always wanted to play the psycho and I will always want to play the psycho.  I like playing crazy.

 

 (Zaragosa pictured with Allan Guzman in “Into Hell”)

 

So reviving your role as the White Rabbit in “Relapse in Wonderland” and “Madness in Wonderland”?

No, I “Sin” more actually.  “Sin” [from “The Rape of Lucrece”] was creepier, crazier.  I could have gone all over the place with Sin if I knew he was a subtle character.  Plus he looks like Death!

 

What do you expect from the audiences of ZU shows?

            Well, I like it when they get involved, I’m not saying walking around, jumping up and down, or volunteering to get on stage. I mean, when we do something and they react.  Like in the play “Nightmare of OZ” when the Dorothy character gets raped, I want to see the grotesque looks in the audiences’ face and the horror in their eyes.  I’ve always liked that about our audiences.

 

So, you like the audiences’ reactions to graphic stuff that Zero does in productions?

            Yeah, and we do lots of graphic stuff, I mean, we don’t just do creepy graphic, we do hilarious graphic.  Like in puppets [an improv game in Premature Punchline], we bend ourselves back and forth and the audience will get up and bend us however they want and they all get a kick out of it. And as long as the audience is enjoying themselves to the most they can, then that’s what I want.  I want them to enjoy what they (the audience) are doing, too.

 

 (Performing in a skit for one of Premature Punchline’s early shows; also pictured is Dustin Romike)

 

There are a lot of new people in the productions.  What would you tell people that are new to ZU?

            Enjoy this while you can, but this isn’t all to life, they are other things.  If you want this to become a big thing for you, then instead of playing video games and stuff like that when you have free time (after you’ve done your school work and other work) whenever you have down time, go ahead and like dabble in improv, go pick up on some improv games or watch improv shows, read new material, read plays.  Be more culturally aware, because whenever I joined, half the stuff [the other ZU guys] would drop, I would not understand.  So, I had to go and start researching and doing stuff on my own along with the other stuff with my classes.

 

What are your expectations for the ZU productions you spearhead, namely PrePunch?

            Let’s see, Premature Punchline has taken off, but I would like to see a lot of our actors and actresses be more aware of what they are doing. Internalize. Like when they go up there and improv, I don’t want them to just read stuff and do the stuff we rehearse well, but I want them to come up stuff on their own, like on the spot.  They need to get better at reflexed comedy, instead of rehearsed comedy.

 

 (Being trained at the Globe Theatre in London, England with Chu Owambala.)

 

So, say I’m brand new to ZU and I wanted to be in Premature Punchline, how would you train me?

            I’d corner you and tell you to convince me to let you out of the room. I’ve learned this while in London when I was trained by one of the Globe actors (named Chu Owambala) that given a simple task and saying “do it however you want, just convince me” is the simplest way to improv something because you have a decision that has to be made and now you have to have your own reason to back up that decision. You have to improv a reason to get out of the room. It’s a quick, simple starter.

           

Any final statements?

Don’t do drugs.

 

 

The Rated R Christmas show is right around the corner!

Rated R Christmas show flyer

Premature Punchline’s second annual holiday-themed show, The Rated R Christmas Show, will have two performances next week!  On Dec 19th at 7:00 at Fore Hall in Kingsville and on Dec 21 at 7:00 in Corpus Christi at the Tango Tea Room.  The show will feature several new and up-and-coming PrePunchers, 3 skits, 4 games, and assorted comic holiday madness. 

Photo opp for “Not That Wise”, a skit in “The Rated R Christmas Show”!

Rehearsal shot of “Christmas Party Quirks”!

This show is NOT for children due to language and content (hence the name); so, mature audiences only, please.  Admission is ONLY $2 for the Kingsville show and $1 for the Tango Tea Room performance.

See the main page for more details.

From Passion to Page: Week Two on Tuesday

Last week’s performances in “From Passion to Page” receive a follow-up (of sorts).  Last week ZU produced 4 student-written plays and another bonus play.  This week (Nov 20th), the next batch of plays will be produced legitmately and some as stage readings on at the Tango Tea Room at 6:00!

 “From Passion to Page: Week Two” will feature several new plays:

 “The Thin Divide” by Joshua Cavazos

 “Too Young to Die” by Amanda Rivera

 “No Regrets” by Mark Pittman

 “The Bachelorette Party” and three others!

Come out and see the show.  Only a $1 admission!

From Passion to Page opens on Tuesday!

ZU’s 66th production, From Passion to Page, premieres on Tuesday, November 13th in the Blue Room (their usual performance space). The production will be a two-part production unveiling 4 new developmental works from fledgling playwrights and one additional play written and directed by ZU Creative Director Michael Verderber. Plays unveiling the first week (Nov 13th) will be the following:

Pot and Kettle by Delilah Gonzalez

The Game of Fortune by Julio Martinez

An Early Mourning by Lauren Hernandez

Only Slightly Mad by Charles Lillie

Cooookie! by Michael Verderber

The second week of plays is still in the rehearsal process.  These plays will be stage readings and “selective” stagings (meaning scripts in-hand with some blocking).  Currently, only a few of the plays have been officialized for production, including:

The Thin Divide by Joshua Cavazos

Too Young To Die by Amanda Rivera

Scared by Stephen Clark

The Bachelorette Party by Regina Avila

It’s Not Very Effective… by Miguel “Cosmo” Venegas

Keep posted on the website for more information.

The fourth Dark Tour, “Nightmare of Oz”, concludes

The flashback scene with the Ghosts. Clockwise from top left: Luis Zaragosa as Ghost Cowell, Julio Martinez as Cowell Lyons, Baron Kiespert as Ghost Oz, Antone Verastegui as Ghost Crowe, and Olivia De Bosque as Dorothy.

With an attendance in the upper 200’s, “Nightmare of Oz” concluded after the two scheduled performances.  Both shows lasted over 5 hours (each night).  Monday’s opening performance ran from 8 pm until 1:35 am.  Tuesday’s performance ran from 8 pm to 2:27 am. 

Despite some trepidation about the show (it was a departure from the horror-driven roots of “Into Hell” and the “…Wonderland” series), the show was a huge success.  “Nightmare…” was far more murder-mystery than horror, although some scares and gore were evident.

“On Tuesday night, the crowd just kept coming.  It was almost impossible to keep up,” said playwright Katherine Orozco, “Every hour or so, I’d take a peak out the window to take a look at the waiting audience and the line never seemed to get shorter.  I saw people get right back in line to see it again.”

That feat is better understood due to the wait in line.  The average wait for the audience was roughly two hours. 

“To think that people waited two hours in line, just to get back in line and wait for another two hours is a testament to the fun of the show, “said Orozco, who also played one of the “bad cops” Detective Linda Wolffe.

Seated clockwise from top left: Stephen Clark and Vince Chavez as the Henchmen, Chelsea Tovar as the Secretary, Samantha Garcia as Ava Westfield (Wicked Witch), and center is CJ Lillie, playing Sherwood “OZ” Payes.

“Seeing the people’s faces made the issue of time irrelevant.  The length of time seemed to pass by quickly once you saw the audience’s intrigue and fright,” said Baron Kiespert, who played the role of Ghost Oz.

Julio Martinez, who played the role of Cowell Lyons, stated, “It was definitely an interesting trip to adapt a children’s story into an adult-driven murder mystery that was still somewhat scary.”

X does not mark the spot.

Michael Verderber’s last firebreathing show (the tenth show was simply called “X”) ended up having an interesting twist in terms of being “last”.  Roughly 4 minutes into the performance, the group was shut down due to safety reasons.

According to Verderber and Luis Zaragosa (the other firebreather), the wind was problematic, the crowd was too close, miscommunication with university officials, and Luis’s fire stick kept extinguishing itself.

“Safety is a big issue with the fire shows.  The university officials thought it best to shut it down, which I’ll concede was the right choice to make.  It’s their event, we have to do what they say and if it makes the event safer for people, all the better,” stated Verderber.

Below is a link to a video uploaded to youtube that shows the brief performance.  Thanks to Anissa Medina for the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kY8pJawHHdw&feature=youtube_gdata_player

 

The Rules of Emerald City

Here is our second “Nightmare of OZ” trailer, called “The Rules of Emerald City”. Warning: adult language.

Nightmare of Oz – Rules of Emerald City

[jwplayer mediaid=”1937″]

 

Tenth time is a charm!

Been waiting for a chance to see some firebreathing?  Wait no more.  “X: A FireBreathing Showcase” will be Zero Untitled’s tenth firebreathing performance!  Come watch the action tonight at 9 pm at Texas A&M Univ – Kingsville’s annual Fall Festival.  This is a FREE event.

The official “OZ” flyer

The official flyer, designed by Evan Cordova (who will play the Scarecrow).

 

“Nightmare of Oz” photo stills

D. Briscoe as “Tim Mann” in “Nightmare of Oz”

 

 

“Nightmare” still of Det. Gates and Dorothy (J. Cavazos & O. Del Bosque, resp). Photo courtesy of Tracey Hernandez.

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About Zero Untitled

Zero Untitled Films/Productions is a theatrical group based in Kingsville, Texas, that produces unique experiences on stage, in film, and in other media. Zero Untitled’s goal is to let artists and audiences alike think outside the box.