American Southwest Theater Company at NMSU Theater Arts presents touring production DONA ROSITA'S JALAPENO KITCHEN

American Southwest Theatre Company at New Mexico State University Department of Theater Arts presents a limited engagement of the national tour of "Doña Rosita's Jalapeño Kitchen," starring acclaimed actress Ruby Nelda Perez, January 30 - February 1 at the Hershel Zohn Theater on the NMSU campus.

Written by Rodrigo Duarte-Clark, the Artistic Director and resident playwright of El Teatro de la Esperanza in San Francisco, this one-woman show is deliciously comic and peppered with the poignancy of cultural pride. A development project has targeted Hispanic owned businesses to make way for a tourist shopping mall. Doña Rosita invites the audience to sit and enjoy the “Last Supper” in her barrio of Salsipuedes while she contemplates selling her restaurant/home of 23 years.

"We're honored to bring a play of this caliber to Las Cruces," says American Southwest Theatre Company Managing Director Tom Smith. "Ruby Nelda Perez is a phenomenal actress in a phenomenal show, and we're thankful our audiences will be able to see this charming and wonderful production!"

Ruby Nelda Perez has been touring professionally throughout the USA, Mexico, and Latin America for over thirty years. She performed “Historias para ser Contadas / Stories to be Told” at the John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Center where she was honored with the Award of Excellence medal. The show is designed by the resident company of American Southwest Theatre Company.

"Doña Rosita's Jalapeño Kitchen" is sponsored by the Office of the President of NMSU, the Office of the Dean of Arts and Sciences of NMSU, and the Hispano Chamber of Commerce de Las Cruces.

Show times are 8 p.m. Friday, January 30; 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday, January 31; and 2 p.m. Sunday, February 1. Ticket prices are $10 - $15 and available by calling the ASTC box office at 646-4515. The 8 p.m. Saturday, January 31performance is a benefit for the Hispano Chamber of Commerce de Las Cruces and includes a post-play reception with the actress. For that performance only, tickets are available at the Chamber offices at 523-2681.