“Talks about today in a way that is fresh rather than forced.” —The Globe and Mail
Twenty years after the death of their parents, the three Jurado sisters struggle to keep family traditions alive in their East Vancouver home. Beneath the surface, old tensions and resentments fracture their bonds. Disconnected from their culture, loved ones, and even themselves, they drift through ennui, inertia, and might-have-beens. But when a massive earthquake literally shakes the ground beneath them, they are forced to confront their open wounds before everything collapses.
Inspired by Chekhov’s Three Sisters, Christine Quintana’s daring and inventive dramatic comedy reimagines the “well-made” play with a bold magical realism twist. An existential journey through the depths of love and longing, El Terremoto is a life-affirming intervention about how nothing matters—so everything matters.
Cast size: 9 actors
Female roles: 5
Male roles: 3
Nonbinary roles: 1
“For inspiration on how a playwright can start from a place of adaptation and then let a work evolve into something that talks about today in a way that is fresh rather than forced, go check out Christine Quintana’s El Terremoto.”
- The Globe and Mail
“It’s a testament to Quintana’s writing that she renders her three protagonists with such an astonishing depth of clarity.”
- Toronto Star
“With rich, full characters and a seismic second act, Quintana’s tale may shake you from your seat . . . In writing about the end, Quintana sees the celebration and disaster live on the same plane, a catalytic force that, for better or for worse, boots you out of that liminal space between forward motion and stagnation.”
- BroadwayWorld
