The Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyle is a big novel in many ways. Published with great fanfare, the 1995 book is a powerful exploration of immigration, race and class that focuses on two undocumented Mexican immigrants who interact dramatically with a wealthy gated Los Angeles community. It’s a weighty statement that runs more than 300 pages. Playwright Matthew Spangler read it, loved it, and then had an equally weighty task: how to bring this novel to the stage? He would have to remove details, cut dialogue, and generally pare down the plot. Fortunately, theatrical adaptations have always been a labor of love for the Bay Area writer. His adaptation of the Khaled Hosseini novel The Kite Runner, which was produced by the San Jose Repertory Theatre and recently toured in the United Kingdom, has won wide acclaim. He has also adapted writings by John Steinbeck, James Joyce, John Cheever, Ernest Hemingway, Thomas Wolfe, and many other authors. Many of the stories deal with newcomers to a country, which is why Spangler says his work, broadly speaking, “sits at the intersection of adaptation and immigration.”

Besides teaching performance studies at San Jose State, he also leads an institute on theater and immigration funded by the National Endowment of the Humanities. Spangler’s work also combines two of his great loves: narrative fiction and theatre. “The form of art that I’m most drawn to is reading prose,” he said, adding: “I find practicing that a little lonely. magnetic curtain rod menardsAs an artist, I really like the theatre because theater’s so social. ikea aina curtains ukTheatre is one of those unique forms of art that happens live. cottage white bellino curtainsThe communion between audience and artist is particular to the theatre.”ready made curtain kamdar

To create an adaptation, Spangler must get close to the original writing. “It takes maybe nine months to write the first draft of a script,” he said. He analyzes the work, seeing what parts would translate best to the stage, and seeking to stay true to the author even as he makes changes. Sometimes those changes are tough. The Tortilla Curtain—which he renamed Tortilla Curtain in his version—is a good example. flamenco shower curtain anthropologieThe book is long, but the play just can’t be. washing sheer curtains gelatinIn fact, it’s only about 90 minutes, with no intermission. beige eyelet curtains 90x90Cuts were necessary to preserve the book’s rapid pace from dramatic event to event.

“If you’re won over by the magic of the book, you kind of fall into it and it becomes a roller coaster that takes you along,” Spangler said. “If you are true to all the elements of the novel, you’re going to have a three-hour show, and you’re going to miss the roller coaster. In a strange way, you have to take out some of the plot in order to stay true to the plot on stage.” The playwright’s notes in his script mirror this pacing. Nearly all the transitions, for instance, “should happen as quickly as possible, with the subsequent scene starting on the heels of the previous one, and in some cases, even before the actors have cleared the playing space.” It’s a fast-paced story with many challenges for both playwright and theater company. Without giving away plot twists, suffice it to say that Mother Nature throws in lots of drama. How does Spangler know what to cut? “I suppose how you make those decisions is really one of intuition,” he said thoughtfully.

“Maybe for all playwrights, that first draft is almost always overwritten. The challenge is figuring out what to take out so that the audience is never ahead of the story. You don’t want them to know what is going to happen.” Tortilla Curtain has brought many great rewards for Spangler. For one, the two main characters are compelling: Cándido, the immigrant determined to make a new life for himself and his pregnant partner América despite numerous hazards; and Delaney, the affluent journalist who lives in the gated community near where Cándido and América are sleeping in a ravine. Spangler is fascinated by Delaney’s journey from seemingly reasonable person to near-vigilante. “How does this happen?” he asked. Meanwhile, Cándido, ravenous and desperate, keeps soldiering on. “He’s one of the most beautiful characters I’ve ever read in a book,” Spangler said. T.C. Boyle wrote the book in the aftermath of California’s Proposition 187, a ballot initiative that forbade undocumented immigrants from using public education, health care and other public services.

The controversial 1994 initiative was approved by voters but later ruled unconstitutional. “The book never comments on 187 but very much is responding to that context,” Spangler said. The play is set in 1995, and while Spangler says he believes the dialogue on immigration has become more progressive in California since then, nationwide it’s still very much the same. As examples, Spangler mentions moments in the play when Cándido and América are injured or victims of crime but are afraid to seek medical attention or law-enforcement help. “When you have 11 million undocumented immigrants who don’t have access to the laws, then you essentially open your society to a number of civil-rights abuses.” Spangler is very pleased to bring his message and play to The Western Stage. “I can think of few companies better situated and better located to do this show,” he said. It’s especially meaningful having his work presented at a college where there are many budding theatre professionals and writers.