“…We’ll hunt for a third tiger now, but like
The others this one too will be a form
Of what I dream, a structure of words, and not
The flesh and blood tiger that beyond all myths
Paces the earth. I know these things quite well,
Yet nonetheless some force keeps driving me
In this vague, unreasonable, and ancient quest,
And I go on pursuing through the hours
Another tiger, the beast not found in verse.”
— From The Other Tiger by Jorge Luis Borges
Through July 17, Other Tiger Productions presents The Palabras Project, an immersive musical and theatrical experience at Park Square Theatre’s Andy Boss Thrust Stage. It will feature some of the Twin Cities’ top Latino talent, co-directed by Other Tiger’s founders, Jessica Huang and Ricardo Vazquez.
Jessica Huang
Ricardo Vazquez
Huang describes Other Tiger Productions as “a small but mighty company that seeks to pursue other forms, stories and modes of collaboration in order to present an inclusive and global theater experience.” It was purposely created as a production company–not solely a theatre organization–to be able to fulfill this mission.
Although its inaugural production, The Palabras Project, is Latino-centric, Other Tiger’s overarching goal aims for what Huang and Vazquez describe as “radical inclusion”–types of multicultural, multigenerational and multidisciplinary collaborations unlike what we normally encounter in the Twin Cities. They state their vision and values as these (see www.othertigerproductions.org):
- Deliberate collaboration with artists and communities who challenge the assumptions of dominant cultures.
- A practice that values collaborators’ time and commitment with equitable working conditions, including competitive compensation.
- A reevaluation of the theatrical canon, common creative practices and traditional use of space.
When asked why they chose to deem their company Other Tiger, Vazquez explained the name’s tie to Borges’ poem, which inspires the notion of ever-chasing an artistic form or vision. As Vazquez put it, “The artist is always finding another tiger, something that feeds the desire to keep the artist moving forward. He thinks that he has a product, but then it also informs his search for the next one, then the next and the next….”
