Tonight (May 13, 2009), Dr. Jessica Gaspar presents “Luisa Capetillo: la musa active” [Luisa Capetillo: The Active Muse], a play inspired by the life and work of Luisa Capetillo. It will take place at 8:00pm, in the Julia de Burgos Theater, School of Humanities, at the University of Puerto Rico – Río Piedras.

This theatrical production is part of a larger project directed by Gaspar, “Luisa Capetillo y la palabra activa: El teatro como herramienta de creación, investigación y educación” [Luisa Capetillo and the active word: theater as tool for creation, research, and education]. Designed for intermediate and high school students, this project seeks to encourage interdisciplinary research and dialogue about respect for community, human rights, social and economic justice, and ending violence.

Luisa Capetillo (1879-1922) was an anarchist free thinker, writer, and activist. A feminist and suffragist, she was the first Puerto Rican woman to commit to writing her theories on the rights of women. Among her many writings, in 1909 she published Mi opinión sobre las libertades, derechos y deberes de la mujer [My opinion about the liberties, rights, and responsibilities of women]. Although she is remembered by many as the first woman to wear pants in public on the island, her struggles as a labor leader in a male-dominated society made her a woman who was far ahead of her time.

For full article (in Spanish), see http://www.dialogodigital.com/node/1517