The spice of life: Ethnicity, gender, and the nation in the <italic>variedad</italic>.

Abstract

The <italic>variedad</italic> of the southwestern United States is a complex cultural model, for it is a hybrid form of both Mexican and American popular entertainment that also incorporates folk culture and Native American forms of cultural expression. The <italic>variedad</italic> of the southwestern United States, and the myriad cultures, styles, and audiences it represents, is the primary subject and primary metaphor of this dissertation. In this dissertation, the word <italic>variedad</italic>, which means variety in English, serves as a literal description of the entertainment form similar in style, form and scope to vaudeville, and a metaphorical description of the form's contributors, influences, goals, and legacies. Through parody in particular, the <italic>variedad</italic> provided immigrants a forum for social critique; a place to celebrate their similarities and examine their differences. The <italic>variedad</italic> was also a key player in helping Mexican immigrants imagine and build new communities within the United States, and this dissertation traces the ways in which the <italic> variedad</italic> helped build and sustain those communities, particularly in the American southwest. Beatriz Escalona, born in San Antonio in 1903, adopted the stage name La Chata Noloesca and became a symbol of the <italic>variedad's </italic> adaptability and variety. Because of the breadth, depth and scope of her career, she best represents the metaphor of the <italic>variedad</italic>, and this dissertation presents La Chata as the most far-reaching and representative performer of the genre. In addition, like the <italic>variedad</italic>, she was also a pioneer in cultural crossover and confluence. This dissertation also exposes the popular roots of dramatic devices employed by contemporary Latino/a playwrights and traces the trajectory of the popular entertainment toward a literary and legitimate drama. This dissertation points out the importance of examining art forms that serve not to separate out immigrant groups, but to demonstrate how immigrant groups meld their own native cultures with American culture, and thus expand the <italic>variedad</italic> of American society. Photographs serve as the primary means of investigation and research evidence in this dissertation.