DOMINANT ANIMALS' PRODUCTION DURING HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH OPENS CONVERSATIONS ABOUT MASCULINITY, FAMILY, AND HEALING

Hispanic Heritage Month production at Teatro LATEA in NYC invites families, educators, social workers, and community organizations into a timely dialogue.

NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, September 15, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- As Hispanic Heritage Month begins, VOE Coqui Productions is preparing to bring a timely Latino family story back to the New York stage.

Dominant Animals, written by acclaimed playwright Cris Eli Blak, will return to Teatro LATEA for three performances from October 2–4, 2026. Set within a Puerto Rican family in Queens, the play confronts machismo, toxic masculinity, generational trauma, incarceration, anger, emotional silence, forgiveness, and the possibility of healing.

The production’s Hispanic Heritage Month engagement celebrates Latino storytelling while also creating space for honest conversations about issues that families often struggle to discuss openly.

Rather than presenting culture only through celebration, Dominant Animals examines the complicated expectations, traditions, and survival mechanisms that can be passed between generations. It asks audiences to consider when strength becomes emotional isolation, how unresolved trauma shapes family relationships, and whether accountability and vulnerability can interrupt destructive cycles.

At the center of the play is a family forced to face both the pain it inherited and the harm its members have caused one another. Its characters must decide whether to remain trapped behind emotional walls or take the difficult steps necessary to reconnect and heal.

The play’s themes are especially relevant to families, educators, social workers, counselors, mental-health professionals, restorative-justice advocates, reentry organizations, and community leaders working with people affected by trauma and incarceration.

That connection between theatre and community dialogue was explored in a recent episode of The Voice of Eddie Show on PulsoCentral.com, featuring Daisy Laureano, LCSW, a Puerto Rican social worker with more than 20 years of experience across hospital, psychiatric, behavioral-health, geriatric, neurological, and school-based settings.

During the conversation, Laureano discussed how generational trauma, machismo, anger, incarceration, family expectations, and emotional disconnection can affect an entire family across generations. Families may genuinely love one another, she explained, while still lacking the language and emotional tools necessary to communicate that love in healthy ways.

Laureano also emphasized the importance of approaching harmful family patterns with curiosity instead of accusation. Understanding where those patterns began does not excuse the harm they caused; rather, it can help families recognize their effects, accept responsibility, and create healthier relationships for the next generation. In that sense, identifying and breaking a destructive cycle can itself become an act of love.

Her insights closely reflect the questions raised by Dominant Animals: whether families can acknowledge painful truths without abandoning one another, whether accountability can coexist with compassion, and whether honest communication and healthy boundaries can prevent the past from controlling a family’s future.

“Dominant Animals tells a culturally specific story, but the questions it asks are universal,” said Executive Producer Eddie Martinez, who also portrays Felix Burgos. “We are bringing this production back because these conversations deserve to continue—not only inside the theater, but within our homes and communities.”

The production also addresses the impact of incarceration on the larger family system. It explores how separation, anger, judgment, and failed communication can continue affecting relationships after a person returns home—and how responsibility and forgiveness may become essential to rebuilding those relationships.

By presenting the play during Hispanic Heritage Month, VOE Coqui Productions seeks to elevate an authentic Puerto Rican family story while demonstrating that Latino theatre can serve as both an artistic experience and a catalyst for community dialogue.

Audiences attending the production’s June festival presentation called Dominant Animals “profoundly impactful” and “breathtakingly powerful.” One audience member said the play helped them understand the struggles their parents and ancestors faced during childhood and in their own lives. Another described it as an inspiring story about personal growth, self-empowerment, and the healing power of family bonds.

The October production will be directed by award-winning Puerto Rican artist Adrienne Acevedo Lovette, whose career spans theatre, film, and television. Lovette has directed more than 50 plays and musicals throughout the United States, Off-Broadway, and internationally. Her work reflects an ongoing commitment to inclusive storytelling and expanding opportunities for underrepresented artists.

General-admission tickets are currently 10% off through September 18. Discounted tickets are $27, reduced from the regular price of $30. Group tickets are $25 per person for groups of 10 or more and may be arranged by contacting Teatro LATEA directly.

Organizations interested in attending as a group, encouraging community participation, or continuing the production’s conversations through their own programming are invited to contact the production.

Performance Schedule
Friday, October 2, 2026, at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 3, 2026, at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 4, 2026, at 3:00 p.m.

Venue: Teatro LATEA, 107 Suffolk Street, Second Floor, New York, NY 10002
Tickets: www.teatrolatea.org/events

About Dominant Animals

Written by Cris Eli Blak, Dominant Animals is a Puerto Rican family drama exploring machismo, generational trauma, incarceration, anger, accountability, forgiveness, and transformation. Through an intimate family conflict, the play challenges traditional definitions of masculinity and considers whether vulnerability can become an act of courage.

The October engagement is presented by VOE Coqui Productions, directed by Adrienne Acevedo Lovette, and executive produced by Eddie Martinez.

Fiscal Sponsorship

Dominant Animals is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a nonprofit arts service organization. Fractured Atlas receives grants for the charitable purposes of Dominant Animals and provides oversight to ensure that grant funds are used in accordance with grant agreements. Contributions for the charitable purposes of Dominant Animals must be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

Photos, production artwork, interviews, press seats, and additional materials are available upon request.

MEDIA CONTACT
Eddie Martinez
Executive Producer, Dominant Animals
VOE Coqui Productions
Email: voiceofeddiemartinez@gmail.com
Alternate Email: dominantanimalstheplay@gmail.com
Phone: 516-313-3324
Website: www.voiceofeddie.com
Instagram: @dominantanimalstheplay

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Edgardo Martinez
VOE COQUI PRODUCTIONS LLC
+1 516-313-3324
email us here

Felix and Paloma meet at a bar after connecting through anger management. Their humorous and brutally honest conversation gradually becomes more personal.