Bill Santiago in 'Spanglish 101'

Fri, Oct 7
8:00 pm
$15 - student discounts

10/7: Spanglish o Muerte - Bill Santiago @ La Pena (berkeley)

calling all spanglishhablantes, linguaphiles, cultureholics, born- =

again latinos, salsa addicts, mambo wannabees and banana republicans....

LAUGHS FOR LATINOS AND THE LATINO-CURIOUS

Comedian Bill Santiago & 'Spanglish 101' are back at La Pena in =

Berekely,CA
Friday Oct. 7th 8pm

La Pe=F1a Cultural Center ~ 3105 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley CA 94705 ~ =

510/849-2568 ~ www.lapena.org

check out the video clips: www.billsantiago.com

back to back bumper to bumper todas tus palabras favoritas en YOUR =

FAVORITE idioma - Spanglish!

* READ THE REVIEW - BELOW -
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RECENT REVIEW of "SPANGLISH 101" at DARMOUTH COLLEGE

Thursday, July 21, 2005
Comedian Bill Santiago entertains with 'Spanglish'

Standup comedian Bill Santiago performed his set, "Spanglish 101," to a
full house at the Bentley Theater on Tuesday night. The set showcased =

the
"Spanglish" language and the Latino-American culture at large. =

Despite his
wry underdog humor, Santiago was carefully good-natured and tasteful.

He pulled off irreverence without being abrasive -- a rarity in =

standup comedy -- with his immense charisma and versatile =

expressions. Standing still, he was handsome and collected, but the =

next second he was contorting his face to look like his grandmother, =

or screaming at the top of his lungs to imitate his mother (the =

theater erupted), or salsa dancing in place while recounting =

encounters with the non-Latina women he had met at gentrified salsa =

clubs.

A former journalist and something of an intellectual, Santiago's humor
differs from the superficial (if delightful) humor of other comedians =

such
as Jerry Seinfeld. Although an immensely engaging physical comedian,
Santiago also had much insight to offer.

This was especially true when he recounted his childhood. His =

parents, for
example, always tried to encourage and develop his masculinity. "Don't
forget, that I gave birth to four muchachos," his mother would say as =

she
brandished her arm as a phallic symbol.

"How am I supposed to live up to that?" he asked. He extended his =

various
insights about his family to Puerto Rican culture at large -- "I'm not
dysfunctional, I'm tropical," he said.


And then there were his jokes about American-Latino relations at large.
"You know we're now the biggest minority in America. Of the people there
are least of, we are the biggest of that group," Santiago said.

He described how most Americans react to the notion of Puerto Rico =

becoming
a state: "Fifty is a nice round number, 51 -- kind of too ethnic." He
talked about Latinos in politics: "Everyone talks about a first black =

president
but never Hispanic -- evidently there's some sort of line."

Santiago also talked about professional hurdles he has faced on =

account of
his roots. Once, he met with a producer who was interested in making =

a show
based on Santiago's childhood.

"The first thing he said was 'So, you're Latino...what does your father
do?' I told him he was a lawyer, and he was like, 'Uhh, that's not =

funny,'"
Santiago said.

"Spanglish 101" is a work in progress, as evidenced by the ream of =

yellow
legal pad paper he kept on a desk beside him and constantly referred to
during the set.

The notes included his top ten list of best things about being =

Hispanic. For
No. 7, you automatically get a part in the school production of West =

Side
Story. "I was cast as a Jet," he lamented. "My parents wouldn't look =

at me."
And then there was the benefit of "dating interracially within your own
race."

Bill Santiago was raised in Brooklyn and attended New York University,
where he studied film. After an aborted career in journalism, he =

moved to
San Francisco and launched his career as a stand-up comedian -- "as a
comedian, he was funny, but as a reporter, he was a joke," according =

to one
source.

Venue:

La Pena
3105 Shattuck Ave
Berkeley
510-849-2568
www.lapena.org

Additional Info:

415-771-9251
www.billsantiago.com