Florencia Cuenca Makes History through ‘Real Women Have Curves’ Musical

Latinx voices are making it big in the theatre this year. From Take the Lead starring Adrienne Bailon-Houghton and Buena Vista Social Club based on the Cuban musical ensemble of the same name, Latinx stories and talent are taking center stage. Not only that, they’re making history as in the case of Florencia Cuenca who became the first Mexican immigrant to originate a role in a Broadway musical for her work on the new musical Real Women Have Curves. Inspired by the play that was adapted into a film starring America Ferrera, the new musical is making waves following its Broadway debut in April 1.The musical is an ode to women and among the complex female characters that make up the story is Cuenca’s Estela Garcia, sister to the musical’s protagonist Ana.

Cuenca is a 32-year-old Mexican actress and singer who moved to the United States nine years ago.  Born and raised in Mexico City, she made the move to the U.S. with her husband initially for their honeymoon. At a young age she dreamt of moving to New York so when her husband—a musical theater composer— mentioned the possibility of staying and they took a leap of faith. Since then, she has navigated the industry while going through the process, like many immigrants, of leaving her family, friends, and culture in pursuit of her dreams. “When I moved here, I was like, ‘Okay, there’s no place for me.’ I thought I could do this, but no. I would go to the auditions or I would see who’s on stage on Broadway. No one talks like me. No one looks like me. I’m not welcome. That’s how I felt for a long, long time. Even if I would try to fit in that box, it’s impossible for these curves to fit in that tiny box,” she tells HipLatina.

Prior to her casting in Real Women Have Curves, Cuenca had first interacted with the source material for her Broadway debut when she purchased the play from the Drama Book Shop which is owned by Puerto Rican playwright and lyricist Lin-Manuel Miranda. The play was a recommendation from her husband and it became the first play she bought in New York—making it “full circle” now that she forms part of the musical adaptation.

For Cuenca, moving from Mexico where she was surrounded by fellow Mexicanas like herself to a space, especially in theater, where we rarely see Latinas was a culture shock. She initially struggled to fit in so when she heard Real Women Have Curves was coming to Broadway, it felt like a calling to find a place in a musical by and about Latinas:

“Everybody started to send it to me and they were like, ‘Dude, you’re perfect for that.’ Then I started auditioning for the first reading they did here in New York and I got in the ensemble. I want[ed] to audition for Estela. The description of that character, that’s me—a curvy, Mexican immigrant. I’m going to be in the ensemble but I know that eventually I’m going to play that role.”

Although she started her journey with the musical as the ensemble, she eventually made her way to Estela after a change in casting directors. The importance of representation, especially for the role of an immigrant, came first in casting, “Victor Vasquez, a fellow Mexican casting director, called me and he said, ‘Do you want to come and audition?’ And I was like, ‘Yes.’ That’s why it’s so important, the representation, because he knew that we needed Mexican people in this cast and he brought me. I am very thankful to him.”

As a proud curvy Latina, immigrant, and eldest daughter, Cuenca feels a deep connection to Estela. In this new version, she looks forward for audiences to see another layer of Estela including her dreams:

“If you’re a fan of the play or the movie, you only see one Estela and now in the musical you are seeing Estela as a more three-dimensional character.” In this musical, we get to see her fulfill her eldest daughter duties like supporting her family and teaching her younger sister, Ana, while also having the space to have her own dreams. Audiences can expect a song with Estela daydreaming, giving them some insight into what she wants for herself. 

The story of Real Women Have Curves follows 18-year-old Mexican-American aspiring journalist Ana (played by newcomer Tatiana Cordoba) as she dreams of leaving her family’s sewing factory to pursue college. Set in the summer of 1987, Ana is an ambitious and rebellious young girl hungry to leave her home in Boyle Heights, East Los Angeles. When her family receives a make-or-break order for 200 dresses, she juggles with her desires to leave and the expectations placed on her my her mother, Carmen (played by Justina Machado of One Day at a Time) while helping the women in the shop. Real Women Have Curves focuses on the relationship between mother and daughter as Ana’s dreams of independence clash with Carmen’s more traditional hopes for Ana informed by traditional family values.

From play to film to musical, it explores the “curves” of womanhood and the complexities of women in a way that celebrates the way we think and exist. Throughout the story’s 37-year journey since its inception by Chicana playwright Josefina Lopez, issues pertinent to the Latinx community have been at the forefront such as the lived experiences of undocumented immigrants, body image, the struggles of working class families, family dynamics and marianismo. Cuenca tells HipLatina of the responsibilities that storytellers and artists have to tell stories reflecting our society:

“This is very important that it’s happening right now in the state, in the political climate that we are living in. I am so proud and I know that I have a big responsibility to portray a character of a Mexican immigrant on this big stage and who better than me to do it. I’ve lived through that process and I just want people to see who we really are. Not what the news says, not like some politician says, but what we are, that they can get to know our community.”

From its beginning as a play to the film, this story has been a classic representation of young Latinas and the communities we come from. It has continued to be just as relevant as it was in its early beginnings and is now garnering praise on the Broadway stage. With the lack of Latinx representation in casting and Latinx-centered shows making it, Cuenca’s casting means as much to her as it does to our comunidad.

“When I was growing up, I didn’t have someone like myself on a stage that I could see me represented. I was so much in need of that, but I never saw someone curvy or dark-skinned or with an accent on Broadway. Never,” she tells us.

What she hopes more than anything is that she is not the last to achieve such a historic feat. The actress looks forward to seeing more young Latinas inspired to pursue their dreams: “I think it’s so important and I hope that they [young Latinas]  think, ‘if she can do it, I can do it, too.’ That’s the point of it all. I don’t want to be the first whatever. I want us to be thousands of thousands and thousands on stage and to represent all kinds of bodies, of accents, of backgrounds. I think we need that because that’s real life.”

Real Women Have Curves began its Broadway run on April 1 with opening night officially kicking off April 27. The cast is composed of newcomer Tatiana Cordoba as Ana, Machado as Carmen, Mauricio Mendoza as Raul, and many more, primarily Latina actresses. The creative team is also full of Latinx talent including Colombian-American Tony-Award winner Sergio Trujillo who is taking over the direction and choreography as well as music and lyrics by Grammy Award-winning artist Joy Huerta from the Mexican pop duo Jesse and Joy.

Cuenca hopes for audiences to see themselves represented on the stage and take in how important shows like this are:

“I was just having a moment yesterday when we were teching (a run through of the show with all technological components accompanying the actors’ performances) my number and I was like ‘I can’t believe that this is happening to me in this body, in this size, with this accent.’  I’m just center stage and everyone is looking at me. I’m just singing a song. It’s huge that has never happened in history and we are providing that for the new generations of Latinas and Latines and I am so proud that this is happening.”

Tickets for Real Women Have Curves are available for purchase online, over the phone, or in person at the James Earl Jones Theatre.