Paula Rebelo and Marta Portillo in Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Cynthia:  Well, here we are at the final installment of our series about costuming Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa, a new play by Jeffery Atik.

Marcy:  Finally.

Cynthia:  Here we have the revolutionaries, Osvaldo and The Colonel, who we put in donated flower button down shirts, plastic bandoliers from a costume shop, and $5 cowboy hats from the famous Olvera Street in downtown Los Angeles.

Tiago Ferreira and Katrina Nelson in Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Cynthia:  The Colonel was played by the talented and subtlely hysterical, Katrina Nelson. The skirt and boots are her own.

Katrina Nelson in Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Cynthia:  Osvaldo was played by the sweet and talented newcomer, Tiago Ferreira. Look out for Tiago! This former soccer player is going to be famous.

Tiago Ferreira and Katrina Nelson

Marcy:  Just remember:  you saw him here first.

Cynthia:  Next up are the Hollywood Producer, Mr. Thayer, and his assistant, Maria, played by another great comedy duo of Steven Christian Amendola and Heather Pasternak. In the play, the character Maria is everybody’s servant. Below, is Maria The Maid.

Steven Christian Amendola and Heather Pasternak in Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Cynthia:  And here is Maria The Hollywood Production Assistant. Both of the actors, Steven and Heather, supplied their own clothing for their costumes, with the exception of the apron which I got on ebay for $8.

Heather Pasternak

Marcy:  Shhh… it’s against union rules for actors to supply their own costumes.

Cynthia:  You shhhhhh… or we’ll end up in jail like Senora Torres and Fernanda.

Speaking of jail. Here is the famous killer/sociopath of the Mexican Revolution, Rodolfo Fierro, played to scary and humorous perfection by David E. Frank. In a costume culled entirely from his own wardrobe.

David E. Frank in Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Cynthia:  And last but not least are Pancho Villa and his New Wife, played by super duper awesome Achilles Molina and the lovely and funny Lexi Tess.

Achilles Molina as Pancho Villa in Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Lexi Tess in Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Cynthia:  I got Pancho’s shirt from Jet Rag for $8.72. Those flowers on the shirt are hand painted.

The dress is Lexi’s mom’s. I was so excited for Lexi  to wear this dress not only because it was so pretty but because it tied in with Senora Torres’s dress on the other side of the stage – like bookends. I gave her my own red flower headband to pick up the red from underskirt of Senora Torres’s dress.

Marcy:  You forgot something.

Cynthia:  No I didn’t.

Marcy:  Yes you did. The ugly dress from El Paso!

Cynthia:  You’re right!

There is a running joke in the show about a crazy dress from El Paso. It had to be bigger than life and the actresses who wore it needed to feel Ah-Maz-Ing in it. I thought it would take forever to find but I walked in to Jet Rag and there it was, “the ugly dress from El Paso,” staring at me from an end cap. We put it on Marta and that was it. We looked no more. It was $52.

Marta Portilla in the “dress from El Paso” Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa

Marcy:  You forgot something else.

Cynthia:  What now?

Marcy:  My best friend, Bo Roberts, as El Viejo.

Cynthia:  I could never forget Bo. I just don’t have a picture right now.

Marcy:  GASP!

Cynthia:  I know! I know! He wore a $5 hat from Olvera Street, David’s black shirt, and his own khaki pants and shoes. He looked great.

Marcy (indignantly):  He looked better than great. He is the most handsomest man alive. How could you, Cindy? How could you?

Cynthia (meekly):  I’m sorry.

Marcy:  You’re fired.

Cynthia:  Yeah well, the play is over.

Marcy:  You’re still fired. I’m going to live with Bo. I need a vacation.

Marcy exits with a suitcase filled with Friskies. 

She comes back once she realizes no one will give a ride to a diva feline lugging a suitcase full of stinky cat food.

Marcy:  I guess I’ll vacation on the couch.

Cynthia:  I’ll join you. I’m exhausted.

Marcy:  Tell Freddy not to wake us up until August.

Marcy and Cynthia zonk out.

The phone rings.

Freddy enters.

Freddy:  Wake up!  Woo hoo! Your play got extended.

*Check out  Part One, Part Two, Part Three, and Part Four of our series about costuming Telenovela Wives of Pancho Villa.