Toby Campion on "Pedro Infante: Cien Años Pienso en Ti"
- Gina Carey
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
Hudson Valley Writers Center is thrilled to present a production of Pedro Infante: Cien Años Pienso en Ti this June in partnership with ID Studio Theater and St. Teresa de Avila Church, where the play will be hosted.
Pedro Infante is part of the award-winning Entre Dos Mundos trilogy written by Toby Campion. We spoke with Campion to learn more about how the play came to be and what viewers can expect.
When asked to summarize the play in three words, Campion didn't hesitate.
"Life goes on," he said. "Because it's part of a trilogy that has more or less that same theme regarding this world and the next world. And the fact that life goes on in the next world and the interaction between the two worlds gave me a title for the trilogy to which this play belongs."
After completing the first play in Entre Dos Mundos, which was influenced by Colombian cumbia, Campion was encouraged to continue exploring musical themes by the director, Germán Jaramillo. and ultimately landed on the work of Mexican film and song icon Pedro Infante. "I started listening and I decided I would let the music kind of guide me and lead me and inspire me to put together a show.
"The music and my experience led me to a character who was a grandmother, who was from Mexico, living in the U.S, like many, many people that I have known longing to be back in Mexico, but here because their children and grandchildren are here, and have not been able to return home."
The play focuses on Doña Pancha, who interacts with the spirit of her idol Pedro Infante as she struggles between a deep longing to return to Mexico and remaining with her family in the United States.
Infante's music is interwoven throughout the play, which was arranged by Tarrytown local Pablo Mayor. The work has since gone through several iterations, including a film adaptation on Netflix, Como Caído Del Cielo. Campion met many characters in Infante's life along the way, including his family and the actress in the original Cien Años music video from the movie Cuidado con el amor.
"She's an actress who is still alive," Campion said. "She's now 95 years old. And believe it or not, I'm working on a project with her."
Pedro Infante: Cien Años Pienso en Ti is directed by Germán Jaramillo. It will be performed for one night in Sleepy Hollow: Saturday, June 27 at 8pm.
Reserve a free ticket here!
Written by Gina Carey
