Jim Charleston, Executive Director of Silver City Theatre, has announced that the play, The Last Angry Brown Hat, will be performed locally in September of 2026. Quoting from the website of Silver City Theatre, "the Brown Berets, founded in the late 1960s, were an influential community-based social justice organization which played a leading role in the Chicano Civil Rights Movement of the '60s and '70s…" The play is particularly relevant to Grant County because the Brown Berets passed through Grant County and many residents have memories of that visit.
Written by East Los Angeles playwright, Alfredo Ramos, the play depicts four aging past members of the Brown Berets, named Willie, JoJo, Louie and Rude Boy, who return to their hometown after 25 years for the funeral of one of their fellow members, Frankie, and reminisce about the good old days and their involvement in the movement. The play has received national acclaim, including a 60-city tour from 1996 to 1999. The production was invited to perform for the Latino Heritage program of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in 1999 and will be performed again in California in 2026. Daniel Edward Mora, one of the original actors in the play, has been invited to take the role of Rude Boy and Chris Chavez, from Phoenix will also come to Grant County for a few weeks to direct the local performance. Chris is a Queer, Chicano performance artist, originally from Northern New Mexico. He has many acting credits and through his artistic work, he attempts to create and foster truly inclusive spaces for all, no matter their differences, abilities or identities. In his opinion, theatre should be a safe place for anyone and everyone. The roles of Willie, JoJo and Louie will be played by local actors.
To create interest for next year's performance, Jim Charleston has been working with Patricia and Guadalupe Cano, the founder and director of Teatro del Cobre. Together, they are planning El Movimiento Revisited, which is a community conversation series that focuses on Chicano/Mexican American activism in Grant County. There will be at least 5 discussions on the sacrifices that were made locally for equality and justice in government, the arts, the mining industry, education and health. The first conversation is scheduled to take place on August 16, 2025 at 2:00 p.m. in the Bess Forward Global Resource Center Auditorium. The title of that conversation is A Seat at the Table: Chicano Involvement in Local and State Government with Mayor Pro Tem Guadalupe Cano serving as the moderator for a panel to include Lt. Governor Howie Morales, NM Commissioner of Public Lands Stephanie Garcia Richard, New Mexico State Senator Gabriel Ramos, Silver City Town Manager Alex Brown and Priscilla Lucero, Executive Director of the Southwest NM Council of Governments. They will share their experiences in having a seat at many tables.
The community conversations will be sponsored by Silver City Theatre, the Town of Silver City, KRWG Public Media, Teatro del Cobre and the Silver City Museum. Anyone willing to share their memories of the Brown Beret visit to Silver City is encouraged to contact Patricia Cano
