Luz

by Catherine Filloux

Luz is a play by Catherine Filloux that exposes the global scale of gender-based violence and the collusion between human rights and corporate law practices. A play that is at once volatile and tender, entertaining and surreal. With an introduction by director José Zayas.

80 pages, Paperback

First published May 29, 2014

About the author

CATHERINE FILLOUX is an award-winning French American playwright who has been writing about human rights and social justice for over thirty years. Her plays have been produced around the U.S. and internationally. Catherine has been honored with the 2019 Barry Lopez Visiting Writer in Ethics and Community Fellowship; the 2017 Otto René Castillo Award for Political Theatre; and the 2015 Planet Activist Award. Filloux is the librettist for four operas, produced nationally and internationally; her most recent “Orlando” is the winner of the 2022 Grawemeyer award. Recent plays include: “Under the Skin” commissioned by INTAR in New York City, her livestream web drama about deportation and children “turning your body into a compass”, and “whatdoesfreemean?” produced in New York City by Nora’s Playhouse. Filloux’s more than thirty plays have been widely published, anthologized, and written about. Her new musical “Welcome to the Big Dipper” with composer Jimmy Roberts (I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change) is a National Alliance for Musical Theatre finalist. Catherine has traveled the world for her plays, including to Bosnia, Cambodia, Guatemala, Haiti, Morocco, Northern Ireland, and South Sudan. And in Iraq she collaborated with ArtRole’s production of her play The Beauty Inside and in ArtRole’s Women in Action conferences. She is the Board President of CultureHub, a global art and technology community, and has served as a screenwriting mentor for Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA) Reentry program for incarcerated people. She received her M.F.A.at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts’ Dramatic Writing Program and her French Baccalaureate in Philosophy, with Honors, in Toulon, France. She is a co-founder of Theatre Without Borders, a Fulbright Senior Specialist, and an alumna of New Dramatists.
www.catherinefilloux.com

Reviews

[Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Luz, Catherine Filloux once again dives into the intersection of human rights, trauma, and resilience with compassion, sharpness, and a touch of theatrical imagination. This time, the story centers on three women: Luz and Helene, survivors of sexual violence in conflict zones, and Alexandra, a young human rights lawyer trying to help them navigate the asylum process in the U.S.
The play doesn’t follow a traditional structure, it moves between courtroom-like interviews, memories, and dream-like fragments. Filloux blends legal realism with poetic expression, letting us feel the emotional weight of these women’s stories while still raising big, difficult questions about justice, truth, and bureaucracy.
What’s especially powerful is how Filloux highlights the gaps in the system, not just in far-off countries, but here in the U.S. too. Alexandra’s good intentions are constantly challenged by legal red tape, personal doubt, and the sheer complexity of what it means to "help." Luz and Helene, meanwhile, are never reduced to victims; they’re fierce, complicated, funny, and deeply human.
At times, the nonlinear storytelling and layered dialogue can feel overwhelming, especially if you’re expecting a more straightforward plot. But the emotional clarity is always there. Filloux trusts her audience to keep up and rewards them with characters and moments that linger.
Luz is not an easy play, but it’s a necessary one. It doesn’t sensationalize trauma, it listens to it. And in doing so, it offers a deeply affecting portrait of what survival looks like after the headlines have faded, and the real work begins.