Real Women Have Curves

by Josefina López

Cast 5w. Set in a tiny sewing factory in East L.A., this is the outrageously funny story of five full-figured Mexican-American women who are racing to meet nearly impossible production deadlines in order to keep their tiny factory from going under. And while they work, hiding from the INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service), they talk... about their husbands and lovers, their children and their dreams for the future. The story is told from the point of view of Ana, the youngest among them. Just graduated from high school, Ana dreams of getting out of the barrio and going off to college and becoming a famous writer. Although she needs money, Ana doesn't like working at the factory, and has little respect for the co-workers, who make fun of her ambitions and what they consider her idealistic feminist philosophies. However, Ana keeps coming to her job and chronicling here experiences in a journal. As the summer unfolds, she slowly gains an understanding and appreciation of the work and the women, eventually writing an essay that wins her a journalism fellowship which will take her to New York City. This play, a microcosm of the Latina immigrant experience, celebrates real women's bodies, the power of women, and the incredible bond that happens when women work together. --- from book's back cover

Genres: Plays, School, Read For School, College, Theatre, Drama, Latinx

80 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1996

About the author

From Wikipedia: López was born in 1969, in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, and at age five emigrated with her family to the United States, where they settled in Los Angeles, California. She graduated from the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts before obtaining a BA in film and screenwriting from Columbia College Chicago, and an MFA in screenwriting from the School of Theater, Film and Television at UCLA.

Lopez was undocumented for 13 years before she received Amnesty in 1987 and eventually became a U.S. Citizen in 1995. Lopez is the recipient of a number of other awards and accolades, including a formal recognition from U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer's 7th Annual "Women Making History" banquet in 1998; and a screenwriting fellowship from the California Arts Council in 2001. She and Real Women Have Curves co-author George LaVoo won the Humanitas Prize for Screenwriting in 2002, The Gabriel Garcia Marquez Award from Los Angeles Mayor James K. Hahn in 2003, and the Artist-in-Residency grant from the National Endowment for the Arts/Theatre Communications Group for 2007.

Reviews

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

I watched the film adaptation of this about over fifteen years ago and I was floored by it. I'm pretty sure I wept. I wept because I'd never seen this story depicted on screen - the contentious relationship between the not so slim teenaged girl and her mother and it taking place mostly in a sewing factory. It mirrored the relationship I had with my mother so much, I didn't realize that this is what representation feels like. After the comparison made to the adaptation of this film and Lady Bird, I wanted to read the source material. I felt the play was so raw and still feels timeless. If this film would have been released in 2018, there would have been so much more attention to it than it received in 2002. There's something about right now that makes me hopeful for more representation of the non-white on screen, large and small, more than ever. And this play and film will fit in this canon that should just be the norm. Representation matters.

[alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

i had to read this for a class and i had no idea it was originally a play. i’m semi-familiar with the film adaptation.

this was a wonderful, funny, and heartwarming story about immigrant women just trying to get by and keep their business afloat. all of the characters were so charming. my favorites were definitely the sisters. highly recommend this one!

[Andria Potter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I must be one of the off ones out. I read this through the Internet Archive as it's only 80 pages and a fast read. The Spanish wasn't too difficult nor was the writing style as it's in the form of a play. A simple storyline but an interesting one. I didn't care for how Carmen treated Ama, and while it was a good play it didn't fully capture my interest. I read because it was short and I know this is important for undocumented Americans but I just couldn't get fully into it. 2.5 ⭐ rounded up.

[Cole Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about Real Women Have Curves. On one hand, I find the dialogue around sexuality and body positivity incredibly important and well-done. However, Lopez' dialogue often seems heavy-handed and rough. In particular, Ana seems to lecture at the other characters (and the audience) rather than speaking with them. I was able to overlook the didactic nature of Ana's dialogue to a point, but it left me disappointed with what could have been with this play. Lopez introduced important issues from the perspectives of different generations of Chicana women, which was fantastic. I just wish that the play had developed these perspectives with more skill and dexterity, which I think would only be possible if the play was longer.

[Lemoona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very empowering. Highly recommended!

[Aaron Piccirillo · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Amá, I want to lose weight. But part of me doesn’t because my weight says to everyone, “Fuck you!’”

actual rating: 3.5/5

overall really enjoyed the play but i think the beginning of it was a little slow. i know you have to establish the characters and everything but some of it dragged and it felt like they kept repeating the same conversations. and the same situations kept happening. i do wish there were more parts of ana’s writing throughout cause i really enjoyed those parts but they kinda fell off during the middle of the show. i will say it’s crazy how relevant this show is still to this day with the topics of immigration and body positivity. and there were sooo many difficult subjects that the play tackled so i appreciated the ambition of the show trying to talk about so many diverse things in such a short amount of time.

[Carlos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really a 3.5. Tackles an insane amount of topics with a levity that is admirable. My biggest qualm is how it deals with immigration in almost stereotypical and comical way at times. The fast paced nature somewhat offsets it

[Tiff · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Dos cosas:
1. (Canta) HALLELUJAH
2. Me reí bastante y me gustó, lo que no me emociona es escribir un ensayo sobre ella, pero bueno. Long live immigrants' stories.

[Jen Okulanis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wanted to read this and see the movie before seeing the play. Read the book. - loved it! Then saw the musical - SO good! Just watched the movie - the musical was better!
Great story!

[Marta Moliner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Veri nais uwu

[pennpenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5

Loved, loved this play! While the writing feels heavy-handed at times, the characters are so wonderfully written. Ana, Estela, Carmen, Rosali, and Pancha are each so compelling and endearing; they feel deeply real in a way that’s hard to explain. I especially adore Ana as a protagonist. Josefina López’s dialogue is packed with personality, humor, wit, and insight about mother-daughter relationships, gender roles, sexuality, beauty standards, and challenges that undocumented people face. Highly recommend this book, it’s a very quick but powerful read!

[Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great. There is also a good movie now with America (ugly Betty) in it.

[Sam Cate · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5 stars*

[Stefanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's nice to have the portrait of latin American women on a play (proud of it!!). It felt true to how we are, specially with the dialog... The characters showed some of the troubles that each different generation had, and in some cases that still carry on. On that point, it called my attention that some of the comments I read said that it has potencial for more (maybe it does), but that simplicity was real on the sense that in our culture we don't talk about a lot of things, mainly because we are too proud, or in other occasions it's more as Ana says at the end "it seems simple and unimportant". As well, I liked that it was mainly based on Anna's perspective who was a unexperienced child, and that reminds me of how naive we are when young, and how we think that we have the right to preach about what we think it's right. I just enjoy it!

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lively play with a positive feminist slant and a lot of heat. The five characters all become individuals as you are immersed in their worrisome abandonment, fighting to make a clothes delivery by the end of the week. I thought having to look up the translation of a significant amount of Spanish would be bothersome, but it added to the richness. That it was written (mostly) in English meant a wider audience, of course, and I was quite taken by the spirit of the women, who are 'observed' by the autobiographical Ana, her sister running the sewing shop and her mother working to help out.

It didn't blow me over, but the spirit of it is what was intended to impress, and it did - enough to maybe look at more of López's plays.

[Ariane · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first time reading a play since high school. It’s so strange reading plays as someone who isn’t used to it. I know there are lines that play funny but don’t read funny, and moments of drama that are only impactful because i’m reading a lighting cue that dictates it as such.

But this was a wonderful little play, weaving together different themes expertly with charm and sincerity.

I wish I knew Ana as the MC more in dialogue with her family. Particularly her relationship with her mom and sister. But maybe it’s more evident on the stage.

Mostly, this just made me want to see the show. I wish I had gone when it was on broadway.

[clara páez · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do think this play does touch on a lot of important subjects such as body positivity and immigration/legal status, it felt very short and rushed.

of course, this doesn’t not mean that it was bad at all - on the contrary, it was AMAZING. i just feel like it could be much longer in order to flesh out the themes a little better and not make it feel as rushed as an 80-page play. it would do well as a short novel, and even a longer play.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Volume of plays including "Real Women Have Curves", "Simply Maria or The American Dream", "Confessions of Women From East LA", "Food for the Dead" and "Unconquered Spirits". Lopez has such a distinct voice as a playwright, highlighting the Chicana experience from a feminist, anti-machismo perspective. At times heartbreaking, at times laugh at loud hilarious.

[Brianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't really read plays because I never found an interest in them but when I had to read Real Women Have Curves for my English 101 course, but I love the message of women's rejection against societies exceptions against them. Lopez does a wonderful job expressing plenty of themes in a short play that are relevant in todays world.

[Alex Juarez · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful, quick read about a group of Mexican/Chicana women (including two sisters and their mother) working in a clothing factory in 1980s LA. Touching relationships between the women and a nice display of more authentic Spanglish!

Also adapted into a 2002 movie featuring America Ferrera <3 Def gives Ladybird

[sky · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 rounded up. Read this for class - I love the realistic familial relationships and the growth experienced in the characters, especially Carmen. I also loved how they tackled so many different topics and did them all pretty well.

[Emma Eiram · Rating 4 out of 5]

An play with a rather simple plot, but a lot of small, beautiful moments. I loved the scene of the women all undressing and comparing bodies, I loved Carmen’s pregnancy scare, and I loved Ana’s rumbling with trying to prove that she was better and more educated than the rest of the women.

[Anna (abookobsessed) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had to read this book for my American Literature class, and I really enjoyed it!

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got so happy at the end


I read it for a class, too

[Libby · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 read for MAM

[Grace Wagner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very atmospheric and very wholesome in its points and discussions. Ana's character felt a bit "preachy" at times rather than conversive. The timeline really kept the story moving and intriguing.

[Leigh Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great! Play is really different from the movie.

[Nora Cardenas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like story just not the screenplay format

[Rene · Rating 4 out of 5]

read for class