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Marytza K Rubio_1b.jpg

I went to Catholic school as a kid and work[ed] at a performing arts center, so Bulgakov’s parallel Biblical story, amazing theater scene, literary drama, and Satan all feel restorative when I’m distracted or depleted.

The business case for DEIB gets brought up a lot in the arts, like ‘prove that this won’t ruin us.’ But that’s fear talking...You’re going to sell out a cumbia show if you are familiar with the music and have a thoughtful understanding of the 1 million people of Latin American descent living right outside the venue.

If the stories in our books and on our stages exclude the nuance and complexity of the multicultural world, they are failing to honor our shared humanity.

I’ve been writing the stories for nearly a decade...I can see it as a glass jar holding shiny talismans of all my foundational influences: tarot cards, the ocean, big cats, odd flowers, eggs. I’ve joked that an alternative title could be “All the Men Are Dead,” and it’s mostly accurate to the characters and the choices they make.

Photo by Julie Leopo

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