Featured Playwright — Mercedes Isaza Clunie

Each month we interview member playwrights to share their work, stories and inspiration with the community. We recently spoke with Mercedes Isaza Clunie, a queer, Chilean-Canadian playwright, actor, and poet from Toronto!

Mercedes’ writing explores topics such as girlhood, culture, sexuality, and language through diverse formats that both disrupt traditional conventions and celebrate the essence of theatre. Her play Gringas is a six-time award winning play and has been showcased across Canada at Toronto and Hamilton Fringe, Calgary’s Ignite Festival, and Aluna Theatre’s RUTAS Festival. Mercedes was awarded the Tom Hendry RBC Emerging Playwright Award this past October (2024), and is an alumni of Paprika Festival’s Playwriting Unit, where she began workshopping her second play Pablo and Bill Make a Baby. She holds a BFA in Acting from York University and is currently Tarragon’s RBC Playwright in Residence. Her friends and family refer to her as ‘Meche’, colloquially.

Tell us how you got your start writing plays.

I started writing short plays in university. I’m a huge poetry fan and I would read and write a lot of poetry throughout theatre school to cope with all the feelings that come with studying in an emotionally jam-packed environment at a pivotal point in life.

I remember wanting desperately to direct. In the eyes of my young actor self, director was the power position. You get to lead a space the way you’d like to be led, and contribute to the overall vision of a play. When I first started writing, I wrote so I could direct in our student-led theatre festival. I took all my poems and added characters and plot and story. Delving into the themes my poems touched on in a way that would be enhanced on stage and be juicy for any actor to dig into.

Turns out — writing is fun. It’s fun and I’m really good at it. I wrote and directed two of my plays in school, but my writing was always the stand out.

I graduated from my conservatory program with a bit of beef towards acting. The few auditions I had gotten were hell on earth, the stories and plays that existed for women, queer folks, and Latines were weak and few and far between. I felt that there was a gap for me to fill and change for me to make, and the only way I could think about making that kind of change was to quit complaining and start creating my own theatre. That’s when Gringas came to be.

In 2024, you received PGC’s RBC Emerging Playwright Award for Gringas. Can you tell us about what inspired you to write this piece, and what receiving the award meant to you?

Winning a Tom Hendry at this point in my career was like………CRAZY?!?! I can’t believe that I won. I was so happy to hear that I’d been nominated. It was just so special to be recognized for my writing, and for this play in particular.

Gringas tells the story of seven Latina teenagers who have lost their ability to speak Spanish and are forced by their mothers to attend a Spanish-only summer camp. It’s a play about friendship, culture, language, identity, sexuality, and all from the eyes of teens. Teens who are in the process of realizing how their country has failed them, how their ancestors have failed them, and how they’ve been failing themselves. The play strives for hope and change by asking us how we can redefine ourselves and our country, so our multiculturalism is not erased.

I was inspired by my own experience growing up as a second-generation Chilean-Canadian. I wasn’t Canadian in the way some of my friends were, and I definitely wasn’t Chilean like my family in South America. I wasn’t even as Chilean as my mom, or as my abuela. It’s a lonely feeling in a country that is so deeply impacted by labels. I remember feeling that the people I felt most akin to were the Latinas I knew who grew up here, but came from somewhere else. My cousins, my parents’ friends’ kids, my peers from theatre school (some of which performed in Gringas). But none of them were Chilean. They all came from different places, but we were missing the same language, the same connections, shared the same feeling of… who am I?

That’s how Gringas came to be. A play with a bunch of different Latinas from across the diaspora coming together and saying: I am Latina-Canadian and MY STORY MATTERS. I wrote well rounded young women, queer characters, shy Latinas, loud latinas, sexy and unsexy Latinas. Every character was different from the last, allowing us to steer away from the stereotypes so often associated with our community. We produced the play at Toronto Fringe last year, which completely changed my career and was also one of the most special experiences I’ve had in theatre to date. When everyone in the room is Latine, we can actually be ourselves. Living honestly in our intersections without the pressure of being digestible or ‘latina enough’. We can be smart, funny, sexy, stupid, and different from one another, cause we’re not the only ones in the room. Proving the importance of diversifying our theatre seasons and telling stories that don’t just deal with minorities in conflict with whiteness, but in conflict with themselves, each other, and the world.

The RBC Emerging Playwright Award going to Gringas is an indication that our stories are worth being shared, and that my work as a Latina-Canadian playwright is something that must and will continue to grow and evolve. It makes room for other playwrights and voices to come up and write their words. In whatever language that best expresses who they are.

You are currently in residency at Tarragon Theatre in Toronto, ON, having received their 2024/25 RBC Emerging Playwright Award. What have been the challenges and rewards of that experience so far?

OOF — writing at the Tarragon has proved to be one of my biggest challenges as a playwright. I’m currently working on my third full length play with lots of resources and support from Tarragon and from Jeff Ho, who is a wonderful person, dramaturg, and mentor to me.

I’ve always loved Tarragon. I grew up on St. Clair and Oakwood, so that theatre was the closest to my house and is where my parents used to go on date nights, making it one of the first theatre spaces I was aware of in my life. I saw many a play at the Tarragon and remember being moved deeply by the work produced there. From Girls Like That, to YAGA, to Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes to Jeff Ho’s Cockroach.

That being said, working with them is a MAJOR deal for me and my family which puts some crazy PRESSURE on me to write something amazing so I don’t squander this opportunity. I’ve really struggled with self-criticism and feelings of unworthiness over the past eight months. Which has nothing to do with the institution and everything to do with where I’m at in my career. I’ve always written in resistance, fighting to have my work seen and shared. Now, I have people who want to see my work and who care about my success and creative well being. I’ve had to face a lot of demons to get to the place I’m at now with my newest work All That’s Been Said (working title). I’ve spoken to a lot of my playwriting peers and allies and I’m coming to terms with the fact that this is something all playwrights deal with. Playwrights have a bitter-sweet relationship to their audience. I don’t want to write something because I know audiences want it, but still — I want the audience and the institution to love my work. It’s a tough line to sit on and it’s the first time I’m sitting on it.

All That’s Been Said is a choral, poetic, and epic adventure story that still feels impossible to describe. The play follows an ethereal being named Someone in the aftermath of a major spiritual fuck up. The play travels through space, time, and explores humanity and otherworldliness in some weird, wacky and hilarious ways. When Someone connects with a human Azul, they’re faced with an alien feeling that doesn’t quite sit right. I’m exploring philosophy, mortality, and love in a truly magical container that keeps growing and evolving throughout my residency. It’s different from anything I’ve ever written before and it will knock your socks off.

This month is Playwriting Week at Tarragon where All That’s Been Said will be workshopped with some amazing actors, a great director, and Jeff. It will be showcased at a free reading held at the theatre on June 12th, and is the first thing I have to show for as a part of my residency. Wish me luck!

You produce work with your own company, First Born Theatre, a Latine, queer-led company that focuses on the development of bold, new Canadian work. What have you learned in your role as Artistic Director, and what do you hope to see the company accomplish in the coming years?

The First Born Theatre Community just keeps growing! I’m so happy with how it’s going and I love everything we’re working on currently. We have a new comedy musical Killy Willy that will premiere at Toronto Fringe this summer, a bi-lingual Playwriting Roundtable in the works, and an Artist In Residency program that supports four minority emerging artists in their individual pursuits. Last year was our inaugural year and we worked with around 20 artists, and this year that number has more than doubled!

I’ve learned so much from producing, both practical and spiritual. The first being that I love it. It’s so great to help build a space where artists can feel safe, be creative, and are given permission to be brave, bold, and excellent in the exact way that suits them. I think that when we’re early career artists or in theatre school we’re often told “how things are”. For sure there is an industry standard to be aware of, but there’s a lot of things about our industry that aren’t working and that don’t resonate with so many. At First Born, we have a moral-based producing practice and we actively think of the ways we can make an artist’s experience better. We want the work to be great, yes, but more than that we want people to enjoy their time in the space.

I’ve learnt a lot of soft skills on how to manage people and different artistic viewpoints. If I were to give advice to a young artistic director or producer (based on what I’ve learnt) I think I would say: (1) vibes matter. Pick people to work with that have good energy. If you wouldn’t feel comfortable having them meet your mom (or someone just as equivalently loved), they are probably not for you. (2) Everyone is different and that’s okay! That’s what makes us special and that’s what makes great art. When we start dictating what’s “good” or “bad” based on our personal artistic preferences we miss out on some really wonderful people and work. And (3) Spend your money on artists more than anything else. They are what keep theatre alive.

At First Born we work kindly, patiently, with humour. We prioritize minority voices thoughtfully and make sure our work speaks to the issues we care about. Uplifting these artists in a way that makes them want to continue pursuing their craft. Being a leader at First Born is probably the most rewarding piece of my artistic career, and it’s so great to know that everything I’ve received in my career is largely in part to the community that I’ve helped build.

We’d love to be around for as long as it makes sense to us and are looking into more forms of independent production. Hopefully bringing Gringas to a professional stage! I also have dreams of building a year-round company that works exclusively with First Born and pays artists for a year’s worth of work. Maybe one day we will turn First Born into a small theatre school that will change the whole Canadian theatre scene. We have lots of hopes and ideas for the future, but for now we’re just taking it one step at a time and doing our best to take care of our people.

What would you say is your driving force as a playwright?

I have something to say.

Some of my playwriting peers make fun of me because I often refer to myself as “one of the greats” which is hilarious and cheesy and could very well be interpreted as egotistical, but yes. I think my work is “great” in the way that many classic and canonical writers are. It’s accessible and intelligent and entertaining and will last beyond my lifetime. I know it sounds crazy, but that’s how I feel and I think any writer who is worth their nuts should approach the world with this mindset. Confidence isn’t cockiness and it isn’t just for white boys.

If there’s a God, and I believe there is (in some form), He put me on earth to share my writing. The world will move in a way that makes space for that.

Canada is still young, and I think we’re at the age of change. The playwrights you witness coming onto the scene today are the great writers of our generation and every generation. We still have the power to define our country’s culture and artistic identity. Meaning that the artists you witness writing very well could be our own Canadian legends.

That spirituality is the first thing that keeps me going. Then, what follows is my drive to make work that uplifts my communities. I want young Latinas have monologues for theatre school. I want to hear multilingual work on the Toronto stages! I want to put queer people of colour on stage, decolonizing queerness and working to reduce the capitalization of queerness. I want my family to see me be successful. I want to make people happy, and cathartic, and introduce them to new ideas. I want to create a sense of community.

What are you working on next?

I’m working on my Tarragon piece All That’s Been Said and if I finish it on time I will be spending the rest of my residency working on a verbatim(ish) piece called How Lesbians Say I’m Sorry. I’m a member of Factory Theatre’s TEPS program this June which will be fruitful and fun. I am also working to bring my second play Pablo and Bill Make a Baby to a full workshop. That one’s cool — telling the lesbian love story of Pablo Neruda and William Shakespeare from the perspective of their Baby. When the fall comes, First Born will work towards bringing Gringas to a professional stage. Lots of writing! What a sweet life this is.

Do you have any favourite Canadian plays and/or which artists are currently inspiring you?

I have a couple friends I think are AMAZING. Sydney Scott is a playwright who I’m truly obsessed with. Their writing is edgy, thoughtful, risky, and wonderful. We’re in residency together at Tarragon and I eat up every work they put on the page.

I love Ameer Idreis, who was part of my Paprika cohort. His work tackles big themes in emotionally resonant ways and his writing sounds sweet to the ears.

Both Syd and Ameer are GREAT writers, but they’re also great people. They inspire me in the way they carry themselves through the world and through artistic practice.

In terms of things I’ve seen, I LOVED Flex. I know the writer is American, but the show was amazing and I still can’t stop thinking about it. Acting, writing, directing, set, music, everything — chef’s kiss!

Mercedes’ new work will be showcased during Tarragon Theatre’s Playwriting Week, June 11–14.

Find out more about Mercedes’ theatre company, First Born Theatre at http://firstborntheatre.com/ or @firstborntheatre on Instagram

And follow Mercedes on Instagram @mechemonkey

Disclaimer: Playwrights Guild of Canada (“PGC”) is a national arts service mandated to engage and grow an active Canadian writing community. We promote Canadian plays around the world to advance the creative rights and interests of professional Canadian playwrights for the stage. The views of our members are their own. The opinions of PGC as an association remain neutral.