Rosa Isabella Salvatierra and Heather Lee Echeverria in I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter. Photo by Jamie Kraus Photography

While audiences don’t need to speak Spanish to fully enjoy the Denver Center Theatre Company’s production of I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, understanding the lingo may offer a deeper appreciation of the play. Based on the New York Times Bestselling novel by Erika L. Sánchez and written for the stage by Isaac Gómez, audiences will fall in love with young Júlia who struggles with her sister’s death and expectations of her family.

La Virgencita: Often used colloquially to refer to the Virgin Mary and also known as Our Lady of Guadalupe or La Morenita, is a cultural symbol and Catholic site that is a form of the Virgin Mary and the patron saint of Mexico

Caca: Poop / crap / shit 💩

Que malcriada: How bratty / spoiled / impolite / rude 🖕🏼

Como te gusta la mala vida: Choosing a bad life / the dissolute lifestyle suits you

Amá: Mother

Apá: Father

Mija: meaning my daughter 👧🏽 mija is used as a familiar and affectionate address to women, like dear or honey 🍯

Pobresita: translates roughly to poor thing or poor baby and it is an appropriate word to use to show empathy with an endearing connotation ❤️‍🩹

Piñata: a container, often made of papier-mâché, pottery, or cloth, that is decorated, filled with candy, and then broken as part of a celebration

Tía: Aunt

Tortillas: made of flour in northern Mexico, tortillas are primarily made of corn masa as corn is native to Mexico

Quesadilla: In the United States, a half-folded taco heated directly on a grill with any cheese, usually in a flour tortilla. In central and southern Mexico, a blue corn tortilla filled with any guisado (A broad term, but usually refers to braises and stews), with or without cheese. It bears repeating, a quesadilla in Mexico can go without cheese.

Tío: Uncle

Carne asada: grilled and sliced flank steak 🥩

Al pastor: spit-grilled slices of pork, often served with pineapple 🍍

Quinceañera: the celebration of a girl’s 15th birthday, marking her passage from girlhood to womanhood

Santa Muerte: or more formally, Nuestra Señora de la Santa Muerte (Our Lady of Holy Death) is the personification of death herself. Santa Muerte is a thin, skeletal figure, often depicted as a female Grim Reaper and is associated with healing, protection and safe delivery to the afterlife by her devotees. Santa Muerte almost always appears as a female skeletal figure, clad in a long robe and holding one or more objects, usually a scythe and a globe. Her robe can be of any color, as more specific images of the figure vary widely from devotee to devotee and according to the ritual being performed or the petition being made.

Quince: The number 15, fifteen. Can abbreviate quinceañera to quince 1️⃣5️⃣

Feminista: Feminist

Callate la boca: Shut up / Shut your mouth 🤐

Amor Eterno: Eternal / everlasting love 💕

Also a famous song by Juan Gabriel. the song is a deeply personal exploration of love, loss, and the enduring power of memory and longing. The inspiration came from the loss of Juan’s mother who died when he was only 13 years old.

Chiles: Hot pepper 🌶️

El Jefe: The boss

Ven: Come / see

Bigotes: Mustache

Pues: Well / Since / Then

Que paso, hermano: What’s going on bro?

Y El Rafa: And where’s Rafael?

Si, gracias a Dios: Yes, thank God

Queso: Cheese 🧀

Con frijoles y sopita: With beans and sopita (Mexican noodle soup)

Señorita: Miss / lady

Gordita: Chubby / fat

Que paz descanse: May they rest in peace 🕊️

Borracho: Drunk 🍻

Hermana: Sister 👭

Pinche gringa: Fucking North Americans / White people 🤠

Andale: Hurry up / come along

El guero: Fair-haired person 👱🏻‍♀️

Así, mira: Like this, look 👀

La chinga: Pain in the butt / nightmare 💀

Padre: Father

Tu: without an accent means your

Muñeca: Doll

Mira: Look

Sueña: to dream 💭

Que no existen fronteras y amor sin barreras no mires atrás: There are no borders and love without barriers, don’t look back. And part of Luis Miguel’s song, “Sueña”

Señora: a title or form of address used of or to a Spanish-speaking woman, corresponding to Mrs. or madam.

Novia: Girlfriend

Chambelán: a male member of the court of honor at a quinceañera

Por favor: Please

Cabrona: Bitch

La luna: The moon 🌙

Loteria: a traditional Mexican board game of chance, similar to bingo, and is played on a deck of cards instead of numbered ping pong balls. Every image has a name and an assigned number, but the number is usually ignored

Sucia: Impure / dirty

Como una güila: Like a whore / prostitute

Una cochina: Pig / filthy / rotten / lousy 🐷

Que cochina: What a filthy / pig / rotten / lousy

Pero: But

Cierre la puerta pinche maricon : Close the door 🚪 f***ing queer / faggot / pussy / wimp

Uno: One

Dos: Two

Estás bien: Are you OK? 🆗

Medicina: Medicine / pills 💊

Hola prima: Hi cousin

Mi niña: My girl

Neta guey: Honestly, dude

Dile hola: Say hi

Y todo: And all

Buenas tardes, señoritas: Good afternoon ladies

Pesado: Boring / tiresome / annoying 🥱

Cuídala: Take care

El otro lado: The other side / another side / somewhere else / the U.S. – Mexico border

Mole: A sauce with ingredients from five different categories: chiles (at least two different types); sour (tomatoes or tomatillos); sweet (dried fruits or sugar); spices; and thickeners (bread, tortillas, nuts or seeds). Once the paste is formed, it’s mixed with water or broth, and then simmered for hours until it’s thick.

Verdad: True ✅

Te verás: To see / to verify / to witness / to check 👁️‍🗨️

La frontera: The border

Amorcita: My love / sweetheart / darling / sweetie 💗

El coyote: a human smuggler. Many migrants wanting to enter the United States hire coyotes to guide them.

El Centro: Town center

Claro: Of course

Narcos: Drug trafficker

Bueno: Good / well 👍🏽

Que bueno: Excellent

Nueva York: New York  🗽

No si, Chicago es mucho mejor: Yes, Chicago is much better

Ay, como nos haces sufrir: Oh, how you make us suffer

No se si maldecirte o por ti rezar: I don’t know whether to curse you or pray for you 🙏🏼

Perdóname: Forgive me

Por si se te antoja algo: Just in case you crave / feel like you want anything

Details

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter

Sep 27 – Nov 3, 2024 • Kilstrom Theatre

Tickets