This is a collection of approximately four linear feet of papers relating to Diane Rodriguez's career with the Center Theater Group's Latino Theater Initiative as well as her work as a leader in the creative community and as an actor.

Diane Rodriguez was born and raised in San Jose, California in the 1950's; her mother was born in Blythe, California and her father was born in San Angelo, Texas. She graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara with a B.A. in Theatre Arts and after graduation immediately joined El Teatro Campesino/the Theater of the Farmworkers where she was a leading actor for eleven years. In 1988, she co-founded the comedy troupe Latins Anonymous and published a two play anthology titled Latins Anonymous (Arte Publico Press 1996) that remains popular today. She was the director of the Latino Theatre Initiative at the Mark Taper Forum-a program that developed Latino theatre artists and audiences. In 2005 she became Associate Producer/Director of New Play Production at Center Theatre Group Los Angeles, positioning her as one of the most visible Latinas in the American theater. She won an Off Broadway Obie Award for Performance in 2007. She continues to direct, write and act. Her work is distinguished for its deeply political bend and use of humor to confront various forms of oppression

4 linear feet

For students and faculty researchers of UCLA, all others by permission only. Copyright has not been assigned to the Chicano Studies Research Center. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Archivist and/or the Librarian at the Chicano Studies Research Center Library. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

Collection is open for research.