Video Interview: @ThisFunktional talks with REAL WOMEN HAVE CURVES’ Actress talks about what makes this version of the play special for her

Jesus Figueroa, @T@Thisfunktionalf ThisFunktional.com talks with actress Blanca Araceli about her role in REAL WOMEN HAVE CURVES, returning to Casa 0101 in December 2026 after first six-week run ends on May 3, 2026. Bianca Araceli is an actress, director, producer, choreographer and cultural leader whose career spans more than three decades across film, television and theatre in the United States, Mexico and Brazil. She voiced the character of the Emcee in the Disney/Pixar’s Academy Award-winning feature film, Coco, and appeared as Rosa in the film, Good Fortune, directed by Aziz Ansari, starring Keanu Reeves. Other film credits include: HBO’s Unimundo 45, The Call Us Sediciosos, Christina, Feeding Mr. Baldwin, Road to Juarez and East Side Story. She has appeared in guest starring roles on television shows: Matlock alongside Kathy Bates, Netflix’s Monsters where she appears as “Grandma Maria,” and in the recurring role of Viva in Doctor Odyssey. Other television credits include appearances on The Connors, Mr. Mayor, Animal Kingdom, S.W.A.T., Station 19, Cherish The Day, Party of Five, The Bridge, Veep, American Horror Story, Shameless, Young & Hungry, East Los High, I’m Sorry and Southland. On stage Araceli has been seen in more than 80 theatrical productions, including appearing as Carmen García in productions of Real Women Have Curves presented by the Dallas Theater Center, the Garry Marshall Theatre and at the Pasadena Playhouse. Since 1996 she has served as Director and Choreographer of Tierra Blanca Dance Company. In 2002 she founded Tierra Blanca Arts Center dedicated to preserving and celebrating Latino heritage through the performing arts. In 2024 she opened Blanca Araceli Acting Studio. REAL WOMEN HAVE CURVES is set in a tiny sewing factory in East L.A. in 1987, 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, 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 the money, Ana doesn’t like working at the factory and has little respect for the coworkers, who make fun of her ambitions and what they consider her idealistic feminist philosophies. However, Ana keeps coming to her job and chronicling her 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. Written by Josefina López Directed by Corky Dominguez Cast: Stefany Arroyo, Yasha Alaniz, Blanca Araceli, Amy Melendrez, Laura Vega Understudies: Mariana Montes Sandoval, Gabriela Machuca ——————————————————— Anchor podcasts: anchor.fm/ThisFunktional anchor.fm/while-we-were-gaming anchor.fm/LatinX-Talks Gaming channels: twitch.com/ThisFunktional facebook.com/gaming/thisfunktionalgaming Tipping Page: streamelements.com/thisfunktional/tip PayPal.me/ThisFunktionalBlog Like, Follow, Subscribe to ThisFunktional: Thisfunktional.com @thisfunktional instagram.com/thisfunktional facebook.com/thisfunktional YouTube.com/thisfunktional thisfunktional.tumblr.com