By Irma Iliana Gutierrez –

At a Proyecto Latina open mic, an actress re-enacted the embarrassing story of her mother presenting her with silicone breast inserts. In short, her brother found the inserts and made of fun of her until she whacked him across the face with silicone breast in hand yelling, “Titty slap, titty slap!”

Irasema Gonzalez

Irasema Gonzalez is the co-founder of Proyecto Latina, a once a month open mic held in Chicago. She is also the owner and founder of Tianguis books, tea and cultura.  A Columbia College graduate, Gonzalez opened Tianguis three years ago.

“I love books and maybe I’m a little insane….it was the kind of place I was looking  to walk into…I looked all over the city to find books from authors from all over Latin America. I wanted to get those stories out there,” she said.

It was a place the community could come together and find books and read about authors they had only ever heard mentioned.

Although Tianguis has now closed its doors, you can still order books from Latino authors at their Web site. Gonzalez, however, still is doing her part to encourage Latina artists through the open mic on the third Monday of every month at Radio Arte in Pilsen, 1401 W. 18th St.

Proyecto Latina is a joint operation of Gonzalez, Diana Pando and Coya Paz, co-founder of Teatro Luna, an all-Latina theater group in Chicago. Proyecto Latina was created to give Latinas “a power platform to catapult themselves as artists and to take themselves more seriously…to validate our own,” Gonzalez said.

Proyecto Latina has become a safe networking space for all Latina artists to get to know one another and build working relationships. Latinas can come showcase their works in progress, get feedback and make the connections to get their works on stage or in print. It has become a place where the community of Latina artists can come together and share a little culture.

“It’s a space where anyone can come in and share ideas and thoughts even if they are just written down on a napkin,” Paz said.

They have also added the “Chisme Box” which audience members can submit juicy gossip that is read in between performers. Paz said there can be a huge audience or “it can be as small and intimate as being in a hair salon.”

“Many artists have made connections and gotten positive feedback on their work and the interest to continue it. Playwright, director and actress Tanya Saracho has used the group as a test audience or focus group for new work and to see whether it would have universal appeal.

Saracho has been working on a stage adaptation of the book “The House on Mango Street” by Sandra Cisneros.

Proyecto Latina also is featured on Radio Arte Sundays at 6 p.m. on WRTE 90.5 FM.

“The more people know about it, the more people benefit from this grassroots initiative,” Gonzalez said. “It’s really a labor of love.”