Writer’s creative journey reaches Old Globe after start at nearby Junior Theatre
The plaza outside the Old Globe will come to life Friday as the venue welcomes patrons again File photo courtesy of Old Globe Theatre When writer Gloria Calder n Kellett attends the opening night of her play at the Old Globe Theatre Saturday it will be a step in a long journey that has brought her back home That journey started with theater classes in Balboa Park just a short walk from the Old Globe and with graduation from a high school just a sparse miles away Now it s taken her back to the Old Globe where the theater will host the San Diego premiere of her comedy One of the Good Ones in front of her family and friends Playwright Gloria Calder n Kellett Photo courtesy of Old Globe Theatre It s really an incredible journey to be sitting here and it all worked out she reported in an interview the week before opening night Kellett is no stranger to bright lights She was an executive producer co-creator and writer of the hit Netflix sitcom One Day at a Time a re-imagining of the popular s television show In addition to being a playwright her credits include writing and producing other shows Devious Maids Rules of Engagement and How I Met Your Mother Kellett s success started in San Diego A daughter of Cuban immigrants she was born in Portland Oregon Her parents moved the family to San Diego because it reminded them of Cuba She lived here in her teen years graduating from University of San Diego High School now known as Cathedral Catholic High School Her interest in writing and the theater had started early as she played with her Barbie dolls But it flourished in San Diego when she joined the San Diego Junior Theatre which runs youth theater classes and camps in Balboa Park Kellett credits her parents for supporting her and letting her speak her mind at a young age Family is at the heart of One of the Good Ones about what happens when the perfect Latina daughter brings her new boyfriend home to meet her parents and he s not exactly what they were expecting It reveals generational differences and colliding cultural assumptions but Kellett explores those themes with laughs Doing so with humor kind of sweetens it she disclosed It really makes the medicine go down View this post on Instagram A post shared by Gloria Calder n Kellett gloriakellett She insists that while specific of her personality is imbued in the daughter in the play the character is an amalgam of people and generations And while the play focuses on one Latino family Kellett disclosed the play is ultimately about all families Being a daughter being a parent those are all universal themes she announced Still she added that It s very essential for me to show a Latino family of means We never get to see that in the theater Kellett has been a fierce advocate for efforts to diversify Hollywood and spoke about it at San Diego Comic-Con last year She acknowledges that efforts to open up popular entertainment to Latinos have been hampered by contractions in the industry and the current backlash on diversity and inclusion This is just a huge setback but I m more resolute than ever to continue the fight because I know how central this is she commented Meanwhile Kellett s focus will remain on her keyboard Although she s done acting and stand-up comedy her passion remains writing I can wake up and write she stated A blank page doesn t frighten me You get to fill it every day Or in her scenario one day at a time
