I was about a week old when I learned there was a staged musical version of the 1996 Disney animated classic The Hunchback of Notre Dame (this still ranks as the best Disney animated film opening of all time, with The Lion King being a close tie) so when I learned that a 99-seat theatre company called CASA 0101 was going to mount their own production of it with a largely Latino cast, I knew I had to check it out.

While I had some reservations wondering how in the world a large scale musical could be pulled off in a black box space, director Rigo Tejeda pulls off a most valiant and incredible attempt with a very able cast of 22 actors that is absolutely worth seeing for this holiday season.

In fifteenth-century Paris, the bells of Notre Dame ring out as Quasimodo, the bell-ringer, watches the city celebrate the Feast of Fools. Convinced by his uncle, Archdeacon Frollo, to stay hidden due to his appearance, Quasimodo yearns to explore the world. Against Frollo’s wishes, he ventures out and joins the festivities, where he faces cruelty except from the Romani dancer Esmeralda. As Frollo’s fury escalates, Quasimodo, Esmeralda, and Phoebus defy societal constraints to rescue each other amidst mounting tensions, set to a stirring score in this timeless tale.

If you’re like me and had no idea there was a staged musical version of the Disney animated film, know that this almost three-hour musical consists of new numbers and a darker take as it skews more faithfully to the original Victor Hugo novel where the villain Claude Frollo has a younger brother named Jehan (but unlike the novel, Jehan was banished with a gypsy woman and she birthed a deformed child who would become Quasimodo). In terms of the reworked writing from Peter Parnell and new songs by Alan Menken & Stephen Schwartz, I much prefer the original animated film as I had mixed feelings about the whole “everything is connected” trope I find quite overused in entertainment.

But when it comes to the actual performance that I saw, once again I admire the effort and the immense difficulty CASA 0101 was able to tackle by putting up a musical of this size with 22 actors running around. Kudos to the ensemble members Rachel Aspyn, André Heimos, Angelica Ornelas, Gabriella Ortiz, Alyssa Rojas, Jocelyn Thalia Sanchez, and Dian Yu with all the dancing, singing, and most notably the fast and furious costume changes. This of course requires a shoutout to the stage manager Joaquín Madrid Larrañaga and ASM Doreen Sanchez for running the show efficiently with so many moving parts.

While I can nitpick on sound, rhythm, and some slight acting issues, I would much rather focus on the absolute talent CJ Cruz brings to the title role of Quasimodo as he is one serious powerhouse of a performer. When he belts his rendition of “Out There,” you forget that you’re watching a musical in a black box space but transported to a Broadway stage because that’s how good he is. Christopher J Thumé brings a lot of zany fun with the jester Clopin while Jack Bernaz brings surprising humanity to the despicable Frollo. Bimei Flores brings out quite a lovely voice for the role of Esmeralda but my only criticism is that she can imbue the role with more confidence. Drew Maidment has also quite the voice for Phoebus but it doesn’t serve him to have the production adhere so closely to how the animated version looked like because that version already looked pretty ridiculous. The confidence note can also applied as I didn’t quite believe he was a soldier, let alone captain of the guard.

The biggest thing going for this production is just how many global majority talent there is for this production not only onstage but also for the production team as so much of the behind the scenes talent are of Latino descent. What’s even more wonderful is that the CASA 0101 theatre company has provided free acting, singing, and dancing classes to 528 youth since August 2021 as well as providing low cost classes for adults. Upon more research, CASA 0101 was founded by Josefina Lopez (author of Real Women Have Curves) in 2000 to fulfill her vision of bringing art and live theater programs to the Boyle Heights community she grew up in. Her work has opened doors for so many global majority talent to become involved in the arts and I cannot stress enough how much I am delighted to have discovered this theatre company for the first time.

Though there are some things that can be smoothed out for this production, it is a rousing success overall that is a fantastic celebration of global majority and Latino talent that is a good time for all musical theatre lovers. Performances are every Friday/Saturday at 8pm & Sunday at 3pm till December 22. CASA 0101 Theater is located at 2102 E 1st St Los Angeles, CA 90033.