Tatianna Córdoba and Justina Machado to Star in Real Women Have Curves: The Musical on Broadway

Real Women Have Curves: The Musical, the Mexican-American coming-of-age musical, has announced two of its leading ladies. The show will open at the James Earl Jones Theatre on April 1 with an opening night set for April 27.

Tatianna Córdoba will star as ambitious high school senior Ana Garcia, the role that marked America Ferrera’s breakout debut in the 2002 HBO film of the same name. Starring alongside her will be film and television actress Justina Machado (One Day at a Time, Pulse) as Carmen Garcia, Ana’s hardworking mother who imagines a traditional life for her daughter. Further casting is to be announced.

Based on the play by Josefina López and its subsequent 2002 film, which had a screenplay by López and George LaVoo, the musical version of Real Women Have Curves has music and lyrics by Grammy Award winner Joy Huerta of the Mexican pop duo Jesse & Joy and composer-lyricist Benjamin Velez, a book by Lisa Loomer with Nell Benjamin and music supervision by Nadia DiGiallonardo. Direction and choreography is by Tony Award winner Sergio Trujillo.

The show's creative team also includes music direction by Roberto Sinha, scenic design by Arnulfo Maldonado, costume design by Wilberth Gonzalez and Paloma Young, lighting design by Natasha Katz, sound design by John Shivers, video design by Hana S. Kim, hair, wig and makeup design by Krystal Balleza and orchestrations by Nadia DiGiallonardo, Joy Huerta, Rich Mercurio and Benjamin Velez. The stage production of Real Women Have Curves had its world premiere at the American Repertory Theater at Harvard University in 2023 (Machado reprises her performance from that production).

It’s the summer of 1987, and Ana Garcia dreams of flying away from East Los Angeles. But when her family receives a make-or-break order for 200 dresses, Ana finds herself juggling her own ambitions, her mother’s expectations and a community of women all trying to make it work against the odds.