GALA Hispanic Theatre’s Intimate Kiss of the Spider Woman Bravely Reflects and Revolts

['Daniella Ignacio', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus', 'Display Inline', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Where Img', 'Height Auto Max-Width', 'Vertical-Align Bottom .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Vertical-Align Middle .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar Is .Alignleft .Alignright'] Washington City Paper 2025-09-23 19:32:45

This fall, the musical version of Manuel Puig’s best-known work, El beso de la mujer araña (Kiss of the Spider Woman), is getting a movie adaptation. In this adaptation, Molina is the “Spider Woman,” a narrative device that creates a more intimate world by streamlining and simplifying the storytelling. (The musical has a third character, the “Spider Woman,” personifying escapism; having an imprisoned person trying to escape themself through storytelling feels more poignant.) As Washingtonians are being taken from the streets and imprisoned, it’s easy to draw chilling parallels between Kiss of the Spider Woman and today’s reality. Kiss of the Spider Woman, written by Manuel Puig and directed by José Luis Arellano, runs through Sept. 28 at GALA Hispanic Theatre.