Sylvia Maida Dominguez was an American writer. She writes about social themes rather than political ones, and her work has been described as humorous and often touching, with simple characters and everyday struggles.
Background
Sylvia Maida Dominguez was born on November 28, 1935, in the Rio Grande Valley of south Texas, to Jesus J. and Adela de la Garza Vasquez.
Sylvia Maida Dominguez was the oldest of four girls born to Jesus J. and Adela de la Garza Vasquez, and grew up in the Rio Grande Valley of south Texas, an area with a rich blend of Mexican and Texan culture. She spent many summers on her aunts’ farm in Penitas, Texas, where she created plots for a children’s game called Las comadritas, in which players act out everyday events.
Education
In grade school, Sylvia was often chosen to create and produce the school pageants, showing a talent she would continue to use throughout her creative life. She also studied music and ballet, which contributed to her dramatic work. Dominguez earned an M.A. in English and Spanish at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas, and later earned an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Arizona; her doctoral dissertation discussed the romantic drama of the Mexican writer Jose Peon y Contreras. After completing her Ph.D., she became a member of the Spanish faculty at the Pan American University in Edinburg, Texas.
Career
Dominguez wrote plays. La comadre María is a three-act play starring Maria, who is a folk healer and advice-giver of the barrio. In addition to her plays, Dominguez has also been involved in producing the Posadas, which are reenactments of the journey of Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem shortly before Christ’s birth. She began producing these at Pan American University in 1960 and continued to do so through 1966. She then produced them at the Town Square of the City of Edinburg, Texas, for the people of Hidalgo County, from about 1984-1988.
Only one of Dominguez’s plays, La Comadre Maria, has ever been published. It has been distributed in Spain, Mexico, Argentina, and other Spanish-speaking countries, as well as throughout the United States, but she has not received much attention from literary critics. Despite this lack of public recognition, her works have been locally performed with great success and have been enthusiastically received by audiences.
Achievements
Dominguez may be best known for her plays. La comadre María is a three-act play starring Maria, who is a folk healer and advice-giver of the barrio.
In addition to Sylvia's plays, Dominguez has also been involved in producing the Posadas, which are reenactments of the journey of Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem shortly before Christ's birth.
Dominguez was a member of the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese, Southwestern Council of Latin American Studies and Texas Association of College Teachers.
Personality
Dominguez is American but writes in Spanish, drawing on the Mexican-American cultural heritage of South Texas, where she grew up. She writes about social themes rather than political ones, and her work has been described as humorous and often touching, with simple characters and everyday struggles. She cites the Spanish poet and playwright Federico García Lorca as one of the major influences on her work.
Interests
Hiking, bird-watching, beach-combing
Connections
Dominguez married John F. Dominguez in 1959. They have a son, John J. Dominguez.
