It’s everything we had hoped it would be, and then some. On her latest production, comedian Cristela Alonzo delivers the laughs and a lot of heart. The Netflix original – written and produced by Cristela herself – just landed on the streaming service this week, and let me tell you it’s so worth streaming right now!
Aptly titled, Cristela Alonzo: Lower Classy, the one-hour, stand-up comedy routine taped in San Antonio, Texas reminds us again why we all fell head over heels for the South Texas-born Alonzo. She’s witty and heartfelt in her usual boisterous, sometimes animated, delivery. Towards the end – spoiler alert here – Cristela even makes us cry as she recounts a very personal moment between herself and her mother. One that she says she won’t share again, but that she wanted to include in this special to honor immigrant women like her mother who too often are overlooked.
It’s a tearjerker of a moment until Cristela quickly brings us back to laughter.
You can’t help but to identify with Cristela Alonzo. Especially if you are a Mexican or Mexican-American from Texas like I am. She shares her experience as a first generation American, delves into politics for a bit (i.e. the infamous wall and such), talks about our shared love for Selena as Latinos, reminisces on her childhood and what it was like growing up as a poor brown girl, and even broaches the subject of her now canceled ABC self-titled television sitcom.
Three years after arriving into the mainstream with Cristela on ABC, Alonzo is well acclimated to the entertainment industry now and comes off as confident and deliberate in sharing her voice and story. I couldn’t help but to want more Cristela after the special came to a rousing end in the form of applause and laughter from the audience.
In her own words – as she shared with Mic recently:
“I want to be honest about my life. It hasn’t been easy, and I meet people all the time who have had similar lives. I want them to know that there’s a chance. There’s always hope. I feel like I’m very fearless, because I grew up so poor that I’ve got nothing to lose. At the end of the day, what’s the worst that can happen? That I go back to being poor? I’m used to it.
My life was such a long shot. All I had to do was really try, and work hard. If you’re willing to do that, something amazing can happen.”
