CSUN GETS BIG CLASH GIFT.

Byline: - Fred Shuster

Acclaimed Latino comedy-theater troupe Culture Clash has donated its archives to California State University, Northridge.

The collection takes in drafts of scripts, posters, playbills and art work from the ensemble's 20-year history. Items from the archive will go on display May 5 in the university's library.

Culture Clash's brand of Latino theater, combining humor and social commentary, has been performed throughout the country. Last year, the troupe's ``Chavez Ravine,'' a production about the controversial origins of Dodger Stadium, ran at the Mark Taper Forum.

Susan C. Curzon, dean of the CSUN library, called the ensemble ``a California treasure,'' adding that the archives will interest researchers for years to come.

The troupe's best-known plays include ``The Mission,'' ``A Bowl of Beings,'' ``Bordertown'' and ``S.O.S. - Comedy for These Urgent Times,'' written in response to the Los Angeles riots.

Members of Culture Clash said the work of Chicano studies professor Rodolfo Acuna helped spark the donation. Acuna, who has taught at the university for more than 30 years, helped found the Chicano Studies department, believed to be the oldest such program of its kind in the nation.