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www.hellohola.org
Eighth Annual HOLA Awards Gala and Benefit
Monday, September 24, 2007
The Players
16 Gramercy Park South, New York City
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Premio HOLA Gala y Beneficio.
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Volar con Pasión.
SM
E i g hth A n nu al H O L A Aw ards an d B enefi t
Monday, September 24, 2007 at 8pm
Tapas Reception at 6:30pm
Mas te r s o f Ce remo n ie s
Jorge Ramos, Co-anchor, Telemundo, Noticiero 47
Odalys Molina, Entertainment Reporter, Telemundo 47
Raú l Ju li á H OLA F o un d ers Aw a r d
Moisés Kaufman
HOL A Ilk a Awa r d
Manny Jiménez
HOLA Excellence in English Language Media Award
Pablo Guzmán
HOLA Excellence in Spanish Language Media Award
Denisse Oller
H O LA Li f e time Ac hie v e m e n t Awa r d
Pilar Rioja
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor
Bill Blechingberg Zanahorias Reyes/Navarro/Immediate Theater
Lin-Manuel Miranda In The Heights McCollum/Seller/Furman
Javier Ortiz Aventurera Vallejo y Salinas Producciones
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor
Angélica Ayala Baño de damas Thalía Spanish Theatre
Isabel Moreno O.K. (Okay) Repertorio Español
Mônica Steuer Zanahorias Reyes/Navarro/Immediate Theater
Outstanding Performance by a Featured Male Actor
Iván Camilo Lorca con un vestido verde Repertorio Español
Ricardo Hinoa Othello LA TEA/Soñadores Productions
Will Sierra Othello LA TEA/Soñadores Productions
Outstanding Performance by a Featured Female Actor
Olga Merediz In The Heights McCollum/Seller/Furman
Laura Patalano Baño de damas Thalía Spanish Theatre
Kathy Tejada La casa de las siete balcones TEBA
Outstanding Solo Performance
Graciela Rodríguez Como rellenar un bikini salvaje
Repertorio Español/Teatro IATI
Eva Cristina Vásquez Lágrimas negras Teatro Círculo
Outstanding Achievement in Technical Production
Zhanna Gurvich La Llorona
Stageplays Theatre Company (Scenic Design)
Meghan E. Healey Zanahorias
Reyes/Navarro/Immediate Theatre (Costume Design)
Jesús E. Martínez and Chester Poon Othello
LA TEA/Soñadores Productions (Fight Direction)
Outstanding Achievement in Direction
René Buch Lorca con un vestido verde Repertorio Español
Beatriz Córdoba Lágrimas negras Teatro Círculo
Rosalba Rolón The Beep Pregones Theater
Outstanding Achievement in Playwriting
Nilo Cruz Lorca con un vestido verde Repertorio Español
Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegría Hudes
In The Heights McCollum/Seller/Furman
Outstanding Achievement by an Ensemble Cast
Varín Ayala, Rosal Colón, Sol Marina Crespo,
Elise Hernández, Omar Pérez The Beep Pregones Theater
Carlota Carretero, María Castillo, Waddys Jáquez
Cero Repertorio Español
Outstanding Achievement in a Musical Production
Aventurera Vallejo y Salinas Producciones
In The Heights McCollum/Seller/Furman
Los desertores/The Dropouts Society of the Educational Arts
Outstanding Achievement in a Dramatic Production
Cero Repertorio Español
El último rosario de Medea Pregones Theater
Lorca con un vestido verde Repertorio Español
Special Recognition
Teatro LA TEA
Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre
TeatroStageFest
2007 HOLA AWARDEES
Aventurera, written by Carlos Olmos and directed by Enrique
Pineda, is the stage version of the novel by Álvaro Custodio
(which was made into a film in 1949 starring Ninón Sevilla and
featuring the music of Agustín Lara). After being left alone after
her mother runs off with another man and her father kills himself, Elena moves to a new city and attempts to make a life
for herself. The production has toured throughout Mexico and the United States (including Hollywood, California;
Chicago; Houston; Dallas; San Francisco; and New York). When performed at the Monterrey Arena in Mexico, the production played to a sold out world record crowd of 17,000 people.
Vallejo y Salinas Producciones was founded by Guillermina Vallejo and Carmen Salinas. Vallejo y Salinas have been producing Aventurera in a world tour since 1997. The lead role of Elena Tejero has been played by Itatí Cantoral, Niurka Marcos,
Patricia Navidad, Yatana, Adriana Fonseca, Lorena Rojas, and most recently, for the NYC engagement, Edith González.
Angélica Ayala has acted in Una gallina llamada Iris Chacón with Pregones Theater, Mujeres con salsa
picante for the PRTT and with LaMama ETC, among others and has also participated in numerous films in
Italy, France and her native Venezuela. Additionally, she does voiceovers and dubbing and has been in
numerous plays with Teatro SEA. As a teaching artist she has taught drama, storytelling and puppetry with
different after-school and in-school programs. She is also the recipient of an ACE Award (2007) for El último
rosario de Medea (Pregones Theater).
Varín Ayala’s New York theater credits include The Beep, Suzan-Lori Parks’s 365 Days/365 Plays, Una gallina llamada Iris Chacón, The Phone Call, Sissy, and countless staged readings at Pregones; The Dweller at
INTAR; A Doll’s House and Bus Stop with The Actor’s Center; Shakespeare in the Boroughs and another 365
Days/365 Plays at The Public Theater/NYSF; Love’s Labour’s Lost with Kaleidoscope/Cherry Lane; and a reading of the musical Rubirosa in the late Kitty Carlisle Hart’s apartment. Regional credits include Romeo and
Juliet, Angels in America and The Heidi Chronicles. His film work includes the short Wheels of Change (with Jaime Tirelli),
which was recently shown at the New York International Latino Film Festival. He has appeared in countless commercials
and done many voiceovers. He studied at The Actors Center Conservatory and The Public Theater’s Shakespeare Lab and
holds a master’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which served him well in his
previous life as a corporate guy.
Bill Blechingberg returned from Alaska in the Flying Machine’s Drama Desk-nominated version of
Frankenstein and dove right into rehearsal for this wild ride called Zanahorias off-Broadway. He has worked
with SEA, LA TEA, INTAR, Repertorio Español, Soho Rep and Workshop Theater Company; acted in film and
television (Ice Age, Ransom); and is also an award-nominated director. He is the recipient of 2007 ACE and
HOLA awards for his performance in Carrots, a.k.a. Zanahorias. He regularly appears in commercials both
on and off the screen, as well as in radio. He feels privileged to have been surrounded by the support of this beta carotenefilled, brilliant production team and top of the line actors which turned into the zany roller coaster ride of Zanahorias.
René Buch holds a law degree from Havana University in his native Cuba. In 1948, he came to the United States
and enrolled at the Yale Drama School. He directed La dama duende at the Greenwich Mews Theatre in 1968,
produced by Las Artes – Frances Drucker and Gilberto Zaldívar. The success of the production gave birth to a new
company– Repertorio Español. As Artistic Director of Repertorio Español, he has directed La celestina, Who’s
Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, The Glass Menagerie, Life is a Dream, Secret Injury, El día que me quieras, Lorca in a
Green Dress, Anna in the Tropics and nearly the entire Lorca canon, among others. In addition to his work with Repertorio
Español, he has staged operas and directed productions by Shakespeare, Pirandello, Cocteau, Ionesco, Beckett and Calderón and
has worked in regional theaters, including an acclaimed production of Romeo and Juliet at the renowned Oregon Shakespeare
Festival. He has also directed productions at the Milwaukee Rep, The Capital Rep (Albany, New York) and the Juilliard Drama
Center. As a playwright, he has had his own plays staged: The Hollow Shell (published in Cuba, premiered at Yale) and Del agua
de la vida (recipient of Cuba’s National Theatre Award; performed in several Cuban cities). He has also served as a panel member for the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York State Council on the Arts, the Obie Awards Committee and the
Independent Committee on Arts Policy, and as a board member of the Theatre Communications Group.
Iván Camilo studied theater in his native Dominican Republic when he was nine years old. He later graduated from the Santo Domingo’s Escuela Nacional de Bellas Artes. He worked in productions including The
Lion King, Death in Venice, Salomé, The Lion in Winter and Peter Pan. As a dancer, he was a member of
Eduardo Villanueva’s Modern Dance Company and worked with Carlos Veitia in Ballet Concierto. In 1996,
he moved to Puerto Rico with a B.A. degree in Theater and Education. He acted in Dean Zayas and Rosa
Luisa Márquez’s traveling theater production of Fuenteovejuna; Arlequín, servidor de dos amos; Noche de reyes and
Persecución, as well as in productions with Teatro Lírico under the direction of José Ramón Torres. In Puerto Rico, he has
been seen in the productions Otelo; El josco; La charca; Pedro Navaja; as well as in the zarzuelas Las bodas de Luis Alonso
and Molinos de viento; and TV commercials for Pueblo Supermarket, Colgate and Pepsi. His New York credits include
Don Quijote: su última aventura (Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre; HOLA Award) and Lorca con un vestido verde
(Repertorio Español; HOLA Award). He was also a member of the Radio Soap Opera Drama Project in Puerto Rico. His
film credits include Debajo de las piernas, Cimarrón and Cayo.
Carlota Carretero is without a doubt one of the most popular actresses of the Dominican Republic.
Acclaimed by the public, this multitalented artist’s credits include the plays Quintuples, Un whisky por el Rey
Saul, Salome U., as well as appearances in film and television. She is also the founder of Teatro Cocuyo,
which reinvents works together with new generations to create stagings that relate to both traditional and new
audiences, and currently is the director of the Teatro Rodante de la República Dominicana.
María Castillo’s stage credits include Banco de parque, Emily, Las criadas and Puentes. She is the director
of the Escuela Nacional de Arte Escénico de República Dominicana. She has also been recognized with
countless national and international prizes and awards, including the Premio Thalía, Premios Casandra and
is a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Literature of the French government.
Cero, written and directed by Waddys Jáquez (q.v.), takes place at a time where 25
years have passed since the first cases of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
(AIDS) were diagnosed. And despite many efforts, including million dollar campaigns, celebrity promotions, benefit galas, red ribbons, experiments and new discoveries and findings, the terrible pandemic continues growing worldwide, with the
Caribbean being one of the most affected. Cero is a warning that reflects the voices of those who in some form have been affected by the pandemic. Nine stories,
twelve characters that burst on the stage to face their destinies and show the great
strength to continue living through what some consider a death sentence.
Repertorio Español was founded in 1968 by producer Gilberto Zaldívar and Artistic Director René Buch (q.v.) to introduce
the best of Latin American, Spanish and Hispanic-American theatre in distinctive, quality productions, and to bring theatre to a broad audience in New York City and across the country, including seniors, students and Hispanics of all national backgrounds. Robert Weber Federico joined the company two years later as Resident Designer and Associate Artistic
Producer, completing the organizational profile that is Repertorio Español today. Repertorio Español has presented plays,
zarzuelas (Spanish operettas) and anthologies of classical and popular Hispanic music to enthusiastic audiences.
Repertorio Español received a 1996 Honorary Drama Desk Award for presenting quality theater and a 1996 Obie Award
for the play series Voces Nuevas (New Voices) and The New York State Governor’s Award, as well as many citations by
ACE and HOLA. For more information, log on to www.repertorio.org.
Rosal Colón is a senior at the Conservatory of Theater at SUNY Purchase. She is a graduate of the
LaGuardia High School for Music and the Performing Arts in New York City. With Pregones Theater, she
has performed in (Leave A Message After) The Beep, Sissy and Puerto Rican Obituary. Other credits
include The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui and House of Bogs for which she received critical acclaim.
Beatriz Córdoba was born in San Salvador de Jujuy, Argentina. She earned a master’s degree in International
Studies (with a concentration in Latin American literature) at the National University of Tucumán and a master’s degree in theater direction at the University of Ohio. She has worked at many theaters, including
Repertorio Español (El eterno femenino, El beso de la mujer araña, El huésped and Casa propia), LA TEA
(q.v.), El Portón del Barrio, Teatro Círculo and IATI. It was with IATI that she directed La edad de la ciruela,
for which she won Best Director honors at the Havana One-Act Festival. With her production company, Grupo del Sur, she
has directed La llamada de Lauren, Señoritas en concierto and Chau Misterix. In addition, she is an actress. Recent credits
include Claudia in Locos de contento and the mother in Madre (el drama padre), both at Repertorio Español. Recently, she
has taught acting at the PRTT Raúl Juliá Training Unit.
Sol Marina Crespo, originally from Caimito Alto, Puerto Rico, arrived in New York in 1998. A graduate of
New York University, she earned bachelor’s degrees in drama and Latin American studies. At NYU, she cocreated Camille, an experimental play based on the famed French sculptor Camille Claudel. She continues
to perform her one-woman show based on the legendary Dominican poet Salomé Ureña. She also performed
in Las hermanas Mirabal as Patria Mirabal, another prominent historical figure of the Dominican Republic.
Her most recent performance was in Pregones Theater’s The Beep. Other acting credits include Sissy, The Red Rose/La rosa
roja, The Missteps of a Salsa Dancer (2005 HOLA Award), Roses Are Played Out, From Auction Block to Hip Hop, Plátanos
and Collard Greens, The Mouse that Roared, Is This Desire?, Camino Real and Alley Rats. For film and television, she created the roles of Trina for the independent feature Making Change and Paloma for the telenovela Los estudiantes apasionados, as well as various short films, among them Shiny Shoes and Big Smile. Her voiceover work includes Calvin Klein’s
ckOne campaign and Payless Shoe Source. In 2002, she co-founded Ontheinside Productions, where she directed a female
version of Miguel Piñero's Short Eyes, which was called by master teacher Steve Wangh, "the best directed independent project at the Experimental Theatre Wing" and John Patrick Shanley’s Danny & the Deep Blue Sea. She was also an assistant
director for various PSAs for the state of New Jersey.
Nilo Cruz won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize and the American Theatre Critics Association/Steinberg Award for Best
New Play for Anna in the Tropics. He received the Raúl Juliá HOLA Founders Award the same year. His
plays have been produced in the U.S. and internationally. Anna in the Tropics premiered at New Theatre in
Miami and was later produced by the McCarter Theatre and on Broadway (Tony nomination) with subsequent productions in London, Minsk, Madrid, Sydney and more than 20 theatres throughout the U.S. His
play Beauty of the Father co-premiered in 2004 at Seattle Repertory Theatre and New Theatre, and was later produced at
Manhattan Theatre Club in New York. His translation of Life is a Dream was produced at South Coast Repertory this last
season. His other plays include Lorca in a Green Dress, Two Sisters and a Piano, A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings,
Hortensia and the Museum of Dreams, A Bicycle Country, Dancing on Her Knees, Night Train to Bolina and A Park in Our
House. He has been an artist-in-residence at McCarter Theatre, New Theatre and The Public Theater/NYSF. He is an alumnus of New Dramatists and a member of Drama League.
El último rosario de Medea, written by José Manuel Torres Santiago and directed by
Rosalba Rolón (q.v.), comes to life during the nine-day folk celebration of the Feasts
of the Cross, a Spanish Caribbean tradition. The play is inspired by the legendary trial
of an actress convicted of hiring hit men to kill her husband. The action focuses on
Medea’s torn conscience and the perverse fascination her crime awakens among the
townspeople. Incited by the furor of the media, they soon take on the role of aveng-
ing jurors. The climax coincides with the pious and popular spectacle of the feasts.
Pregones Theater is a Bronx-based ensemble founded in 1979 whose mission is to create and perform original musical theater and plays rooted in Puerto Rican/Latino cultures, and to present other performing artists who share our twin commitment to the arts and civic enrichment. With the opening of its new 130-seat theater in November 2005, they are still at
the forefront of Latino cultural activity. Pregones has produced more than 50 new plays and presented twice as many visiting companies. For more information, log on to www.pregones.org.
Zhanna Gurvich’s design credits include La Llorona at the Beckett Theatre and In the Air at Theatre 315 for
Stageplays; Billboard, Havana Bourgeois and Ping Pong Diplomacy at 59E59 Theatres for Reverie
Productions; Tears for Violetta and Tierra del Nadie for Ballet Hispánico at the Joyce Theatre; Cinderella’s
Mice for Vital Children's Theatre; Brilliant Traces at the Gene Frankel Theatre, Wellspring at the Century
Ballroom Theatre; Hundreds of Sisters and One Big Brother at The Beckett Theatre; Table Dance at HERE
for The Hourglass Group; Ah, Wilderness! at 59E59 Theatres; All My Sons at the Actors Studio Theatre; Murder on the Nile
and A Flea in Her Ear for Pulse Ensemble Theatre; The Most Dangerous Room in the House for The Susan Marshall Dance
Company at BAM; The Black Monk at the Connelly Theatre; Hello and Goodbye at Theatre Off Park for Rattlestick; The
Jazz Singer at Queens Theatre in the Park (QTIP) and The Forum Theatre.
Pablo Guzmán is a reporter for WCBS New York. He joined WCBS from WNBC New York, where he spent
three years. Prior to WNBC, Guzman spent nine years as reporter for WNEW New York (later Fox’s WNYW).
At WCBS, he has covered a wide range of stories, including an investigative report in a series on deaths due
to negligent emergency room care that helped pass new state regulation on staffing. With his trademark style
of incorporating humor with cutting edge news stories, he has landed exclusive interviews with Robert
DeNiro, Sting, and Carlos Santana. He was also the first to break the Middle East terror link behind the 1993
World Trade Center bombing. He has written for various publications, including The Village Voice, Essence, Rolling Stone,
Musician, Downbeat, Billboard, and the New York Daily News and has hosted radio talk shows on WMCA and WFLIB, and deejayed at WBLS. He won an Emmy award for his report on a police officer murder and was cited in a poll in the New York Daily
News as one of the city’s three most popular television reporters. He also earned an award from the Patrolmen’s Benevolent
Association for a story on a controversial police shooting in Washington Heights that helped vindicate the officer. In addition,
he served as an honorary member on the first Selection Committee at the Grammy Awards and is recognized for his effort to
encourage the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to create the first Latin music category at the award show. A
graduate of the Bronx High School of Science, he later became known as a founder and co-leader of the Young Lords Party, a
radical political organization that fought for Puerto Rican and Latino rights. As a spokesperson, he spent six years producing
and hosting a radio show, editing a weekly newspaper (Palante), and helping the organization spread to Philadelphia, Newark,
Bridgeport, and Puerto Rico, among other places. To highlight the contradiction of drafting Latinos and African Americans while
denying their full inclusion in society, he refused to report during the Vietnam War and was imprisoned for nine months on a
two-year sentence. An article about his Young Lord experiences was published in The Puerto Rican Movement: Voice From the
Diaspora, a collection of essays.
Meghan E. Healey is honored to receive an HOLA award for her design of Zanahorias off-Broadway at the
Duke Theater. She also received the 2007 ACE Award for Best Costume Design. Other recent work includes
Five Kinds of Silence (Boundless Theater, San Juan, Puerto Rico), points of departure by Michael John Garcés
(dir. Ron Daniels), Tight Embrace by Jorge Ignacio Cortiñas (dir. Lisa Petersen, INTAR), Kissing Fidel by
Eduardo Machado (dir. Michael John Garcés, INTAR), Yo Soy Latina! by Linda Nieves Powell (dir. Ricardo
Kahn, Crossroads Theater), Blues for a Grey Sun by Nilaja Sun (dir. Louis Moreno, INTAR), With What Ass Does the
Cockroach Sit? (with Carmelita Tropicana, INTAR), customs with Michael John Garcés, INTAR’s New Works Lab 2003 and
2004, and The Ties that Bind Festival (dirs. Ela Troyano, Ángel David, Michael John Garcés). She received her B.A. from
Emory University and her M.F.A. from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.
Elise Hernández made her professional debut as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz (directed by actor José Ferrer at
Teatro Tapia in San Juan, Puerto Rico). She toured Europe and Asia as a background singer with David Bowie,
Julio Iglesias and others. She has also gone from singing with Danny Kaye's UNICEF Africa tour to dancing in
Martín Espada's Imagine The Angels… (NYC Hip-Hop Theater Festival). Broadway credits include Man of La
Mancha (starring Raúl Juliá); Paul Simon’s The Capeman; The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Scott Ellis. National
Companies: A Chorus Line (starring Bebe Neuwirth). Off-Broadway: title roles in Zoraida (INTAR) and Ghost Dance Woman
(Douglas Fairbanks Theatre). She is a N.Y. ACE award nominee and CD recording for La rosa roja/The Red Rose by Pregones
Theater (starring Danny Rivera). In addition to extensive television, commercial, jingle and voiceover work, she is a published
poet, an Amnesty International activist and a teaching artist for Manhattan Theatre Club and Theatre Development Fund.
Ricardo J. Hinoa’s credits include DJ Remixed (adapted from Molière’s Don Juan; Classic Stage Company);
Los melindres de Belisa by Lope de Vega (Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre); Othello (LA TEA/Soñadores
Productions; HOLA Award); La fiesta del chivo, Bodas de sangre, Búfalo herido (all at Repertorio Español);
Casi una diosa (Thalía Spanish Theatre; ACE Award). He attended workshops with the famous Mala Yerba
Theatre in Ecuador, and was a member of the University of Puerto Rico Traveling Theatre. He is a company member of SEA where he appears in Cinderella, Martina the Little Roach, Little Red Riding Hood, Ricitos and the 3
Bears and Los títeres de cachiporra (HOLA Award). He also holds also a B.S. degree in Bio-Medics.
Quiara Alegría Hudes’s play Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue was a finalist for the 2007 Pulitzer Prize in Drama. It
was premiered in New York at the Culture Project by Page 73 Productions. Hudes wrote the book for the
musical In The Heights, which received the Lucille Lortel Award and the Outer Critics Circle Award for
Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical. After six months Off-Broadway, In The Heights will open at Broadway’s
Richard Rodgers Theater in the winter of 2008. Other full-lengths include Yemayá’s Belly and The Adventures
of Barrio Grrrl!; shorter works include Holy Broth and the performance poem Barrio ABC’s. She earned a B.A. in Music
Composition from Yale, an M.F.A. in Playwriting from Brown and is a resident playwright at New Dramatists. She was
born and raised in Philadelphia and lives in New York with her husband and daughter.
In The Heights, with music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda and book by Quiara Alegría Hudes
(qq.v.), is a quintessential New York musical about a vibrant and tight-knit community at the top
of the island of Manhattan. The music pulses with the hopes and dreams of three generations as
they struggle to forge an identity in a neighborhood on the brink of transition. Last season’s offBroadway hit musical moves to Broadway’s Richard Rodgers Theatre in February 2008.
Directed by Thomas Kail and choreographed by Andy Blankenbuehler, In The Heights is produced by Kevin McCollum, Jeffrey Seller and Jill Furman. Kevin McCollum and Jeffrey Seller
won two Tony Awards for Best Musical for producing the hit musicals Rent and Avenue Q. They
also have produced Baz Luhrmann’s Broadway production of Puccini’s La Bohème, which won
two Tony Awards; High Fidelity; the Off-Broadway hits De La Guarda and [title of show]. Mr.
McCollum and Jill Furman are currently producing The Drowsy Chaperone on Broadway. Jill
Furman’s company, Arthouse Pictures, develops and produces theater and film projects including the hip-hop comedy show Freestyle Love Supreme, featuring Lin-Manuel Miranda (q.v.). She
produced the off-Broadway plays On The Line and Adult Entertainment, and the Broadway plays Sly Fox and Fortune's Fool.
Waddys Jáquez started his training at the Escuela Nacional de Arte Escénico de Santo Domingo in his
native Dominican Republic. He continued training in Mexico, Belgium and the United States. In the
Dominican Republic, he is considered the most successful theater artists of the past decade. He has been
honored with many awards as an actor, playwright, director, and producer of plays. In the last six years,
he has received 16 Casandra Award nominations, the most of any Dominican artist, and has won it seven
times. He also won HOLA and ACE awards for his play Pargo: los pecados permitidos. Along with Bethania Rivera, he
has directed the theater company La Manzana Envenenada since 1999.
Manny Jiménez was born in the city of Huntington Park and raised in Whittier, California. As a child
he always dreamed of being in the movies. Unfortunately, like most teens growing up in the inner
city, he got sidetracked with the gang life and for many years, put his family through many painful
experiences. In 1997 he reached a point in his life where only a miracle could save him from doing
prison time for a crime he didn’t commit. That miracle happened, and that day in court he promised
himself he would change his life for good. Even though he had always dreamed of being in the
movie business, he never seriously considered trying until one night when he caught The Tonight
Show with Jay Leno. Leno’s guest, director Quentin Tarantino, said that anyone could come to Hollywood, even if they'd
been in jail, that it doesn't matter where they had come from. Based on those words, he would follow his dream. Not
knowing where to start or anything about the business, he nevertheless had his girlfriend drive him around downtown L.A.
and Hollywood until they found some movie sets. He walked on, tried to get hired as an extra, struck out, and moved on
to the next one. After many rejections on numerous movie sets, he finally met a guy working as an extra willing to help
him. He was soon working as an extra on a real-life movie set and starting his education in the business. As background
talent, his ethnic look and style made him a natural for every kind of production looking for someone with street smarts.
After a few years, Hollywood casting directors and producers realized they needed more actors like him-- people with real
street credibility. Today, he is the CEO of Suspect Entertainment (founded in 2003), a multifaceted corporation offering a
variety of services from artist management to production. Suspect has provided talent and numerous other services for
music videos by Cypress Hill, Blink-182, Snoop Dogg, Christina Aguilera, Brooks & Dunn, Kanye West, Mobb Deep and
50 Cent; commercials for McDonald's, Burger King, Diet Coke, Pepsi, Sprite, Miller Lite, Toyota and T-Mobile. They’ve
been in print ads for Grand Theft Auto-San Andreas, K-Swiss and Joker Brand Clothing and on the television shows The
Shield, 24, CSI, Strong Medicine, The District, Medium, Wanted and Night Stalker. Feature films have included Ali G
Indahouse, Training Day, Collateral, Dirty, S.W.A.T., Criminal and the upcoming movies Harsh Times and Gridiron Gang.
Suspect’s unique makeup has led them to be the subject of numerous TV news stories from FOX, CBS, ABC, Telemundo,
Univisión, Urban Latino TV, Court TV, CNN, PBS, MSNBC, Much Music and ARD-German TV; newspapers and magazines
articles for Star, Scotland on Sunday, Daily Telegraph London, South China Post, NY Times, Premiere; LA Weekly,
Washington Post, Mass Appeal, FHM, The Source, Paper, Lowrider, Sunday Mirror, GQ Italy, TV Guide, Entertainment
Weekly, and the upcoming book Mugshots. He and Suspect are also writing and producing its own projects. He remains
dedicated to his team of actors and continues to give them many opportunities along with the recognition they deserve.
In addition, he has found great satisfaction in helping each other and giving back to the community. They have worked on
awareness projects such as the Truth: Anti-Smoking campaign and Project Safe Neighborhoods: Mothers PSAs. The Suspect
Entertainment team now dedicate themselves to being role models to others by speaking to youth in schools, probation
camps and drug programs. For Manny Jiménez and the Suspect team, the best way to invest in the future of today’s youth
is by empowering them through positive role modeling and sharing the Suspect dream.
Moisés Kaufman is a Tony and Emmy nominated director and award-winning playwright. His plays
Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde and The Laramie Project have been among the most
performed plays in America over the last decade. He also developed and directed the Pulitzer and Tony
award-winning play I Am My Own Wife by Doug Wright. The play garnered him an Obie award for his
direction as well as a Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critic's Circle and Lucille Lortel award nominations. In
addition to Mr. Kaufman’s stage work, he also directed the film adaptation of The Laramie Project, which
aired on HBO and was the opening night selection at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival (Humanitas Prize,
National Board of Review - Best TV Film, Special Mention for Best First Film at the Berlin Film Festival, and Emmy Award
nominations for Best Director and Best Screenplay). Other directing credits include Macbeth (NYSF/with Liev Schreiber and
Jennifer Ehle), The L Word (Showtime), Lady Windermere’s Fan (Williamstown Theater Festival), This is How it Goes (Donmar
Warehouse), Master Class (Berkeley Rep. with Rita Moreno), Tennessee Williams’ One Arm (Steppenwolf), Women in Beckett,
Machinal, In the Winter of Cities and The Nest. He is the founder and Artistic Director of Tectonic Theater Project, a labora-
tory for new works in theater and film based in New York (recipient of an Outer Critics Circle Award, GLAAD Media Awards,
Human Rights Campaign Artistic Integrity Award). Tectonic is currently in development of 33 Variations, an original work
exploring Beethoven’s Diabelli Variations. In June of 1999 he was named Artist of the Year by Venezuela's Casa del Artista, a
national award voted on by artists from a wide variety of fields. He is a Guggenheim Fellow.
LA TEA, established in 1982, is one of New York’s premier and highly regarded off-off Broadway Latino
theaters. It was founded and operates under the direction of Mateo Gómez and Nelson Landrieu, two
well-known professional stage, film and television actors who are committed to providing opportunities to New York’s emerging and professional artists, especially Latinos who would otherwise not have
the resources or affordable physical facilities to exhibit their works and talents. As arts advocates LA
TEA’s founders took the initiative of providing much needed leadership to secure and safeguard the continued use of their city-owned property, a struggle that led to the creation of the Clemente Soto Vélez
Cultural and Educational Center, where the theater is housed. Its mission is to foster, preserve, promote
and maintain the history, literature, cultural values and heritage of the Latin American people, including the Caribbean
and to educate North American audiences and the general public of the contributions made by Latinos and to demonstrate the universality of beliefs that bind us all together as universal human beings. It is of the philosophy that the arts
should not be for nor by a privileged few, but available to working class people and men from all walks of life. For more
information, log on to www.teatrolatea.com.
Lorca con un vestido verde, written by Nilo Cruz and directed by René Buch (qq.v.),
explores the aftermath of Spanish poet and playwright Federico García Lorca’s death 70
years ago. Lorca finds himself in a strange room where he is confronted with many aspects
of himself: Lorca in a green dress, Lorca in a white suit, Lorca in bicycle pants, Lorca as
a woman and a flamenco dancer. The characters aid Lorca to accept the inevitable, his
transition from life to death. Cruz employs a language both poetic and musical and infuses his work with quotes from Lorca’s poems and literary works.
To read the mission statement of Repertorio Español, please refer to the bio of the production Cero (q.v.).
Los desertores/The Dropouts, written by Radamés Gavé and directed by Dr.
Manuel A. Morán, is a critically acclaimed bilingual musical about Latino students and their choices of staying in school or dropping out.
Society of the Educational Arts, Inc./Sociedad Educativa de las Artes, Inc. (SEA)
was founded in 1985 in Puerto Rico and is a not-for-profit Latin American/bilingual arts-in-education organization dedicated to the empowerment and educational advancement of children and young adults. SEA established its New York
City operations in 1993 (and an outpost in Florida in 2001), and has been expanding its array of programming ever since.
SEA’s unique integration of the performing arts and arts-in-education programs introduces and enriches cultural awareness
and a sense of identity, especially in children. Dr. Manuel A. Morán, SEA’s founder and CEO, leads a team of professional artists and administrators, all of whom are dedicated to serving the Latino community. This unwavering commitment of
providing access and preserving Latino arts & culture has solidified SEA as a leading artistic/educational organization in
New York, Florida and Puerto Rico. For more information, log on to www.sea-online.info.
Jesús E. Martínez is a practitioner in different forms of martial arts, an experienced stage combat performer,
and an accomplished stage actor and voice-over artist. Aside from performing, his artistic talents include
writing, directing, physical comedy and breakdancing. He acquired his Bachelor of Arts degree in Drama
studies at SUNY Purchase College and traveled to Italy, where he studied and performed classical and contemporary theatre. Currently, he is a resident performer at Repertorio Español and the Society of the Educational Arts (SEA).
His recent stage credits include Othello (LA TEA/Soñadores Productions), Cinderella (SEA), I Just Love Andy Gibb (Pregones
Theater), Momma’s Boyz (Repertorio Español), Goldoni’s The Liar (Native American Opera House/SEA), among others. In
the realm of voiceover, he has worked for Spike TV, NY Lottery, ESPN, Rock Star Games, to name a few. His recent film
credits include Urchin (2 Cities Prods.), Emociones (Moonsue Prods.) and the upcoming P.S. I Love You (Paramount
Pictures).
Olga Merediz has an extensive background in radio, TV, theatre and film. Born in Cuba and raised in Puerto
Rico, this Tulane University graduate is very excited to recreate the role of Claudia in the musical In The
Heights on Broadway in 2008. Her Broadway credits include Mamma Mia! (Rosie), Reckless (Trish; MTC),
Man of La Mancha (Housekeeper; original revival cast), Les Misérables, The Human Comedy. Film credits
include Changing Lanes, K-Pax, Evita, Center Stage, Requiem for a Dream, Music of the Heart, Isn't She Great?,
City of Hope, Apartment 5-C (Cannes Film Festival), The Milagro Beanfield War (directed by Robert Redford), among others.
Some of her TV credits include Au Pair III for ABC Family (set to air in 2008), The Sopranos, Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU,
Law & Order: CI, Hope and Faith (recurring), The Jury (recurring), The Job, The George Lopez Show, The Cosby Show, among
others. Some of her off-Broadway credits include In The Heights (Abuela Claudia), The Taming of the Shrew (NYSF), Thornhill
(directed by John Cassavetes), Mothers Have Nine Lives (Playwrights’ Horizons/YPF), The Haggadah, Lullabye and Goodnight
(Public Theater). She enjoys doing bilingual voice-over and jingle work in New York, Los Angeles and Miami.
Lin-Manuel Miranda is the composer-lyricist-star of off-Broadway's In The Heights, which is moving to
Broadway next season. In The Heights received 9 Drama Desk Nominations, including Best Music, Best
Lyrics, and an award for Outstanding Ensemble Performance, in addition to a Lucille Lortel Award and
Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical. He received an Obie Award for Outstanding Music and Lyrics.
As an actor, he received a 2007 Theater World Award for Outstanding Debut Performance and the 2007
Clarence Derwent Award for Most Promising Male Performance, courtesy of Actors’ Equity Foundation. He is a co-founder
and member of Freestyle Love Supreme, a hip-hop improv group that has toured the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and the
Aspen, Melbourne and Montreal Comedy Festivals. He was a bellboy on The Sopranos. His videos with Shockwave of
Freestyle Love Supreme are all over YouTube.com.
Isabel Moreno started her artistic career in 1962, as an actor with some of the most important Cuban theater
groups, and as a teacher of pantomime, corporal expression and acting in art schools and the Superior Art
Institute in Havana. She played leading roles in more than fifty theater productions, including Requiem por Yarini,
Entremeses japoneses, Juegos para actores, El perro del hortelano, La hija de las flores, Las impuras, La casa de
Bernarda Alba, Casa de muñecas, Bodas de sangre and the solo show Antes del desayuno. In the United States,
she acted in Kvetch, and more recently, with Repertorio Español in O.K. (Okay). In addition, she has worked in television
series, telenovelas and films in Cuba, Venezuela and the United States. Credits include La bella del Alhambra; Mujer transparente; El paseo de la gracia de Dios; Amor mío; Cuando hay pasión; Gata salvaje; Anita, no te rajes; and Tierra de pasiones.
Denisse Oller is one of the most honored women in Spanish-language television. As Univisión's Noticias
41 news anchor, she has been recognized by Hispanic Business Magazine as one of the 100 most influential Hispanic personalities in the United States. A native of Puerto Rico, she began her journalism career
in the mid-1980s as a reporter for Telemundo's local New York station, WNJU Channel 47. She later joined
Univisión as anchor of the network's first national weekend newscast and as the network's news bureau
chief in Los Angeles. This position marked history as she became the first Puerto Rican to anchor a national news show. Her return to New York came in 1989 as anchor for Noticias 41 Univisión, a post she held until 1993. Later
that year, Oller anchored Telemundo's Primera Hora, its national morning newscast, advanced to become the network's special political affairs correspondent from Washington D.C., and was later promoted to anchor CBS Telenoticias. Since 1999,
she has been anchoring Univisión's award winning newscasts, Noticias 41 at 6pm and 11pm, respectively, along with veteran news anchor Rafael Pineda. Her work in media has brought her widespread recognition and awards such as five
Emmys, nine Emmy nominations, five ACE Awards, two Gracie Awards given by the American Women in Radio and
Television organization and the Edward R. Murrow Award for excellence in investigative reporting. Besides her work as special correspondent for Univisión's award-winning weekly newsmagazine show, Aquí y Ahora and as weekly columnist for
Hoy (one of New York's Hispanic newspapers), she has a cooking segment called “Riquísimo con Denisse” in Univisión
41’s (WXTV-TV) morning news show Noticias Univisión 41 Al Despertar, which has been an unprecedented success. Her
work on behalf of Hispanic families has gained the recognition of distinguished organizations. She sits on the boards of the
Committee for Hispanic Children and Families and the Puerto Rican Family Institute, among others. On a personal note,
she is happily married to Cuban essayist Juan Montoro and has two girls-- her dogs Nina and Lana.
Javier Ortiz is a popular Mexican actor and singer. He first became popular when he was a member of the
singing group Garibaldi. His film credits include ¿Dónde quedó la bolita? (with Garibaldi), Amb el 10 a
l’esquena, Las pasiones de Sor Juana, Más que hermanos and Journey from the Fall. Television credits include
Sentimientos ajenos, Camila, Te amaré en silencio, Por tu amor, Hospital Central, Duelo de pasiones, La fea
más bella and Vecinos. Theater credits include Sólo para mujeres, P.D. Tu gato ha muerto and Aventurera.
Laura Patalano has built her artistic background and theatrical experience through her work in her native
Mexico. She graduated from the Instituto de Arte Escénico in Mexico City where she studied drama. She
has extensive experience on stage, movies and television productions. Her screen credits include the independent film Chop Shop, the work of the multi-award winning director Ramin Bahrani which premiered in
May of 2007 at the Director’s Fortnight at Cannes International Film Festival in France. Mexican audiences
have seen her in the stage productions of Una esfinge llamada Cordelia, Frida Kahlo, Vamos a contar mentiras and A la
diestra de Dios Padre, among others. Her New York credits include Las hermanas Mirabal and La fotografía. Most recently, she created the role of Carmen Antonia in Thalía Spanish Theatre's bilingual production The Ladies Room/Baño de
damas. She performs regularly in commercials and she is also a bilingual voice-over artist.
Omar Pérez made his professional debut with Pregones Theater’s summer stage production of El apagón.
Since then he has continued working with Pregones in The Red Rose (2006 HOLA award for Outstanding
Musical Production), The Beep and just recently The Caravan. Other stage credits include The Missteps of
a Salsa Dancer, The Unblackening, and Mambópera. His film credits include Shut Up and Do It! (which
screened at the 2007 NYILFF), Broken Hearts, and Evergreen. He is very excited about the back of his head
being seen in American Gangster starring Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. It could be the big break that the back
of his head was looking for! He would like to thank whoever made up the “Reading is Fundamental” campaign, as he is
constantly called upon to take part in the reading of many wonderful new works.
Chester Poon was most recently seen in Suzan-Lori Parks’s 365 Days/365 Plays with Ma-Yi Theatre. Other
credits include Othello (Cassio) and Hamlet (Player King), both with LA TEA/Soñadores Productions. In addition to acting, he is a personal trainer, kickboxing instructor and practicing martial artist at Yee’s Hung Ga Kung
Fu Academy in New York. He is currently working on his M.A. in Applied Physiology at Columbia University.
The Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre, also known as El Teatro Rodante Puertorriqueño (PRTT), was founded
in 1967 following the highly successful run of the English-language production of René Marqués’ The
Oxcart. The play was directed by acclaimed director Lloyd Richards and starred Miriam Colón Valle, the late
Raúl Juliá and Lucy Boscana. Realizing that such a professional production was not accessible to most of the
families from economically disadvantaged communities, Ms. Colón Valle, the PRTT's Founder and Artistic
Director, decided to present the play free of charge in New York City streets with funding secured from then
Mayor John Lindsay. This initial summer production helped launch the Spanish bilingual theater movement
and led to the creation of a major cultural legacy for the State of New York and the U.S. Many Latino theaters exist in cities
across the nation today inspired by the pioneering efforts of the PRTT. The PRTT's lasting impact is felt in 40 years of contin-
ued theater programming and audience development, including the introduction of new and significant Hispanic voices to
the professional theater mainstream; a unique, culturally diverse model for playwright development and enrichment; cultivation of an awareness of the theater as a viable career for economically disadvantaged youths; and year-round Spanish and
English language offerings through its mainstage, summer tour, actors and playwrights training units programs. The Puerto
Rican Traveling Theatre occupies a former firehouse building at 304 West 47th Street, in the heart of the Broadway district.
The PRTT undertook a $2-million renovation of the distinctive red-brick structure to include a fully equipped, 194-seat
theater with proscenium stage. For more information, log on to www.prtt.org.
Pilar Rioja was born in Torreón, México to Spanish parents who hailed from the Rioja region of Spain.
She studied many forms of dance, but it was in Spain where she combined her modern, ballet and classical dance training with traditional Spanish dance forms. She has studied with Oscar Tarriba in México,
and in Spain with Regla Ortega, Samperio and El Estampío and studied the classical bolero style with
Ángel Pericet. She considers her teacher, Manolo Vargas, to be one of her greatest influences. With her
extensive knowledge and experience, she has become one of the world's great teachers of Spanish dance.
For many years, she had an academy in México City where she worked incessantly to keep Spanish dance alive. She has
taught throughout Latin America, Spain, the United States and even Armenia, and to the dancers of the Bolshoi Ballet in
Moscow. She is such a beloved figure in Moscow that a statue of her as “the Queen of Spanish Dance” by David Narodnisky
was erected in a town square. Other statues of her have been erected in the cities of Torreón (by Mexican sculptor, Joaquín
Arias) and Morelia, México (by José Luis Padilla). She has been an inspiration for many artists' work including a sculpted
bust by Arnold Taylor, drawings and paintings by Héctor Javier, paintings by Spanish artist Antonio Peyri, a collection of
songs and poetry by Luis Ríus, poetry by Juan Duch and Alfonso Simone and recently an audiovisual production by Neil
Goldberg in New York. She has performed in the United States, México, Latin America, Spain, Austria, Bulgaria and
throughout the former Soviet Union. In 1996, she performed in England with the BBC Proms Orchestra and in 1997 with
the Brooklyn Philharmonic in New York; as a guest artist with the Oregon Symphony Orchestra in Portland and the San
Antonio Symphony in Texas as well as a second participation in the prestigious Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival in
Massachusetts. The year 2007 marked her 35th Anniversary season with Repertorio Español. According to Gilberto Zaldívar,
Founding President and Producer Emeritus of Repertorio Español, after seeing her perform at Carnegie Recital Hall, he
remarked, "When I first saw her, I knew she was a talented and magical performer; her talent shined on that stage, so I invited her to come see our theater. It was an instant love affair, and she has had a season with us ever since."
Graciela Rodríguez graduated from the Municipal School of Dramatic Arts and received a scholarship to the National
Comedy School, both in her native Montevideo, Uruguay. She became well known through work as a comedienne
on television. Her stage career as an actor spans more than two decades, almost as many years as she spent in television and radio, in addition to which have been her success in directing and producing. She has been nominated
for and won umerous awards, including several Florencio Awards; Tabare of the Republic (ten consecutive years); Iris
Awards (three times); Guambia Awards (twice); as well as winning the Best Actress Award for a contest on the Cristina show in Miami.
Rosalba Rolón is the Artistic Director and co-founder of Pregones Theater. She is a performer and director,
and has built a repertory of original musical plays based on dramatic adaptation of literary works. She most
recently directed The Red Rose/La rosa roja, El último rosario de Medea (originally staged under the direction of Alvan Colón Lespier) and The Beep. Working in collaboration with fellow actresses and composers
from Belgium and the Slovak Republic, she is co-creating Brides, to be premiered in Rotterdam,
Netherlands in 2008 and at Pregones Theater in 2009. She serves on the Board of Directors of National Association of
Latino Arts and Culture (NALAC) and is a vice-president of the board of Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the publishers of American Theater Magazine.
Will Sierra was born and raised in Elizabeth, New Jersey. In addition to being an actor, he is a photographer, and
designer of fashion and home furnishings. He has appeared in numerous theatrical productions including Othello
(LA TEA/Soñadores Productions), Banjee (written by A.B. Lugo), Junkies Stole the Clock (for Caicedo
Productions), as well as numerous and very diverse productions in many NYC underground theaters.
Recently, he has also had successful showcases with the NY Film/Video Festival Artistic Showcase with his
show Urban-Topia (spoken-word performance with photo exhibition). He co-starred in the independent
films Suckerpunch and Ghetto Dawg 2 (both directed by The Crook Brothers) and more than a dozen other
independent short-film projects. He is also the writer, manager and lead-vocalist/performer of the musical ensemble Will
Funk Shway (WFS) since April 2002. He formed WFS which consists of an instrumental quartet of professional musicians
who frame his “street speech” beautifully with improvisational music. WFS have appeared on stage at venues such as The
Nuyorican Poets’ Café, Sugar Bar and on MTV. He is currently in pre-production on his own short film project called
Urban-topia: Will Funk Shway, which he will produce, shoot and score.
Mônica Steuer has had extensive experience in theater, film and television, both in the U.S.A. and Mexico.
Some of her TV and film credits include NBC’s Law & Order: SVU, Total Recall, Empire, Destiny Has No
Favorites (which has been seen in festivals around the world including Cannes in France and Chile’s Viña Del
Mar International Film Festival where she won the Golden Paoa Award for Best Actress), Therapy, Shut Up and
Do It! and the upcoming Ministers, where she had the pleasure of working with Harvey Keitel. Her theater
credits include Queen Isabella in Edward II; Rosaura in Life is a Dream; the title role in Yerma; Evangelina Chi in Te juro Juana,
que tengo ganas; Hortensia in Los soles truncos; Cristina 2 in Un busto al cuerpo (HOLA Award); Angustias in La casa de
Bernarda Alba; La Madre de las Solteronas in Doña Rosita la soltera (ACE Award); Angustias in The Last of Bernarda (HOLA
Award); and most recently Bertha Gardès in Gardel: el musical (ACE Award) and La Marquesa de Ahhh! in Zanahorias/Carrots,
for which she won the Premios Sin Límite award. She is also a trilingual voiceover artist with over 15 years of experience.
TeatroStageFest first began as an idea in 2003, when New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
appointed José W. Fernández as a Commissioner on the NYC Latin Media & Entertainment
Commission. As Mr. Fernández worked with the other commissioners to promote New York City as
the center of Latin entertainment, he was inspired to bring together the many Hispanic theaters that
are part of New York City's cultural life. He joined with Susana Tubert, an established theater director, to found the Latino International Theater Festival of New York, Inc. (LITF/NY) to achieve this goal.
LITF/NY is a non-profit 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization. Its mission is to support year-round New
York-based Latino theater solo artists and companies, encourage artistic dialogue and collaboration
between local, national and international groups, and to be the portal to a global community that promotes exchanges with
other cultural organizations and theater festivals from around the world. TeatroStage Fest had its premiere festival in April
and May 2007, where it hosted three local productions, three international productions (from Bogotá, Colombia; Mexico
City, Mexico; Barcelona, Spain; and Buenos Aires, Argentina; respectively), two family theater productions, six artist panels,
a young Latino playwrights challenge and intimate concerts by Latino musical acts. For more information, log on to
www.teatrostagefest.org.
Kathy Tejada is an actress and executive producer of TEBA. As an actress, she was most recently seen in La
casa de los siete balcones by Alejandro Casona, directed by Héctor Luis Rivera. TEBA recently received an
ACE award for best production/comedy for Prohibido suicidarse en primavera. Among her credits are Dos
Fridas, dos Diegos, 2da parte (ACE Award, Best Supporting Actress); The Book of Buen Amor (ACE Award
nomination, Best Supporting Actress); La última poesía del continente (ACE Award, Best Supporting Actress);
Joan of Arc Under Fire; A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Amantina o la historia de un desamor (under the
direction of Héctor Luis Rivera for Teatro TEBA); Representando a Karín (under the direction of Otto Montoya at the
Candilejas Theater Festival); A Dangerous Theatre Game (directed by Ángel Gil Orrios for Thalia Spanish Theatre). She is
looking forward to being directed once again by Mr. Gil Orrios in The Ladies of Avignon by Jaime Salom this autumn.
Eva Cristina Vásquez is an Assistant Professor in the Foreign Languages Department at York College (CUNY), where she
has also directed the Woman's Studies Program. She is a founding member of Teatro Círculo, a theatre
company created by theatre practitioners and educators committed to preserving and promoting the
Hispanic, Latino/a, and Luso-Brazilian cultural heritage. She is the author of Amor perdido, a one woman
show exploring four generations of Puerto Rican women in U.S. wars, produced by Teatro Círculo since
2002. She is also the author of Lágrimas Negras, an exploration of our African heritage in the Spanish
speaking Caribbean. Her book Pregones Theater: A Theater for Social Change in the South Bronx was published in October
2003 by Routledge. She is currently interested in researching, creating and documenting the work of Puerto Rican female
solo performers in New York.
MASTERS OF CEREMONIES
Odalys Molina is a reporter for WNJU’s weekday morning newscast Noticiero 47 which airs from 5am to
7am. In addition to her reporting responsibilities, Molina files reports in numerous topics and conducts high
profile interviews for the station’s various newscasts. Her reports for Noticiero 47 have included coverage
of the September 11 attacks, the Northeast U.S. and Eastern Canada blackout of 2003 and the death of Latin
superstar Celia Cruz. She joined WNJU in 1991 as an intern for the station’s news operations before being
hired as a general assignment reporter. She held several positions of increasing responsibility within the newsroom before
her promotion to her current role. In addition, she also serves as a substitute anchor for Noticiero 47 Primera Edición.
While at WNJU, she has served as reporter/correspondent for the variety programs Al rojo vivo, Cotorreando and Buena
honda airing on the Telemundo network. She has won four ACE (Asociación de Cronistas de Entretenimiento) Awards, and
has been honored by the Cuban Day Parade of New York and the Hispanic Day Parade of New York to name a few. She
has also served as master of ceremonies for the HOLA Awards (Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors) for the last five years.
Molina earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Spanish from Montclair University in New Jersey.
Jorge Ramos is the Emmy award-winning co-anchor of WNJU’s Noticiero 47 at 6pm and 11pm. This year
he celebrates a notable milestone, 25 years as a broadcaster of the highest caliber, a role model and exceptional human being. In addition to anchoring, he delivers high-profile reports on numerous topics for
Noticiero 47, including his ongoing series Crímenes sin resolver. Since its debut in 2002, “Crímenes sin
resolver” has led to the arrest of four criminals in the tri-state area. In 2003, the New York City Police
Foundation honored him for his help in solving a ten-year-old case, and for his collaboration in promoting the NYPD’s
Crime Stoppers program. In addition, he has also hosted numerous special news programs for WNJU, including the station's coverage of the Puerto Rican, Cuban, Dominican and Hispanic Day parades of New York and New Jersey, and he
has been honored as the International Godfather and Honorary Guest for many of those parades throughout the years. He
joined WNJU in 1980 and was one of the founding members of the station’s news operation. After his arrival he held several positions of increasing responsibility within the newsroom, culminating with his promotion to the 6pm and 11 pm
anchor role in 1981. He supports numerous community projects and hosts many charitable events. He has also lectured
at several educational institutions around the country including New York University and City University of New York.
Most recently, he served as master of ceremonies for the HOLA Awards (Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors). Among
his many awards are several New York Emmys, five ACE (Asociación de Cronistas de Entretenimiento) Awards for Best Male
Anchor and an HOLA Award for Excellence in Spanish Language Media. A native of Puerto Rico, Ramos graduated from
the University of Puerto Rico with a Bachelor of Humanities degree. He is married and has two children.
I
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Jorge Ros
Teatro SEA and the cast of Los Desertores
would like to thank HOLA for the 2007 HOLA Award for
Outstanding Achievement in a Musical Production
New York’s Only Latino Children’s Theater
www.sea-online.info ~ www.myspace.com/teatrosea
Arts
& Culture
Music. Dance. Museums.
Theatre. Arts-in-education programs.
Con Edison supports appreciation of the arts and
applauds the arts and artists enriching our lives.
We salute the
Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors
and congratulate its 2007 honorees.
Con Edison. ON IT.
www.conEd.com
“YOUR DRE AM C ASTE RS”
w ww. sta rk n ak edp rodu cti on s.com
3 9 West 19th S t reet
N e w York, N Y 10011
(212) 366- 1903
F ax 212.366.0495
E ma i l : i nfo @st ark n ak edp rodu ct i on s.com
h ttp :// w w w.stark n ak edp rodu cti on s.com
TEATRO
PREgONES
THEATER
A scene from Pregones Theater’s
THE BEEP, 2007 HOLA Outstanding
Performance by an Ensemble Cast
Photo: Leonard Zelig
www.pregones.org • 718.585.1202 • myspace.com/pregones
¡Vivas para HOLA y los premiados del 2007!
HOLA B oard o f D ire ct or s
Gonzalo Armendáriz, Chair; Manolo García-Oliva, President;
Manuel Alfaro, Executive Director; Elaine F. Brodey, Secretary;
Adam Moore, Treasurer; Herbert H. Raab
Advi sor y B oa rd
Donald C. Farber; Leon Goodman; Lou Justiniano; Jack Landrón;
Tere Martínez; Manuel A. Morán Martínez, Ph.D.; Edwin Pagán;
Rolando Pérez; Alan J. Rich, Esq.; Elsie C. Stark; Rebecca Vázquez
Ho n orary B oar d
Carlos Carrasco; Wendy Curiel; Elisa de la Roche, Ph.D.;
Edouard de Soto; Francisco G. Rivela
F oun d er s
Jorge Alvarado, Edwin Ávila, Eduardo Corbé, Miriam Cruz, Lourdes Ferré,
Armando García, Roberto López, Andrés Nóbregas, Manuel Martínez,
Ilka Tanya Payán, Elizabeth Peña, Rubén Rabasa, Larry Ramos, Jorge Ros,
Margarita Toirac, David Zúñiga
Staff
Manuel Herrera, Special Projects Director
A.B. Lugo, Member Liaison/Publications Editor
Noemí de la Puente, Member Outreach/Development
Blanca Vásquez, Member Relations/Volunteer Coordinator
Be n e fit Co mm it t e e
Noemí de la Puente; Manolo García-Oliva; Manuel Herrera; A.B. Lugo; Blanca Vásquez
Ho n o r a ry M e mb e r s
Antonio Banderas; Benjamin Bratt; Nilo Cruz; Graciela Daniele; Shawn Elliott;
Oscar Hijuelos; León Ichaso; Priscilla López; Olga Merediz; Alfred Molina, Odalys Molina;
Sarita Montiel; Rita Moreno; Rosie Pérez; Jorge Ramos; Jimmy Smits & George C. Wolfe
Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA)
107 Suffolk Street, Suite 302, New York, NY 10002-3305
Telephone: (212) 253-1015 / e-mail: holagram@hellohola.org
we b s ite : www. h e llo h o la . o r g
The Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA) is a 501(c)(3) not for profit arts service organization founded in 1975 to expand the presence of Hispanic actors in
both the Latino and mainstream entertainment and communications media by facilitating industry access to employing professional and emerging Hispanic actors. HOLA
members represent the full spectrum of Latino cultures, reflecting the nation's growing Hispanic population. In expanding job opportunities for Hispanic actors, HOLA
strengthens and supports the available talent pool through its professional educational services and awards for excellence in theater. Ultimately, HOLA strives for an accurate, informed and non-stereotyped portrayal of Hispanic culture, people and heritage in theatre, film, television, radio and commercials.
HOLA programs are made possible, in part, through funds provided by The City of New York, Department of Cultural Affairs; The New York
State Council on the Arts; private and corporate grants and membership dues.
Media Inc. is proud to support the HOLA Awards and Benefit Program.
Thank you for your partnership.
Best wishes to all of the Latin talent.
Doris Silk
Casting
Media Inc.
860.523.4388
dorissilk@aol.com
B R AV O H O L A H O N O R E E S
THE SYMBOL OF EXCELLENCE IN THE AMERICAN THEATRE FOR 94 YEARS
Mark Zimmerman
President
Arne Gundersen
Eastern Regional Vice President
John P. Connolly
Executive Director
Carol Waaser
Eastern Regional Director
We at HOLA, the Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors,
thank you for your support.