Raices Theatre Company To Produce Musical Version Of DESDE EL PUENTE

Raíces Theatre Company, Western New York's premier Latinx theater production company, will stage the latest version of its Desde El Puente one-act play festival opening Friday, April 19th. This is the fourth edition of Raíces' flagship play festival and the first one to include original music compositions developed by members of the Raíces ensemble. "This musical version seemed like a natural progression in our development of Desde El Puente and with our ensemble," said Victoria Pérez, Artistic Director of Raíces. "Musicals are my favorite way to tell a story. The Latino culture is, in part, driven by our music. Therefore it seems like the perfect way to continue to tell our stories."

As with previous versions of Desde El Puente, each 10-minute one-act play is written, directed and performed by members of the Raíces ensemble. "We are theatre makers, we are storytellers, and we are artists," said Pérez. "It's something that brings us great pride." The one-act plays in this edition of Desde El Puente will feature various Latino musical styles including salsa, merengue, plena, buleria, bolero, hip hop, tango and bachata, to name a few. The lineup of plays includes:

• Llega la Hora, by Maria Pérez-Gómez and Victoria Pérez. A dating show where the contestants vie for the bachelorette's love via the language of the heart... la música.

• Plena Cautiva, by Dewel Pérez. The feeling of ten minutes of freedom.

• El Closet Magico, by Maria Pérez-Gómez, music by Adrian Güadalupe and Maria Pérez-Gómez. A closet where the magical sounds of Puerto Rico come to life with music and adventure.

• Sin Palabras, by Victoria Pérez, music by Lilliangina Quiñones, lyrics by Victoria Pérez and Lilliangina Quiñones. Once the "it" couple, Angi and Eddie are now in a volatile relationship heightened by a significant loss. Can they make it work?

• Good Night Puto, by Alexia Guzmán, music by Carolyn Miranda. A woman thinks she needs a man but learns that, with a little tough love, all she really needs is herself.

• Padrinos de Boda, by Anthony Alcocer. A marriage celebration of two people truly embracing a harmonious life together filled with a singular love, proud traditions, and the endless joy of Latinidad.

• Es mi Voz, by Lissette DeJesús, music by Sara Rodríguez. One woman finds that when she lets her voice be heard in a world that tells her to be silent, she becomes the hero that we ought to see in ourselves

• Don Pedro y Yo, by Rolando Martín Gómez. The story of Puerto Rican freedom fighter Pedro Albizu Campos and the struggle for social justice set to salsa poetry.

• Just in Time, by Alejandro Gómez, music by Daniel Williams. Two friends are drifting apart but they try to restore their friendship before it's too late.

Desde El Puente opens Friday, April 19th and performances run for three weekends through Sunday, May 5th. The one-act play festival will be performed at the Manny Fried Playhouse, 255 Great Arrow Ave., third floor, 14207. Performances are Friday at 8:00 PM, Saturday at 3:00 PM, Sundays at 6:00 PM and two Thursday Pay-What-You-Can performances at 7:30 PM. Tickets are $25 for general admission or $20 for students/seniors and can be reserved by calling 716-381-9333 or by visiting raicestheatrecompany.com. Desde El Puente is funded by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature; administered by Arts Services Initiative of Western New York. This project is also supported by NYSCA-A.R.T./New York Creative Opportunity Fund (A Statewide Theatre Regrant Program).

Raíces Theatre Company is based in Buffalo, NY, and operates as Western New York's premier Latinx bilingual theater company. Raíces - which means "roots" in Spanish - was chosen as the company's name as it perfectly reflects the belief that, in order to truly understand who we are as Latinx people, we must celebrate the present while always looking at who we have been in the past in order to have a clear vision for the future. Its mission is to provide original theatrical entertainment for the WNY region which is specifically geared towards nearly 30,000 Hispanic people living in Buffalo and 10,000 more living across Erie County. The company is dedicated to develop, nourish, and produce modern and original works dealing with the Latinx experience in order to preserve our "raíces." Raíces has also earned great recognition from the Buffalo theater community, having won one Artie Award and receiving five Artie Award nominations during its existence. It has also partnered successfully with many local theater companies including MusicalFare, Subversive Theatre Collective and Road Less Traveled Productions.

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