Teatro SEA Announces Its 2022 Fall/Winter Season

Teatro SEA, the leading Latine children's theater, has announced its Fall 2022 SEAson, featuring bilingual festivals, performances, and cabaret nights for audiences of all ages.

During Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15-October 15), the original production "César Chávez and the Migrants (The César Chávez Story)" will honor the Mexican-American labor leader with a series of performances. Other highlights include Borimix Festival celebrating Puerto Rican Heritage this November, and "La Cucacharita Martina," based on librarian and author Pura Belpré's beloved characters as they turn 90 this year. The magic of the holiday season will include performances of "Sueño de Reyes," as well as a Punto SEA holiday cabaret, and the annual Three Kings Day Festival, celebrating Latin America's most important day of the Christmas season.

"Our newest season celebrates the irreplaceable interactions between young audiences and performers that only happen in live theater," said Dr. Manuel Moran, founder, CEO and artistic director of Teatro SEA. "Teatro SEA continues to be a welcoming place to experience Latin American culture and the magic of the performing arts."

The full schedule is below:

SEPTEMBER-JANUARY AT TEATRO SEA

Little Amal Walks NYC - Visit to Teatro SEA/The Clemente

September 28, 2022, 4pm

Location: Teatro SEA | The Clemente 107 Suffolk Street, NY 10021 (J/M/Z to Essex St. or F to Delancey St.)

Free

Little Amal is a 10-year-old refugee from war-torn Syria. She is also a 12-foot puppet who has traveled 5,000 miles across Turkey and Europe to the UK in search of her mother. On her journey, she's been welcomed by almost a million adults and children. Now, she comes to New York City in search of her Uncle Samir. Amal will be welcomed by hundreds of artists, cultural organizations, civic leaders, community groups, schools and colleges in all 5 boroughs.

Teatro SEA and The Clemente Center are partnering with St. Ann's Warehouse and Walk with Amal to welcome this incredible puppet to the Lower East Side on September 28, as part of the 17-day traveling festival of art and hope. Amal will meet Teatro SEA's puppet friends, celebrate the traditions and cultures of the Lower East Side, and greet audiences at the Clemente Center. Find out more at stannswarehouse.org/amal

César Chávez and the Migrants (The César Chávez Story)

Performances:

Thursday October 6, 2022, 7pm

Friday October 7, 2022, 3pm

Saturday October 8, 2022, 3pm

Sunday October 9, 2022, 3pm

Recommended for children in 5th grade and up

Location: Teatro SEA | The Clemente 107 Suffolk Street, NY 10021 (J/M/Z to Essex St. or F to Delancey St.)

Tickets: $10 adults, $5 Children

Written and directed by Manuel Antonio Morán, the bilingual production highlights Chávez's life story for a new generation and highlights Chávez's early life as well as his partnership with Dolores Huerta, activism with the National Farm Workers Association, the 1968 grape boycott, and his ongoing commitment to nonviolent civil rights work.

"César Chávez is an American hero. His activism and his victories for the labor movement are well-known in California and across the West Coast, but his contributions are less familiar to many New Yorkers," said Dr. Morán, founder, CEO and artistic director of Teatro SEA. "Through the medium of puppetry, we hope to share his legacy with a new audience and an entire generation."

The production is also inspired by Victorian-era Toy Theater, a form of miniature theater dating back to the early 19th century, and features handmade engraved puppets designed by artist and puppeteer Cristina Arancibia Brecht. As part of the story, one of the farm laborer's boxes of fruit is transformed into a miniature puppet theater, hosting an 8-inch high performance that tells the story of Chávez and his accomplishments.

Borimix Puerto Rico Festival

Nov. 4th - 30th

November 4, 2022, 7pm - Festival Celebration & Awards Ceremony

Location: Teatro SEA | The Clemente 107 Suffolk Street, NY 10021 (J/M/Z to Essex St. or F to Delancey St.)

Recommended for all ages

Borimix Puerto Rico Festival, a partnership between The Clemente Center, LATEA and Teatro SEA, makes Puerto Rican arts accessible to a multi-ethnic and multi-generational audience, promoting creative collaboration between Latinx artists. Established in 2006 by visual artist Miguel Trelles and Teatro SEA creative director Manuel Moran, the November festival showcases Puerto Rican and Latin American art in a range of mediums and disciplines. Borimix has transformed Puerto Rican Heritage Month into a gathering of Puerto Rico's diaspora artists with Latin Americans from all over New York.

Punto SEA Cabaret

Performances: Thursday evenings - September-December, 2022

Time: 8-11pm

Recommended for adults

Location: Teatro SEA | 107 Suffolk Street, NY 10021 (J/M/Z to Essex St. or F to Delancey St.)

Tickets: $25 general audience, includes free drink

Punto SEA is a new intimate venue within Teatro SEA featuring Latinx acts of no more than three performers, who will present cabaret, burlesque, poetry, music, performance art and stand-up. A flexible space with capacity for 25-35 people, Punto SEA has a full bar and food offerings!

La Cucarachita Martina

Performances:

Saturday November 12, 2022, 11am

Saturday November 19, 2022, 11am

Recommended for all ages

Location: Teatro SEA | 107 Suffolk Street, NY 10021 (J/M/Z to Essex St. or F to Delancey St.)

Tickets: $20 adults, $15 children

This Latin rock-n-roll musical production is based on a popular Cuban and Puerto Rican children's tale of a little roach who learns many lessons on her journey to find true love.

Legendary folklorist, pioneering librarian, author and puppeteer Pura Belpré is best known for Martina the roach and Perez the rat, the characters she popularized as she served as the first Puerto Rican librarian at the New York Public Library. This year marks the 90th anniversary of her bilingual books that brought these characters to young children across the city.

MicroTheater New York

Performances:

Friday December 2, 2022, 8pm

Saturday December 3, 2022, 8pm

Sunday December 4, 2022, 4pm

Recommended for all ages

Location: Teatro SEA | 107 Suffolk Street, NY 10021 (J/M/Z to Essex St. or F to Delancey St.)

Tickets: $5 per performance

MicroTheater New York, entering its 12th season, is a series hosted by Teatro SEA that consists of short plays lasting 15 to 20 minutes, with a maximum audience of 15 per play. The format originated in Spain in 2009, and adapts to changing audience habits by letting patrons "choose their own adventure" as they decide how many short performances to attend. Each performance costs $5 and will be presented in various private spaces for several consecutive times per day. This season's theme is The Holidays.

Sueño de Reyes / Dream of Kings

Performances:

Saturday December 10, 2022, 3pm

Sunday December 11, 2022, 3pm

Saturday December 17, 2022, 3pm

Sunday December 18, 2022, 3pm

Recommended for all ages

Location: Teatro SEA | 107 Suffolk Street, NY 10021 (J/M/Z to Essex St. or F to Delancey St.)

Tickets: $20 adults, $15 children

Teatro SEA's production, Sueño de Reyes / Dream of Kings features shadow puppets of the Three Kings (Gaspar, Melchior and Balthasar), made by Indian puppet master Shinde Chithambara Rao. Accompanied by live musicians and Latin jazz songs, the shadow puppet kings tell the story of how they mistakenly arrive in Puerto Rico instead of Bethlehem.

Three Kings Day Festival

January 6, 2023

Teatro SEA's Three Kings Day festival marks the return of this annual celebration, a staple of the holiday season for more than two decades. Giant puppets of the Three Kings will meet the first 1,000 children in attendance. The holiday family event will feature a procession, live music, puppet show performances, and a holiday toy drive which donates 3,000 toys each year to children. Tickets are free and reservations are recommended.

Three Kings Day, also known as El Día de los Reyes Magos, is a traditional holiday celebrated mostly in Latin America & Spain, marking the 12th day of Christmas and end of the holiday season. The holiday's roots refer to the biblical adoration of baby Jesus by the Three Kings, who traveled through the desert for 12 days bearing gifts for the newborn. Observers of the holiday often receive gifts on January 6th - instead of Christmas Day.

TEATRO SEA ON THE ROAD - TOURING PERFORMANCES

Teatro SEA at Smithsonian National Museum of the American Latino - Latino Heritage Festival

September 17, 2022, 11am-8:30pm

Location: American History Museum, Washington, DC

Free

Join Teatro SEA for a performance at the Smithsonian's bilingual intergenerational festival with enriching educational offerings, hands-on activities and performances in celebration of 25 years of Latinidad at the Smithsonian. The event will showcase Latino history, art and culture, highlighting different Smithsonian museums and cultural centers and partner organizations. Family-fun activities will include a puppet theater and cooking demonstrations as well as pop-culture and adult programming.

Teatro SEA at Center for Puppetry Arts

Atlanta, GA

September 22-October 2

Atlanta celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month with performances of La Cucarachita Martina at the Center for Puppetry Arts.

Teatro SEA travels to El Paso, TX

Performances of Los Colores De Frida/The Colors of Frida will premiere in El Paso this fall!

TEATRO SEA WEB SERIES

Nunito's Calendar/El Calendario de Nunito

Recommended for ages 3 to 10 years old

Location: SEA Kids Network - Youtube Channel

Join Nunito, an extraterrestrial boy who comes to Planet Earth to learn about humans, for a journey through historic dates, cultural celebrations, and holidays throughout the year. Why do we celebrate Thanksgiving and Independence Day? Join Nunito and learn about the meaning of these special days.

El Avión/The Airplane

Recommended for ages 3 to 10 years old

Location: SEA Kids Network - Youtube Channel

Hop aboard El Avión/The Airplane, a new bilingual web-series and musical band designed to empower immigrant children. Fly and sing, day and night, on this airline of humans and monsters. Each episode features the crew on their travels, as they interact in humorous encounters while offering insightful solutions to current issues. Put your tray table in an upright position - and get ready for a joyful ride of puppetry, music, dance, theater, and animation!

Established in 1985, SEA (Society of the Educational Arts, Inc.), is the premiere Bilingual Arts-in-Education Organization and Latine Children's Theater in the United States. SEA has created and produced a combination of educational theater productions and art workshops/programs specifically designed to examine, challenge and create possible solutions for current educational, social and community issues. Its internationally celebrated programs include school, outdoor, community and main stage performances, workshops and residencies, among others, reaching over 75,000 children and young adults every year. The organization, established by Dr. Manuel A. Morán, currently has offices in San Juan, New York, and Florida. Teatro SEA has its performance space at the Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural and Educational Center on Manhattan's Lower East Side. More information at teatrosea.org

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