Teatro Milagro to Launch 2016 National Tour in Portland with BROKEN PROMISES

Teatro Milagro launches its 2016 national tour in Portland with BROKEN PROMISES by Olga Sanchez. This original work, created in collaboration with Planned Parenthood, is based on the true life stories of teen girls who are lured into prostitution. The production runs January 14-23, 2016 at El Centro Milagro, 525 SE Stark Street, Portland, OR 97214.

The play will provide an opportunity to discuss sexual health in underserved communities and will be paired with "Healthy Relationships" workshops that are currently being taught in such schools as Native American Youth & Family Center (NAYA) and Donald E. Long Youth Detention Center.

Direction is by Francisco Garcia, who toured with Milagro is the mid 90's, prior to his successful venture in Los Angles as a playwright, director, and equity actor. Returning to Portland for this production is choreographer Gabriela Portuguez, whose work at Milagro in the past included direction and choreography of the popular production, FRIDA, un retablo. Olga Sanchez is the Artistic Director Emerita, currently working on her PhD at the University of Oregon.

The cast includes Monica Domena, hailing from Washington, Shenekah Telles from New Mexico, Giovanni Alva from California, and long-time Milagro touring artist Ajai Terrazas Tripathi from Corvallis, Oregon.

Since 1989, Milagro's bilingual, arts education touring ensemble, Teatro Milagro, has provided culturally appropriate arts education & enrichment programs that build cultural appreciation and further Latino participation in the arts. In 1995, Milagro produced En Este Valle de Lágrimas, a Spanish language AIDS education play for Washington County Health Department. Since that time Milagro has produced over a dozen public health plays related to breast cancer, smoking and LGBTQQIA health and wellness, in partnership with various health and social service agencies. In 2009, Teatro Milagro formed OYE, opciónes y educación, a Latino sexual health coalition with Cascade AIDS Project and Multnomah County Health Department. Teatro Milagro teaching artists have worked collaboratively with Multnomah County Health Department since that time to receive training in popular education methodology and health promotion.

Amidst the backdrop of urban Latin hip hop music, rhyme, and choreography, BROKEN PROMISES reveals the shocking truth of how quickly and easily teens are ensnared in the world of sex trafficking. Desperate for money, four teens living on the edge gamble their lives on internet porn and prostitution. Before she knows it, Adriana is trapped in a life from which she cannot escape, or can she?

CAST:
Monica Domena Adriana
Ajai Terrazas Tripathi Father/Men
Geo Alva Esteban
Shenekah Telles Josefina

PRODUCTION TEAM:
Olga Sanchez Playwright
Francisco Garcia Director
Gabriela Portuguez Choreographer
Dañel Malán Founding Director
Tomás Rivero Scenic Designer
Shenekah Telles Costume Design
Katelan Braymer Lighting Design
Roman Vasquez Composer
Blanca Forzan Stage Manager
Dug Martell Sound Engineer
Monica Domena Props Design
Quetzal Brock-Rivero Scenic Assistant

Performances run January 14 - 23rd, 2016, playing Thursday - Saturday, 7:30, Sunday 2PM; Thursday, January 14, 7:30 PM - Preview; Friday January 15, 7:30 PM - Opening night, with reception catered by Tortillería y Tienda de Leon. **Performances on January 21, 22, & 23rd are running as part of the 2016 Fertile Ground Festival. All performances take place at El Centro Milagro, 525 SE Stark Street, Portland, Oregon 97214. Admission: $5-$30. Tickets available at www.milagro.org or 503-236-7253. Discounts for students, seniors, veterans, groups 15+, and with Oregon Trail card through the Arts for All program.

**Due to mature content, the play is recommended for teens and up. No nudity or graphic scenes are shown onstage.

SPECIAL EVENTS:

Guest speakers and a free Women's Health & Social Services Fair will accompany the two-week run at Milagro. Before and after the Sunday matinee on the 17th, non-profits such as Lifeworks NW, Planned Parenthood, and SARC will share information and resources in El Zócalo. After each performance, representatives from agencies that provide services and resources for women, as well as attorneys at law focused on sex trafficking, will join the actors for a post-show discussion.

Thurs. Jan. 14 - Amanda McLaughlin Barreto, Education Programs Manager for Planned Parenthood of the Columbia Willamette. She has also served on this project as the Planned Parenthood representative in the development of the script for BROKEN PROMISES.

Sat. Jan. 16 - Youth Ending Slavery, a student-led 501(c)3 nonprofit based in Portland, Oregon, whose mission is to combat modern-day slavery.

Sat. Jan. 16 - Student Night! Special invitation for high school and college students. Gift bags for first 25 students with tickets to arrive at the show.

Sun. Jan. 17 - Women's Health & Social Services Fair 1-2PM, 3-4PM, See below for list of participating organizations.

Sun. Jan. 17 - Molly Franks, Multnomah County Health Department educator and co-founder of OYE, opciónes y educación, a Latino sexual health coalition co-founded by Milagro in 2009.

Thurs. Jan. 21 - Warren Binford, Associate Professor of Law and the Director of the Clinical Law Program at Willamette University, has done extensive work with victims of violence and sex abuse, specifically children.
Kendra Harding from Lifeworks NW will discuss services that their non-profit provides.

Thurs. Jan. 21- Sat. Jan. 23 - BROKEN PROMISES is presented as part of the 2016 Fertile Ground Festival, an 11-day arts festival showcasing new work from local Portland artists.

Fri. Jan. 22 - Joel Shapiro, a local Attorney at Law who specializes in combating child sex trafficking and violence against women will be joined by members of YES, Youth Ending Slavery.

Sat. Jan. 23 - Kelly Clark from LifeWorks NW, which provides critical access to mental health services, prevention, and addiction for those in need.

Women's Health & Social Services Fair Roster PFLAG Portland works at the intersection of gender identity, sexual orientation, and race to provide a network of support for transgender members of our community through educational outreach and community involvement.

Planned Parenthood is a leader of the reproductive rights and health movement, providing community health care and education on issues such as family planning, healthy relationships, STDs, sexual orientation, and gender.

LifeWorks NW provides critical access to mental health services, prevention, and addiction for those in need. Its mission is to promote a healthy community by providing quality and culturally responsive mental health and addiction services across the lifespan.

211 serves every Oregon County as well as Clark and Skamania counties in Washington. Every year more than 425,000 people dial 211, searching for resources on 211info.org, texting their zip code to 898211 or email -- all toll-free and confidential. Staff members have access to an interpreter service with more than 140 languages.

SARC has served over 450 teens in the last five years find safe and secure shelter, gain access to physical and mental health care services, procure clothing and hygiene supplies, re-establish educational plans and build job skills.

YES, Youth Ending Slavery, is an entirely student-led 501(c)3 nonprofit based in Portland, Oregon. Its mission is to combat modern-day slavery by raising awareness about its prevalence in the world and empowering youth to be advocates for change. Educating youth about the existence of slavery is crucial because the rising generation has both the opportunity and responsibility to create a world where unjust practices in the name of profit are not tolerated.

OYE, opciónes y educación is a coalition of local organizations and community members who take a different approach to promoting healthy sexuality. By using theatre and popular education, OYE provides interactive, culturally relevant workshops that cover topics such as youth-adult communication, body image, gender roles, LGBT identity, healthy relationships, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and family planning.

For over 30 years, Milagro has been dedicated to bringing the vibrancy of Latino theatre, culture and arts education to audiences in the Pacific Northwest and across the country. We provide a home for artists and audiences seeking authentic, Latino cultural experiences. We value creativity and diversity; we welcome the risk of experimentation while respecting tradition; we empower our artists to think creatively and act collaboratively; we are often irreverent but never irrelevant. We entertain our audiences; we give them pause to think, feel and imagine; and, through the cultural lens of latinidad, we reflect the full spectrum of humanity. As a proud community leader and thinker, we speak boldly and authoritatively; as imaginative artists, we embrace the colorful and vivacious, the provocative and playful.

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