With Valentine’s Day upon us, we want to say just how much
we love our artists and staff and volunteers who make the Miracle possible.
From one show to the next, we are constantly amazed and impressed with the
depth of talent and breadth of camaraderie that is shared here at El Centro
Milagro each and every day. So many artists have contributed to the Miracle
over the years that we wanted to take a moment to share with you a little bit
about where they are today. So we put
out a call to our master list of "all contacts, all shows" and we’re thrilled to share with you
news from near and far. Here's part one — read on and fall in love with your favorite artists all
over again!
David Sikking, who you may recall from the cast
of Mariela in the Desert, is now
directing Much Ado About Nothing “Messina
Beach Party” for Northwest
Classical Theatre, which plays March 23-April 22. “It's the Bard meets
Beach Blanket Bingo,” he says, “with original music by Stephen Alexander.”
If you attended ¡Viva
la Revolución! – last fall’s Day of the Dead celebration – then you
probably remember Noah Dunham in the
role of Nestor Prieto. Noah is currently developing an original devised piece
with The Working
Theatre Collective that plays April 19-May 5. What sticks in his head about
working at Miracle? “The night that I was supposed to be doing a ‘stage push’
to Enrique Eduardo Andrade, and actually pushed him over was pretty memorable.”
Sarah Gahagan, the costume designer who won a Drammy
award for her work on our production of El
Quijote, is now designing costumes, and props for Carnival of the Animals, Arabian Nights and Persuasion at Oregon Ballet Theatre,
onstage in April and March.
Over at Well Arts, Katy Lijeholm (did you know she was
originally from Akron, Ohio?) is directing We
Are Still Here, playing Feb. 17-25. At Miracle, she says, “The cast of Ardiente Paciencia was a joy to stage
manage — and joy and stage manage do not always go together in the same
sentence. They were so jubilant and kind
and fun, with each other and with me.
The moment I always remember is when Omar Vargas stuffed himself into a
wooden chest on stage — I think just to prove that he could fit, and to make Nurys Herrera and me laugh. He totally
fit inside. Everyone who I talk to who has ever had contact with Milagro speaks
of this organization with such respect and appreciation. The arts community really honors you and that
transcends a spectrum of size and cultures and aesthetic approaches. I can't think of another organization that
quite holds that place within Portland.”
Brenda Arellano
was last seen at Miracle in Cuéntame
Coyote and is now appearing in the ensemble of Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind by the Neo Futurists.
David Loftus, who
appeared in our production of The Road to
Xibalbá as Don Isidro, can be seen as Dr. Sebastian Mandril, Gilbert, and
others in Lakewood Theatre Company’s
production of City of Angels, onstage
May 4-June 10. “I've been doing more independent film, commercial, and
industrial video work the past two years, but most of my income comes from
freelance writing. Milagro was a wonderful theater to work with, the tech crew
there is inspired, and Olga Sanchez defines ‘class act’.”
Remember last season’s world premiere of Boomcracklefly? Tera
Zarra composed the music and
was also the acrobatics coach for the show. She’s currently recording a CD of
some of her music and remembers that in rehearsals for Miracle’s production of La Carpa del Maestro, director “Philip
Cuomo told me to play a scene in the same way that I had opened the door for
him earlier. I instantly understood what he was asking for, and it changed the
way I think about acting.”
If you saw Tino Does
Time, then you probably remember Francisco García, an actor
originally from Oregon who now lives in Los Angeles. Francisco begins
rehearsals next month for Romeo and
Juliet for Shakespeare Festival/LA at The Shakespeare Center of Los
Angeles in April. And, yes, he’s playing Romeo.
Of his experience at Miracle, he writes, “I really loved playing Tino
and working on Tino Does Time. It was
my last show I did in Portland before moving to L.A. Olga was such a wonderful
and giving director, and the cast was amazing, which also included Tony St. Clair, Siouxsie Suarez and Dan Ruiz. I really felt that I left
Portland on a high note after doing that show; it was a nice bit of closure for
my time in the Pacific Northwest. I'm still acting as much as I can although I
have been far more selective recently with what I have been choosing due to the
birth of my daughter Audrey, who is 15 months old. In addition to acting, I
also teach theater acting and classical theater classes here in L.A. I love teaching, I feel very fortunate that
I'm able to get paid doing what I love. I feel that I really got my start
working in the theater with the Miracle Theater Group. You hired me straight
out of college when I was as green as could be and taught me so much about my
craft. I learned about stamina and endurance while touring with Dañel and
Teatro Milagro and what it takes to run a nonprofit theater while working in
the offices with José at the Miracle. Since moving to LA, I've been fortunate
enough to act with some amazing companies, which include the Tony Award-winning
Mark Taper Forum, Shakespeare Festival/LA, Bilingual Foundation of the Arts,
East LA Repertory, Cornerstone Theater Company, and the Ford Amphitheatre, just
to name a few. I also became a member of Actors Equity after moving to LA and
was able to continue working in commercials and film. I just want to say thank
you for creating a space that allows Latino artists in Portland to come
together and work. You gave me my start working in the theater as well as
countless other theater artists in Portland. The best is yet to come.”
Who could forget the lovely Latin songstress Jessie
Marquez who has appeared many times on the Milagro stage, most recently
as part of our La Luna Nueva festival?
On March 30, you can see the Jessie Marquez Ensemble with Arnica String
Quartet at Jimmy Mak’s. “In 2009, I walked into the office because I wanted to
be a part of what Miracle was doing. I
met Tony Sonera who later invited me
to give a concert during the Luna Nueva festival. Right now, I'm collaborating with the Arnica String Quartet
on a show at Jimmy Mak's on March 30. It's Cuban/Brazilian/jazz/pop with lush harmony and texture. The Arnica Quartet recorded some of the
arrangements on my latest CD All I See Is
Sky. Singing with my ensemble and a string quartet is like singing on a
cloud. Visit me and say hello!”
Bay Area native Cindy
Leung lives in Hillsboro. She designed the lights for our production of The True History of Coca-Cola and
remembers most of all the music from the Día
de los Muertos show that she also worked on. “La
Llorona is one of the most haunting songs I've ever heard, and the
musicians in that show were amazing.” Cindy is no longer working in theatre,
but is now a professional dog training instructor, teaching students from all
over the Pacific Northwest and western Canada.
“I also work part time at Multnomah County Animal Services, where they
do incredible work taking care of animals in need. I loved working at Miracle! One of the most incredible groups of talented
and passionate artists ever assembled.”
Remember that kick-ass graffiti mural for Miracle’s
production of Lazarillo last year?
One-half of the artistic duo who created that work, Chazaq Luz Pinto a.k.a. Carlos Bamburgessa, recently created the
artwork that will promote Miracle’s upcoming production of Oeidpus el Rey. “Watching Lazarillo
after being involved with the graffiti art was a real treat. Miracle Theatre Group is full of fun and
exciting staff members. I thought it was
awesome when they made stickers out of one of my pieces of the Virgin Mary. I love working with Milagro and I'm pleased
to still be affiliated with them. I'm working on a mural with two other artists
(Unique, NOTES1) in the Humbolt neighborhood.
We are partnered up with NECN and the Humbolt Neighborhood
Association. The mural is a part of a graffiti
abatement movement and we hope that by putting up more organized art and
letting the community be involved is one of the best and only ways to decrease
vandalism in our city. Please check
out oregonuniversal.com and get involved with
our nonprofit organization reaching the youth and adults in our neighborhoods
and cities using Hip-Hop as the primary tool.”
Melinda Hedgecorth is a flamenco dancer who has performed in
our 2010 La Luna Nueva Festival. She is currently organizing and dancing in
small shows in flamenco bars in Sevilla as well as big summer festivals in the
U.S. with her group from Kansas City, Flamenco Mío. “I really
enjoyed working with Antonio Sonera
and the wonderful staff at Milagro.
Antonio even came out to Sevilla and saw me dance here. We had a great time drinking wine and talking
flamenco. I also really enjoyed the
artists that were able to come together for our show at Milagro. Talented dancers like Laura Onizuka and Lillie
Last, exceptional singers like Stephanie
Pedraza who came all the way from Vancouver and Diana Bright who is a local gem.
Mark Ferguson, a very
talented guitarist and Toshi Onizuka
who made a special guest appearance. I
enjoy them so much as artists and people.”
The work of playwright Caridad
Svich was last seen at Miracle when we produced her show The Labyrinth of Desire. Currently, her
play In the Time of the Butterflies
is playing at New York City’s Repertorio
Español through August. She’s originally from Philadelphia and currently
splits her time between NYC and L.A. “My favorite memory is the last talk back
for the opening weekend of the show, for it led to a rewrite of the script's
ending post-production.”
L.A. native Joaquín
López is still a very familiar face around Milagro through catering by his
restaurant La Bonita, but he is now focusing on music. He was last seen on the
Miracle stage in Teatro Milagro’s touring production of American Sueño and is currently preparing this year’s edition of Voz Alta for the 2012 Portland Latino Gay Pride. But first he
will be hosting an evening of music called Corazón
Acústico every first Sunday of the month at the Jade Lounge, 2348 SE Ankeny
from 7-10 p.m.; featuring Latin American and American acoustic acts. “Thank you
Miracle Theatre Group for everything you do! You are the nucleus for so many
Latino artists in the region. So much of our work starts with you. So many of
our long-lasting creative relationships and friendships start with you. You
have brought us together as we all continue to color this region with the
beauty that lives within us. You gave us the platform to express our voice; you
give us the space to call home. Gracias!”
Our former marketing assistant Stephen Pick invites you all out to see more quality theatre in
Newberg where he and his business partner have established the Valley Repertory Theatre. Their next production is Harvey, playing March 8-18. “I enjoyed meeting all the patrons at
the Box Office and helping usher people into the exciting world of theatre!”
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