American Night: DREAM ON! a series of conversations

Join the FREE Conversations

inspired by Richard Montoya’s play 

American Night: The Ballad of Juan José  

 moderated by  Olga Sanchez, Milagro’s Artistic Director

• Saturday, May 2, after the show: History: Whose Story?

Pablo Picasso once said, “Art is a lie that tells the truth.”  In American Night, Juan José’s dream challenges everything he has read about U.S. history, to the point that he doesn’t know what to believe. This is more than just a playwright taking poetic license, the play’s revisionism illuminates how “history” is recorded and passed on as fact, in the same way that the school boards in Arizona remove books from the curriculum and edit history for thousands of students. Richard Montoya, author of American Night: The Ballad of Juan José, will lead the conversation on revisionism and art.  What inspired him to create this play? Are certain historical events more misrepresented than others? Is the artist responsible for setting the story straight?  Montoya will be joined by Prof. Margot Minardi, History and Humanities, Reed College and Dr. Rene Sanchez, Assistant Professor of Theology at the University of Portland

• Sunday, May 10, 4:00 p.m: Natural Selection

Juan José, a former police officer disillusioned by his inability to work with integrity in Mexico, leaves for the U.S. However, the more he learns about his new country, the more he questions whether he should pledge allegiance.  Why do people decide to become citizens? How challenging is the naturalization process? A significant number of eligible immigrants in the U.S. decide not to naturalize. What are their reasons? Panelists: Prof. Alejandro Santana, Philosophy, University of Portland; Alice Gates, Assistant Professor Department of Sociology & Social Work at University of Portland and Jess Guzmán, Legal Program Coordinator, CAUSA

• Sunday, May 17, 4:00 p.m: Perchance to Dream!

Juan José’s madcap vision, filled with images and personalities, inspires questions about the power of dreams. New ways of understanding the nature and significance of dreams have emerged that build upon (or contradict) the classic 20th century ideas of Freud and Jung.  How do these different perspectives compare and contrast? What are the prevailing scientific ideas about dream interpretation?  How are dreams influenced by our cultural heritage? Panelists: Carol Walnum, Certified Jungian Analyst  and  Satya Doyle Byock, Jungian Psychotherapist

Join us for the free series of conversations and don't miss your chance to see the amazing  the Portland premiere of American Night: the Ballad of Juan José,  at Milagro April 30 - May 23, 2015!