Yoleros at Bushwick Starr Theater in Brooklyn, December 17-19

The Bushwick Starr & Teátrica in Association
with Brooklyn Gypsies
Present: Yoleros By Alex Vásquez Escaño
Directed Martin Balmaceda
Performances: December 17, 18, 19 @8pm shows 

Teátrica and Brooklyn Gypsies present, from December 17th through the 19th, Yoleros, a trip to illusions of a decent life. Máximo gets through life by various trades: lottery vendor and guide of risky ventures through the Mona Passage between the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, for those looking to escape reality with no future. Along with Demecio and Dinora, Máximo embarks on a journey across the sea, numbers and dreams. 

Alex Vásquez Escaño is the writer of Yoleros. His work Bed for Two, received IATI Theater’s Abdon Villamizar Playwriting Workshop Award and was published in Máscaras Errantes: Antología de Dramaturgos Dominicanos en los Estados Unidos. 

Yoleros was published in 2014 in an anthology called Palabras Acentuadas. For Vásquez Escaño, Yoleros is a metaphor for life: "We are all yoleros. We all, at some point of our lives, look for that new beginning. " 

For Balmaceda, Yoleros "is very important, especially for those who decide to emigrate and leave their countries to find a new beginning." 

The cast is made up of three talented young actors. Modesto Flako Jimenez, Mathia Vargas and Sully Bonnelly (ACE 2014 Award Winner) recreate the lives of people who risk it all since they have nothing to lose. 

The Production Team: 
Karina Paez………………………..Stage Manager 
Dan Kent…………………………..Lighting Designer 
Kevin Torres……………………....Technical Assistant 
Fabián González………………......Supertitles 
Nehprii Amenii……………………Scenic Designer/Puppet/Object Design and Construction 
Joshua Langman…….. …………...Sound and Projection Design 
Bettina Hoffmann ………..……….Videographer 
José Luis Morales ………………...Costume Design 
Gustavo Mirabile …………………Photographer 

About Teatrica Productions: Yoleros is an award-winning, original play created by the Teátrica Theater Company. The company was born in 2011 to continue the vibrant tradition of producing theater in Spanish in New York City. We seek to serve communities that lack access to cultural arts programs and to spread the importance and benefits of theater to often underserved Spanish-speaking audiences. We also seek to engage English speakers in the tradition of Latino theater to deepen their understanding of the experiences of their close neighbors who often live across language barriers. 

About Brooklyn Gypsies Brooklyn Gypsies is an eclectic artist collective made up of New Yorker's both native and immigrant to our city. We present annual showcases of new work in theater, dance, poetry and film that spark dialogues on critical issues of immigration, economics, and urban survival. We curate a mix of established and emerging artists and give them a platform to explore complex issues in a stimulating environment. Brooklyn Gypsies is a playground to celebrate and share what is unique about Bushwick's converging arts communities. 

Press about Brooklyn Gypsies: "Everyone laughed at the same time, shared the same silence, ate and drank the same dishes together afterward and celebrated what they had shared together. It was just happy." -WNYU 89.1 FM 

"Bushwick needs gatherings and platforms like Flo-etry night at The Bushwick Starr where people can meet and talk. Bushwick needs people like Flako to bring us closer and help us understand." -Bushwick Daily 

"The event spoke for itself. The night revived the notion that opening oneself to new people and experiences is part of living in New York City. So embrace." -Brooklyn Exposed 

“It has also joined with Modesto Jimenez, a poet and performer who has lived in the neighborhood since the early 1990s, for his Brooklyn Gypsies nights, which bring born-and-bred Bushwick artists together with recent arrivals.” - The New York Times 

Location: The Bushwick Starr theater: 207 Starr Street, Brooklyn, NY [between Irving and Wyckoff] Directions: Via Subway take the L Train to Jefferson Street, exit at Starr Street, walk against traffic on Starr, and the theater is 3/4 of a block on the right. For detailed driving directions visit: www.thebushwickstarr.org/DIRECTIONS 

Tickets are $18.00 at the door and $15 in advance at www.thebushwickstarr.org 

About The Bushwick Starr: The Bushwick Starr is an Obie Award winning non profit theater that presents an annual Season of new work in theater, dance, and puppetry. We are an organization defined by both our artists and our community, and since 2007, we have grown into a thriving theatrical venue, a vital neighborhood arts center, and a destination for exciting and engaging performance. 

The Bushwick Starr’s mission is to help ambitious artists and ambitious audiences find each other. We provide a springboard for emerging professional artists to make career-defining leaps, and we are a sanctuary where established performance companies come to experiment and innovate. Our past seasons have included new work from cutting edge companies such as The Debate Society, the TEAM, Elevator Repair Service, Half Straddle, and Witness Relocation. 

"A home for gutsy experimental work." - 2012 Village Voice OBIE Award for Outstanding Work

"Brooklyn's hottest incubator. One of New York's best-curated off-off venues." - Time Out New York, Best Off-Off Broadway Venue award, Best of New York Issue 2013 

"...artistically ambitious while still maintaining a real commitment to community. For those of us who believe in the importance of small arts venues in the creative ecology of NYC, it is hopeful that places like Bushwick Starr exist and are flourishing." - Andy Horowitz, Culturebot