Magdalena has been a SmART Schools Artist in Residence in the Everett, MA Public Schools for five years in a row! She was the inaugural Master Teaching Artist with SmART in 1999, referred by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and has been with SmART ever since. Magdalena loves the Everett Schools, their dedicated educators, caring principals and above all, a diverse student body of children, many of them new immigrants, who love to learn!
A review on select performances from Magdalena's most recent play, ERASED: a poetic imagining on the life of Arturo Alfonso Schomburg. A vision begun in 1999 and returned to in 2018 to the present. Pan-African score by Ben Barson, with selected artists from the Afro Yaqui Music Collective:
https://www.icareifyoulisten.com/2019/11/afro-yaqui-music-collective-resurrect-silenced-voices
The play was a 2018 finalist in a national plays competition:
http://howlround.com/conexi-n-the-ltc-announces-twenty-four-new-latinx-plays-as-finalists-for-carnaval-2018
Select performances while in development with music: Kelly Strayhorn Theater and City of Asylum, Pittsburgh, PA; Bing Arts Center, Springfield, Massachusetts.
https://www.icareifyoulisten.com/2019/11/afro-yaqui-music-collective-resurrect-silenced-voices
The play was a 2018 finalist in a national plays competition:
http://howlround.com/conexi-n-the-ltc-announces-twenty-four-new-latinx-plays-as-finalists-for-carnaval-2018
Select performances while in development with music: Kelly Strayhorn Theater and City of Asylum, Pittsburgh, PA; Bing Arts Center, Springfield, Massachusetts.
Magdalena is honored to be cited in this Huffington post article by Adam Kirk Edgerton:
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Magdalena was one of eight winning playwrights in a national theater competition - The Latino Theater Commons, Carnaval 2015, held at DePaul University in July, 2015. Her winning play, Perfectamente Loca/Perfectly Insane.
Magdalena has been invited to be in a month-long residency at the Djerassi Resident Artists Program in Woodside, CA in the Spring of 216. She has just completed a whirlwind tour for this year. Getting ready for the next~ Performed at Lincoln Center Out of Doors, La Casita at Lincoln Center and Pregones Theater, with Teatro V!da youth Artistic Associate, Jeremy Turgeon on trumpet. Thank you, Jeremy Wilson for these exciting photos of our Ign!te the M!c youth fundraiser
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Magdalena was keynote Speaker in Detroit and Rhode Island for the
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Magdalena Donates Archives:
http://today.uconn.edu/blog/2013/10/latina-icon-donates-papers-to-uconn-archives/
Off-Broadway:
Missed it? See it in the Bronx: www.pregones.org
or see it in Los Angeles: www.latc.org
Los Angeles Review of
Dancing in My Cockroach Killers
http://stageraw.com/2014/11/06/dancing-in-my-cockroach-killers/
or see it in Los Angeles: www.latc.org
Los Angeles Review of
Dancing in My Cockroach Killers
http://stageraw.com/2014/11/06/dancing-in-my-cockroach-killers/
Magdalena's favorite all-time quote comes from Miriam Colón, (below) after seeing her perform:
" ¡Esa mujer en performance es una escopeta!" She wants some version of that on her headstone!
Magdalena with the legendary actor, director and producer, Ms. Miriam Colón, co-producer of Dancing in My Cockroach Killers and founder of the first Latin@ Off-Broadway house, the Puerto Rican Traveling Theater, where actors like Raul Julia had their first performance opportunities.
Ms. Colón received the National Medal of Arts and Humanities from President Barack Obama in a White House ceremony in September, 2015.
Here is a Los Angeles Review of Dancing in My Cockroach Killers
http://stageraw.com/2014/11/06/dancing-in-my-cockroach-killers/
Magdalena spent over a decade working with the incarcerated in NYC. In New England she has worked with adjudicated youth and the Voices from Inside project:
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Making History in New England
First Poet Laureate Ordinance
Magdalena worked in collaboration with City Councilor, Timothy Rooke, to insure that the City of Springfield, Massachusetts would pass an ordinance to have a Poet Laureate, the first in the history of the City. Magdalena nominated Poet María Luisa Arroyo for this history-making position. Ms. Arroyo was approved by the City Council and named The first Poet Laureate in the city's history on
September 29th, 2014
in City Council Chambers
Springfield City Hall
http://www.masslive.com/elpueblolatino/index.ssf/2014/09/poetiza_hispana_puertorriquea.html
*****
First Multicultural, Intergenerational
and Multi-genre Bullying Anthology
co-edited with María Luisa Arroyo
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/adam-kirk-edgerton/the-bully-in-us_b_1663786.html
*****
First LGBTQA Open Mic Series
In 2011, Magdalena facilitated the start of the
first openly LGBTQA open mic series
in the City of Springfield in collaboration with the Bing Arts Center.
The very first event was co-hosted by community activists Diego Angarita-Horowitz (Teatro V!da member at the time) and Nelson Roman. Since then, the Bing has hosted the
yearly PRIDE Open Mic, and other LGBTQA events,
creating a safe and welcoming space.
*****
First Latin@ Theater
In 2007, Magdalena co-founded
the first Latino Theater in Springfield, MA:
Teatro V!da in collaboration with the
Latino Breakfast Club
Officially inaugurated at the
Springfield Museums in 2008
*****
First on-going open mic for youth by youth in the city of Springfield
Ign!te the M!c.
All promotions, productions, features, and social media for Ign!te
are youth generated and driven.
Begun in 2009 at the Springfield City Library it
continues monthly, to date, at the Bing Arts Center, also in Springfield.
Known as a venue where young people feel safe to perform
and/or in public for the first time. Ages 12-25, all levels of experience welcome.
You may forward a message to Magdalena through the
Bookings Contact tab
For more information about Magdalena:
www.latinapoet.com
www.latinapoet.net
www.teatrovida.com
with the Host, Crew and Guests at BronxNet's OPEN
Below is video from ENCUENTRO 2014 at the Los Angeles Theater Center. Thank you, HOWLROUND! |
Panel features:
Rosalba Rolón, Artistic Director, Pregones Theater; Tony Garcia, Executive Artistic Director, Su Teatro; Sonia Nazario, Pulitzer Prize Winning Author; and Magdalena Gómez |
newplay on livestream.com. Broadcast Live Free
"I feel Magdalena is one of the top artist educators in the country...her classrooms are places of healing and rejuvenation. I look forward to collaborating with her much more in the future."
Kurt Wootton, Founder, Arts Literacy Project, Brown University
Kurt Wootton, Founder, Arts Literacy Project, Brown University
