For Immediate Release

The Clemente Soto Velez Cultural and Educational Center

BORIMIX Returns in November for Puerto Rican Heritage Month, Celebrating Latinx Resilience, Creativity, and Intersectionality

2022 Festival honors guest country Venezuela and its intersection with Puerto Rican identity, artistic cultural heritage, and common plight of forced migration.

New York, NY – The 15th annual BORIMIX returns this November, celebrating Puerto Rican Heritage Month with a month-long, citywide festival of Puerto Rican artists in theater, dance, music and the visual arts. A co-production of Teatro SEA, Teatro LATEA, The Clemente, and recurrent partner CENTRO (Hunter College’s Center for Puerto Rican Studies), BORIMIX makes Puerto Rican arts accessible to a multi-ethnic and multi-generational audience, promoting creative collaboration between Latinx artists. BORIMIX 2022 will also feature Venezuela as a guest country, part of its annual tradition of recognizing and honoring the mutual bonds and intersections across nations. 

“BORIMIX has always emphasized the importance of collaboration, intersection, and cross-pollination among artists, mediums, identities, and nationalities,” said Dr. Manuel Moran, co-founder of the festival and artistic director of Teatro SEA. “By partnering with organizations around the city and showcasing the arts of a guest country each year, we highlight how Puerto Rican and Latine culture transcends boundaries and makes our city stronger.” 

“For Puerto Rican artists and creators, Puerto Rican Heritage Month really lasts all year long, with our traditions and culture serving as creative fuel. BORIMIX Festival was founded to showcase this multidisciplinary talent in our community, and each year continues to grow in ambition and participation,” said Miguel Trelles, co-founder of the festival and director of Teatro LATEA.  

 

“This is another timely thematic edition of Borimix, given the humanitarian crisis unfolding in New York City in which thousands of asylum seekers are arriving in NY (mostly Venezuelan) and overwhelming NYC shelters. The Clemente and the festival is proud to partner with artists Guadalupe Maravilla and Yara Travieso on November 18th to host a night of performances & dance party to raise funds for NYC’s newly arrived asylum seekers, in benefit of The Good Shepherd Church which has become a Respite Sanctuary for immigrants.” said Libertad Guerra, executive director of The Clemente.

Kicking off on November 4th with the community awards ceremony honoring contributions to the city, and the opening of the exhibit See You in Florida : a Vene-Rican Odyssey, the evening will be capped with dancing to the live music of Alvaro Benavides Group. As usual, the month-long festival will feature a variety of performance events, workshops, and panels throughout November with multiple partners and a program that highlights both Puerto Rican and Venezuelan talent.

About BORIMIX

BORIMIX: Puerto Rico Fest was established in 2005 to celebrate Puerto Rican Heritage Month by showcasing great Puerto Rican art in a range of mediums. Initially held exclusively at The Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural & Educational Center in the Lower East Side, the festival expanded in 2007 to include multiple venues around the city. In 2007 the BORIMIX Award was inaugurated, which recognizes individuals who have contributed to, supported, and advocated for Puerto Rican /Latinx arts in New York City. The mission of BORIMIX: Puerto Rico Fest is to make Puerto Rican arts accessible to a multi-ethnic and multi-generational audience, and to promote collaboration between Latino artists. BORIMIX.COM

About The Clemente Center

The Clemente is a Puerto Rican/Latinx multi-arts downtown staple for close to three decades,

and a polyphonic space where countless New York based Latinx, BIPOC, local LES, and international partners create contemporary work in a collaborative environment. The Clemente provides meaningful support to contemporary artists, curators, independent producers, and small arts organizations in the form of subsidized studio, rehearsal, office, and venue space; as well as countless co-production opportunities, an annual series of exhibitions, and seasonal festivals. theclementecenter.org

About Teatro SEA

Established in 1985, SEA (Society of the Educational Arts, Inc.), is the premiere Bilingual Arts-in-Education Organization and Latino Children’s Theater in the United States. SEA has created and produced a combination of educational theater productions and art workshops/programs specifically designed to examine, challenge and create possible solutions for current educational, social and community issues. Its internationally celebrated programs include school, outdoor, community and main stage performances, workshops and residencies, among others, reaching over 75,000 children and young adults every year. The organization, established by Dr. Manuel A. Morán, currently has offices in San Juan, New York, and Florida. Teatro SEA has its performance space at the Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural and Educational Center on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. teatrosea.org

About Teatro LATEA

Founded in 1982 by Nelson Tamayo, Nelson Landrieu, Mateo Gomez and Marta García. Latin American Theater Experiment Associates (Teatro LATEA) reflects the concern of these award-winning actors with the underrepresentation of Latinos in North American theater. In 1993 Ed Vega and the LATEA founders established the Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural and Educational Center (The Clemente). During its illustrious 38 year history, Teatro LATEA has been widely acknowledged for its contributions to the performing arts. Teatrolatea.org