XIOMARA CORNEJO

Xiomara Cornejo (she/her/ella) is a Salvadoran American theatre director, award-winning playwright, designer and dramaturg from Compton, California. Xiomara received a BA in Theater Directing/Performance from California State University Long Beach, an MA in Public Art Studies from the University of Southern California, and her PhD in Theatre and Performance Studies from the University of Missouri. Currently, she is a Bridge Postdoctoral Research Assistant in the School of Theatre and Music at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Her professional work includes theatre directing, after-school arts programming, and community arts organizing. Xiomara apprenticed with the legendary Bread and Puppet Theater in Vermont and was a member of the Occupy Movement Arts Committee in Long Beach, CA., where she utilized Theatre of the Oppressed, puppet making, and relationship-based community organizing to mobilize communities. For over eight years, Xiomara worked as a community organizer/supervisor under the Asset Based Community Development model and facilitated Neighborhood Action Councils (NAC) with youth and adults throughout South Los Angeles. Xiomara was the 2018 Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF) National 1st Place Winner for her Dramaturgy on Father Comes Home from the Wars, Parts 1, 2 & 3 and the 2017 National 1st Place Winner – Allied Crafts and Design for her Projection Design of Good Kids. Xiomara recently directed Marisol by José Rivera in the Rhynsburger Theatre as a stage performance and film. Her recent play, Romero, was the recipient of the 2022 KCACTF National Partners of the American Theatre “Outstanding Play” award and national semi-finalist. And, her current manuscript project, "Performing Resurrection: Upholding the Spirit and Legacy of El Salvador's Saint. Oscar A. Romero through Radical Puppet Theatre," was funded by the Mellon/ACLS Dissertation Completion Fellowship in 2020 and the John D. Bies International Travel Award in 2019. Xiomara’s scholarship centers on street and protest theatre, radical theatre history of the Americas, political puppetry, and circus. https://xiomaracornejo.com/

SANDRA MARQUEZ

Sandra Marquez is an award-winning actor, director and educator as well as a longtime ensemble member of Teatro Vista where she served as Associate Artistic Director for many years alongside Artistic Director Edward Torres. Ms. Marquez is the first self-identified Latinx artist to join the ensemble at the storied Steppenwolf Theater Company where she most recently appeared in Chekhov’s Sea Gull and directed the SYA production of I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter. Her work has also been seen at the Goodman, Court Theater, Victory Gardens, and Oregon Shakespeare Festival amongst others. Film and television credits include “Chicago Med”, “Prison Break”, “Boss” & Amazon series “Night Sky”. She is CoDirector of Graduate Studies for the MFA in Acting program at Northwestern University.

MOISES RODRIGUEZ (Óscar Romero/William)

Moises Rodriguez is an Actor, Fitness Enthusiast and Clinical Psychologist specializing in working with Youth Experiencing Homelessness. He enjoys using unorthodox approaches in his treatment such as therapeutic exercise groups incorporating basketball and martial arts. He has performed with Frida Kahlo Theatre, CASA0101, Sacred Fools Theatre, Theatre of Note, The Wayward Artist and Company of Angels (COA). Currently he is part of the Improv Team "Off Ramp" at COA, which highlights the stories and creativity of BIPOC artists. He is also involved in some film work, most recently short films Mateo, Xolo & Xochitl, and Remember. 3F, a feature film (3 Flowers-A story that explores the legacy of one gang through a grandfather, father and son from the 40's-90's) should be out in 2024. These performances are dedicated to Jendrix Rosales, Descansa en Paz.

RAMÓN CAMÍN* (Arch Angel #1)

Ramon’s Chicago credits include American Mariachi and The Matchmaker (Goodman Theater), The Madres, American Jornalero and A View From The Bridge (Teatro Vista), The Delicate Tears of the Waning Moon (Water People Theater). London West End credits include Frost/Nixon (Gielgud Theater) and We The People (Shakespeare's Globe). Madrid credits include Bent (Ensayo 100), I Hate Hamlet (Sala Pradillo), Romeo and Juliet (Teatro García Lorca), The Tempest (Sala Triágulo) and Godspell (Teatro Infanta Isabel). Film credits include The Machinist, Trouble in the Heights, K, One of the Hollywood Ten, The Discovery of Heaven and Slam. Television credits include Chicago Fire, Chicago PD (NBC Universal), NYC 22 (CBS), Law and Order SVU and Law and Order Criminal Intent (Universal Network Television), The Good Wife (CBS), Last Flight To Kuwait (BBC), Queen of Swords (Global Television Network) and The Guiding Light (CBS). He is a proud ensemble member of Teatro Vista. He is represented by Grossman & Jack Talent.

PALOMA LOZANO (Arch Angel #2)

Paloma Lozano is a playwright, actress, and screenwriter. In 2019, she was in the NEIU’s Stage Center Theater play called How to Hero: A Subway Play by Georgette Kelly. In 2020, she had the opportunity to perform in an online streaming reading of Shakespeare’s The Last Jedi. The stream was for a mutual aid for communal living space for Transgender or GNC individuals. Paloma hopes to write, produce and act in her work that is currently under development which is about love, Mexican American identity and healing from trauma. Her hope is to make it into a tv series and base it in Chicago. She hopes to write female fantasy stories that center on BIPOC, marginalized identities. She hopes she can create art that makes everyone feel seen. She wants to shout out her entire family, for being a great foundation and loving her when she didn’t always love herself. Xiomara Cornejo for providing her the opportunity to be part of her exciting project and for her mentorship. 

TOMMY RIVERA-VEGA* (Eduardo)

Tommy Rivera-Vega (He/Him/El) is a proud Teatro Vista Ensemble Member, and serves as one of the company’s Resident Directors of Youth Outreach and Development. Originally from Puerto Rico, Tommy has called Chicago his artistic home for the past 10 years. Chicago credits include: Somewhere Over the Border, La Havana Madrid, Parachute Men, A View from the Bridge (Teatro Vista); Music Man, Lottery Day, Support Group for Men (Goodman Theatre); Three Sisters (Steppenwolf Theatre); TEBAS Land (CLATA); In the Heights (Paramount Theatre); West Side Story (Drury Lane), Frederick (Chicago Children’s Theatre). Regional credits: SWEAT (Huntington Theatre), In the Heights (Skylight Music Theatre). Puerto Rico credits: Spring Awakening, Footloose (BlackBox Theatre). In 2019, Tommy was awarded the ALTA Award (Alliance of Latinx Theatre Artists) for “Best Supporting Actor in a Musical” for his performance as Tommy Djilas in The Goodman Theatre’s The Music Man. You can catch him in the animated series “Alma’s Way” as the voice of Rafa; and in Chicago PD (S4-Ep11).

AYSSETTE MUÑOZ* (Gina)

Ayssette Muñoz (she/ella) is a Mexican-American actor, teacher, and director from the Rio Grande Valley. She was named one of the Chicago Tribune's “Top 10 Hot New Faces of Chicago Theatre'' in 2015, was nominated for "Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Play" at the ALTA (Alliance of Latinx Theatre Artists) in 2019, and was Associate Director for Teatro Vista's Somewhere Over the Border - winner of Best Ensemble, Best Director, and Best Production of a Musical (Midsize) at the Jeff Awards in 2022. Theatre credits: Steppenwolf, Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare, Lookingglass, A Red Orchid Theatre, Definition Theatre, Rivendell Theatre, Collaboraction, Teatro Luna, and Teatro Vista. On-Camera credits: Chicago PD (NBC), North of the 10 (BET+), and En Algun Lugar (Iconoclast Films). She is a proud Teatro Vista ensemble member. www.ayssettemunoz.com

MADRID ST. ANGELO (Musa/Father Grande)

Madrid St. Angelo is a Joseph Jefferson Award Nomintated, American Theatrical/Film/Television Actor, currently living in Chicago. A graduate of New York’s Neighborhood Playhouse; New School of Acting, he trained under the auspices of Sanford Meisner and William Alderson. He has worked with Steppenwolf, The Goodman, Victory Gardens, Writer’s Theatre, and has had Co Starring Roles in the Episodics; ER, Chicago Fire, and Chicago Med. He is represented by Shirley Hamilton and Grossman & Jack Talent Agencies in Chicago.

WENDY MATEO** (Carmen)

Wendy Mateo (she/her/ella) is a Chicago-based actor, writer, director and filmmaker. Mateo has been seen throughout the city's stages including Lookingglass Theatre (Artistic Associate), Steppenwolf 1700 Theater and as part of the comedy duo, Lolo & Wendy or Dominizuelan to critical acclaim from the Chicago Tribune and TimeOut NY. Mateo's directing credits include the play Not for Sale 2.0 by Guadalis del Carmen at UrbanTheater Company and 3 short films co-directed with creative partner Lorena Diaz. On television, Mateo performs in shows like Chicago PD (NBC), as guest star on Chicago Med (NBC), and as Ronnie in Station Eleven (HBO). Mateo is Co-Artistic Director of Teatro Vista since 2021.

FABIAN GUERRERO (Santiago)

Fabian Guerrero earned his BFA from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Favorite credits include A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Crazy for You, Titus Andronicus, and Red. His most recent credits include the film, Final Summer, touring the greater Milwaukee area with Milwaukee Shakespeare in the Park in A Midsummer Night's Dream and NBC's Chicago Fire. He is currently based in Chicago and is represented by Grossman and Jack Talent. Gracias a mi Familia por su amor y apoyo. 

LOLA FRATTO (Stage Directions)

Lola Fratto is a BFA Acting student at UIC School of Theatre and Music. She is originally from Argentina and is fluent in English and in Spanish. She has been acting since she was 4. Lola has been in many plays including Devotion by Ashley O’Neil and Pshitter! directed by Yasen Peyankov to name a few. Lola is also a singer and has performed in various musicals; one of her favorite roles was playing the Witch in a production of Into the Woods. She is focused in growing and learning as much as she can as a professional actor, to increase her knowledge of the field, and become better at what she loves to do.  

DEYA FRIEDMAN (Stage Manager)

Deya S. Friedman has been a Chicago stage manager since 1986, most recently serving as Production Stage Manager for Rivendell Theatre’s production of Spay, and Porchlight Music Theatre’s Pump Boys and Dinettes.  Pre-pandemic, Deya served as Stage Manager for Congo Square’s Day of Absence, and Miracle the Musical at the Royal George Theatre. Other Chicago credits include productions at Goodman Theatre, Court Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Teatro Vista, the Broadway Playhouse, and the Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire, where she also served as Production Manager for 2 seasons. Deya taught stage management classes at Loyola University Chicago, DePaul University, and was a part of the teaching faculty at the University of Tennessee Knoxville from 2008 to 2015. Regional credits include productions at the Children’s Theater of Minneapolis and twelve seasons at Peninsula Players in Door County, Wisconsin.

BRYAR BARBORKA (Dramaturg)

Bryar Barborka (they/them) is a Chicago-based nonbinary Latine theater artist. They are the Literary Associate at Seven Devils New Play Foundry, the Literary Manager of the Breaking the Binary Festival and the Literary and Casting Associate at Steppenwolf Theatre Company. Bryar has also worked with: Second Stage Theater, The Playwrights' Center, Goodman Theatre, Victory Gardens Theater, Definition Theatre, Interrobang Theatre Project, and the Ojai Playwrights Conference, among others, in various capacities. They are passionate about work that expands theater audiences and reaches those that have historically been left out of the American theatre.

Lydia R. Diamond (Playwright) is an award-winning playwright whose work includes Toni Stone (2023 Goodman Theatre and 2019 premiere at Roundabout Theatre Company), Smart People, Stick Fly (Broadway run at Cort Theatre), Voyeurs de Venus, Harriet Jacobs, and The Bluest Eye. Her work has been performed at Arena Stage, Company One, Goodman Theatre, Congo Square, Huntington Theatre Company and Steppenwolf Theatre. Diamond has been a W. E. B. DuBois Institute Fellow at Harvard, a Sundance Playwright Lab Creative Advisor, a Harvard Radcliffe Institute Fellow, a Sally B. Goodman Fellow, and a National Endowment for the Arts/Theatre Communications Group playwright. She was a Consulting Producer and co-writer for Showtime’s 4th season of The Affair and nominated for a Writer's Guild Award for best Drama Episode. She has also written for projects on HBO and Hulu. She sits on the Dramatists Guild Legal Defense Fund board and is on faculty at University of Illinois at Chicago.

Maria Johnson, Manager of Human Resources and Business at Centro Romero, is a dedicated, hard-working, responsible individual with strong interpersonal, communication, and technological skills while helping and empowering refugees and immigrant communities at the city of Chicago. As an immigrant herself, she has been involved in immigrant rights work since 2019. Her favorite pastimes are enjoying the company of her husband and family, as well as enjoying the lecture of a good book.

Dr. Liza Calisesi Maidens is an Assistant Professor and Director of Choral Activities at the University of Illinois-Chicago. Prior to her appointment at UIC, she was a member of the conducting faculty at Eastern Michigan University from 2015-2021, where she conducted EMU Vision (formerly Women’s Choir), EMU Voces, and EMU Express. Dr. Calisesi Maidens serves as a board member for IL-ACDA, as well as mirabai, a professional ensemble led by Sandra Snow to enhance the artistic expectations of women’s choral singing. She is an active guest conductor, clinician, and presenter. Liza has sung professionally with the Philadelphia Symphonic Choir, mirabai, and sounding light. Her research centers around expanding the choral canon, the choral music of Imogen Holst, and undergraduate student belonging as it pertains to a college/school of music. She holds degrees from Michigan State University (DMA), Westminster Choir College (MM), and Central College (BA).

Stephanie Díaz is an award-winning actor and puppeteer, specializing in Bunraku-style tabletop puppetry, with a particular specialty in movement and gesture. Her critically-acclaimed signature piece, Mariposa Nocturna: A Puppet Triptych, opened the inaugural Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival to sold-out houses and enjoyed successful runs at the Chicago Physical Festival, 16th Street Theater and Free Street Theater. Her puppet designs and choreography have been seen at The Gift Theatre, Lifeline Theatre, Remy Bumppo, Strawdog, Lookingglass, A Red Orchid, Cock and Bull, Links Hall, the Eugene O’Neill National Puppetry Conference, The National Museum of Mexican Art, The Paper Machete Show, and most recently Joel Hall Dancers and Company. The recipient of multiple grants and residencies, she is a 3Arts Awardee in Theatre (2019) and will be a 2023 Artist-in-Residence at the Santa Fe Art Institute. She is a founding member of The Chicago Inclusion Project, a member of SAG-AFTRA and Actors’ Equity Association, and a proud Guatemalan American. 

Maria Del Rosario Salgado Ortiz “Chayito,” Coordinator of the Legal Department at Centro Romero was born in Mexico City to parents originating from Guerrero and Michoacan and has called the northside of Chicago home for the last 31 years. She has been working at the in the Latin American Legal Services Department at Centro Romero for the last 11 years and is currently a Partial DOJ Accredited Representative.  As an immigrant herself, she has been involved in immigrant rights work since 2000. Her favorite pastimes are enjoying the company of her three young daughters and creating art.

Barbara Sostaita is an Assistant Professor of Latin American and Latino/a Studies at The University of Illinois at Chicago. A formerly undocumented immigrant, her work focuses on transnational migration, religion and the sacred, and migrant social movements. Her current book project—Sanctuary Everywhere: Fugitive Care on the Migrant Trail—is an experimental ethnography of care practices in the Sonora-Arizona borderlands. Barbara's work on sanctuary and migration has been published in magazines like The Nation, The Huffington Post, Teen Vogue, Bitch, and Remezcla, among others. She also serves as the Higher Education Director for Migrant Roots Media—a platform that centers the voices of migrants, children of migrants, and people struggling to stay and thrive in their homelands.

Daysi Funes is Co-founder and Chief Executive officer of Centro Romero, an organization she helped found in 1984 to serve the needs of Latino refugees and immigrants on the northeast side of Chicago in the communities of Edgewater, Uptown, and Rogers Park. Ms. Funes was the agency’s first ESL teacher, and over the past 22 years, she has worked in the capacity of board member, program director, community organizer, and for the past ten years, as executive director. With an annual budget of $1 million and a staff of 35, Centro Romero annually serves 10,000 persons, providing opportunities for those with the fewest options. In addition, she has been instrumental in the development of many local, state, national, and transnational networks committed to building healthy communities both in the United States and in their countries of origin including the Coalition of African, Arab, Asian, European, and Latino Immigrants of Illinois (CAAAELII) among others. Ms. Funes received a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Illinois, Chicago Campus. She has been recognized for her work by the American Immigration Law Foundation and in several local newspaper and magazines. 

Miranda Gonzalez born and raised in Chicago, is a writer, director, producer, and consultant. She is currently the Producing Artistic Director at UrbanTheater Company (UTC) in Humboldt Park and a founding ensemble member of Chicago’s All Latina Theater company Teatro Luna and has devised and developed plays since 2000. She recently was invited and recorded a TEDx talk  “The Fear of Decolonization” in the theater industry. She is currently developing a play that discusses the history of the underground railroad to Mexico as a part of Latino Theater Company’s Imaginistas cohort in Los Angeles. Some of her directing credits include; Evolution of a Sonero by Flaco Navaja, the theatrical film Brujaja by Melissa Duprey, Thank You for Coming.Take Care by Stacey Rose at Court Theatre, Ashes of Light by Marco Antonio Rodriguez, La Gringa by Carmen Rivera.She is also an Executive Producer for the web series 50 Blind Dates with Melissa DuPrey and has written for web series Ruby's World Yo created by Marilyn Camacho, Season 1 episode 3 and Season 2 episodes 1-4.

Dr. Young Richard Kim is Associate Professor and Head in the Department of Classics and Mediterranean Studies and the Department of History at UIC. He is a historian of the ancient Mediterranean world, with research and teaching interests in a wide variety of subjects, from mythology to Greek tragedy to Byzantine studies.  In 2022, He was the co-recipient of a University of Illinois Presidential Initiative: Expanding the Impact of the Arts and Humanities grant, which supported the Luis Alfaro Residency Project, bringing the esteemed playwright for a semester-long residency at UIC. The multi-faceted project, at the intersection of classical studies, theater, health sciences, and community outreach, explored the challenges faced by local Chicago communities of color in dealing with mental health. He is currently writing a book on Cyprus in Late Antiquity and editing a volume of essays on Alfaro’s work.