Round I Projects
PROJECT
La Carpa De La Frontera, Stories of the Invisible
La Carpa De La Frontera, Stories of the Invisible aims to write community stories reflecting the hardships of the most vulnerable people in the San Diego border region. These hardships will focus on issues such as health, labor, immigration, and the border. The stories reflecting these issues will be created and written by interviewing community members through specific social gatherings and town hall events organized by the Valdez. These events include special performances leading to feedback at the end, community gatherings creating a focused dialogue addressing the issues, and offering creative workshops where conversations can occur through art making. The information gathered is transcribed into scripted form and presented as live performances in front of the same communities. The audience can communicate openly with the performers during the performances by commenting on what they saw. At the end, the audience can participate in talkbacks. The campaign's focus is to bring hope and healing to the people who need it the most, demonstrating that there are people who care about the prevalent issues communities’ are facing and their well-being.
LEARN ABOUT THE ARTIST + CULTURAL PRACTITIONERS
Samuel Valdez
Samuel Valdez is an actor, playwright, director, and producer who has worked with several groups around San Diego, such as Sledgehammer Theater, Chronos Theater, Los Amigos del Rep., and currently his own performing arts bi-national company CARPA San Diego. Valdez graduated from San Diego State University with a bachelor’s degree in theater arts and has served on the National Performance Network board, the Alternate Roots Executive Committee, and the National Disability Theatre board. In 2016, he received the Ashley Walker Social Justice Award from the City of San Diego for his community theater work. Valdez directed several Latino plays, including “Roosters,” “The Conduct of Life,” and “The Guitarron.” He has also directed and produced his plays such as “Soy Yo/It’s Me,” “P-13-VIVE,” “Ambos/Both,” and “And He Became Man."