Hugo Medrano has directed over 100 productions and produced numerous shows, from classical to experimental to original musicals, since founding GALA in 1976. A native of Argentina, Medrano studied theatre at the Theatre School of La Plata and with master artists Carlos Augusto Fernández, in Buenos Aires. In Madrid, Spain, he studied with William Layton, and renowned directors José Monleón and Miguel Narros, and formed his own children theatre company. In Washington DC, Medrano has achieved recognition for his innovative direction of the Spanish classics at GALA. In 2000, he received a Helen Hayes Award nomination for Outstanding Director for GALA’s production of La dama boba. His most recent directing credits at GALA include Bodas de sangre (2008), Valor, agravio y mujer (2006), El rufián Castrucho (2006), Yerma (2005) and La dama duende (2004). His particular interest in musical theatre led him to originate and direct several popular musicals like Caribeana Imperia (2006), ¡Candombe! Tango negro (2004), Brasil: As coisas do Samba (2002), and Raíces cubanas I (1998) and Raíces cubanas II (2001). Medrano is also a principal actor in the company, receiving the 1994 Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Lead Actor for his performance in GALA’s production of El beso de la mujer araña—the only Spanish-speaking performance ever so honored. Medrano’s contributions toward the preservation and promotion of Hispanic culture and Latino performing art forms have also been recognized over the years by the following awards: Order of Queen Isabella II, conferred by the King of Spain Juan Carlos I, for his outstanding promotion of Spanish culture in the United States (2007); the Excellence in Entrepreneurship and Community Involvement Award from the Latino Economic Development Corporation (2000); and the Founders Award from the Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington (1998). Medrano is also a writer, who recently received a grant from the Community Foundation of the National Capital Region to create a play, with music, using the stories of Salvadoran immigrants in Washington, DC.
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