WHO WE ARE.
MISSION & HISTORY.
GALA (Grupo de Artistas LatinoAmericanos) Hispanic Theatre is a National Center for Latino Performing Arts in the nation's capital. Since 1976, GALA has been promoting and sharing the Latino arts and cultures with a diverse audience, creating work that speaks to communities today, and preserving the rich Hispanic heritage for generations that follow. By developing and producing works that explore the breadth of Latino performing arts, GALA provides opportunities for the Latino artist, educates youth, and engages the entire community in an exchange of ideas and perspectives.
Argentine-born Hugo Medrano, who came to Washington after spending five years directing and acting in Spain, was working for Teatro Doble, a bilingual children’s theater, where he met Rebecca Read, a dancer. Teatro Doble was Washington’s only theater catering to a Spanish-speaking audience, and Hugo saw a great need for a legitimate Spanish-speaking theater to fill this cultural void.
With GALA's very first play, La Fiaca by Argentine Ricardo Talesnik, Hugo and company confirmed what they already suspected: Washington was ripe and ready for a Hispanic theater.
GALA Hispanic Theatre moved into the historic Tivoli square in 2005 and has maintained Hispanic and Latino/a/x culture in the heart of Columbia Heights.
To learn more about GALA's history, click here.
Read our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Statement here.
For GALA's production history, click here.
AWARDS.
GALA has been recognized for its contributions to the Hispanic arts at the local, national, and international levels. Most recent awards include:
2020 Helen Hayes Awards, HELEN category
Outstanding Production in a Musical - GALA Hispanic Theatre - FAME, The Musical
Outstanding Ensemble in a Musical - FAME, The Musical
2020 Alan Cooper Leadership in the Arts Award
Awarded to GALA's Executive Director Rebecca Medrano for demonstrating outstanding leadership in the arts sector within the mid-Atlantic region.
For a full list of awards, click here.
STAFF.
Click here to read GALA staff bios.
PASO NUEVO TEACHING ARTISTS.
Delbis Cardona | María José Lares
Juan Carlos Méndez | Sarah Nichols | Kelton Norris
Aldo Ortega | Margaret Sacksman | Melissa Strova-Valencia
BOARD OF
DIRECTORS.
ADVISORY
BOARD.
Grisella Martínez | Chair | National Association of Broadcasters
James Kiernan | Vice Chair | Organization of American States (retired)
Michael Ruiz | Treasurer | Fannie Mae
Dr. Barbara Tenenbaum | Secretary | Library of Congress (retired)
Mario Acosta-Vélez | Verizon
John Fitzgerald-López | New Washington Land Company
Teri Gálvez | Paradigm Event Management
Guillermo García | UBS Financial Services, Inc.
Sonia Gutiérrez | Community Capital/Former CEO-Founder of Carlos Rosario International Charter Public School
Juan Jara | City National Bank
Jason León | Diversified Search
Syddia Lee-Chee Murillo | Energetica Group, LLC
Art Moran | Tribune Broadcasting
Tracy Wood | University of Maryland
Cristina King Miranda | AJOLOTE Travel and Cultural Experiences
Abel López | (ex-officio)
Hugo Medrano | (ex-officio)
Rebecca Read Medrano | (ex-officio)
Janet Farrell | M&T Bank
Joseph Eldridge | American University (retired)
Miryam Gerdine | Health and Human Services
Peter Hakim | Inter-American Dialogue
Joseph Horning III | Horning Brothers
Dorothy P. McSweeny | DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities
(Chair Emeritus)
Héctor Torres and Jay Haddock | Capital Hotels & Suites (retired partners)
LITERARY ADVISORY BOARD.
Dr. Barbara Mujica | Georgetown University
José Zayas | Director, NYC