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Teatro Esperanza presents PRIMEROS VIERNES Cinema Series

PRIMEROS VIERNES – First Fridays Cinema Series

Después de María: Las 2 orillas
[After Maria: The 2 Shores]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE. Philadelphia, PA – Jan. 30, 2020. Esperanza Arts Center is pleased to present as part of our new Primeros Viernes Bilingual Cinema Series, Después de María: Las 2 orillas [After Maria: the 2 Shores]. Después de María Iooks at Puerto Rico eight months after the passing of Hurricane Maria. Filmmaker, Sonia Fritz exhibits the strength and sustainability of the people of Puerto Rico centered on their cultural agency and sense of community with her evocative use of cultural motifs and images of Puerto Rican/Borinquen culture. An important film not only for Puerto Ricans on the island and in the diaspora, but for anyone who simply has concern and care for the power, richness, and beauty of humanity.

The film explores several grassroots projects around the island, such as Las Carolinas community diner in Caguas, the rescue of fish traps in Naguabo, and a hydroponics farm in Lares, as well as the Catharsis project featuring works by artists at the Museum of the Americas in San Juan. It also includes the stories of families who emigrated to Orlando and had to split up after the hurricane: two students, a Camuy family, and several family businesses that now provide help from abroad, as well as the important contribution of the diaspora in the reconstruction of the island.

Selected shorts curated by Esperanza Arts Center partner, Philadelphia Latino Film Festival (PHLAFF), will precede the feature, and an audience conversation and Q&A moderated by PHLAFF’s will follow the screening.

This event will be a fundraiser to support earthquake recovery efforts in Puerto Rico. Donations can be made online when reserving your ticket or the day of the performance. All donations will to go to Unidos PA’PR.

WHEN: Friday, February 7, 2020, 7:30pm
WHERE: Teatro Esperanza, 4261 North 5th Street, Philadelphia PA 19140. Free parking available in the Bristol Street lot.

TICKETS: $10 adults, FREE for students and seniors.
https://www.showclix.com/event/primeros-viernesR1xvBpw
OFFICIAL TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdbkMR4IKOs 
BILINGUAL (ENGLISH & SPANISH) FLYER AVAILABLE HERE: 
AfterMaria_Flyers
For media coverage, please contact Bill Rhoads at (215) 324-0746 ext. 313 or at brhoads@esperanza.us


About Sonia Fritz. Sonia Fritz is a Mexican filmmaker who lives in Puerto Rico. She is currently a Professor of Literature and Cinema Studies at the University of the Sacred Heart in Santurce, Puerto Rico. She began her filmmaking career as an undergraduate student at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. She later earned her MFA in visual arts from the Vermont College of Norwich University. She has directed and produced numerous documentary and fiction films, including “Mona, Treasure of the Caribbean” (2017), “15 Lighthouses of Puerto Rico” (2015), “América” (2011), and “The Kiss You Gave Me” (2000).

About Esperanza. Esperanza is a national community-based social benefit organization founded in 1986 by Rev. Luis Cortés and the Hispanic Clergy of Philadelphia & Vicinity with the biblical mandate to serve and advocate for “the least of these” (Matthew 25:40). Beginning with a local initiative, with programs targeted to address the unmet needs of North Philadelphia’s Hispanic community, Rev. Cortés is now sought by national and international leaders alike on issues of economic and workforce development, housing, immigration, and education. Under his leadership, Esperanza has grown from a small operation to a $50 million organization with more than 500 employees. Follow us on social media @esperanza_us on Twitter and Instagram, EsperanzaUSA on Facebook and Esperanza US on YouTube.

About Esperanza Arts Center. Guided by our core values of faith, excellence, and integrity, Esperanza Arts Center (EAC) will touch the lives of, and foster positive social change in, the Hunting Park neighborhood and the Latino community through the arts. EAC will be the center for Latino arts and culture in the Philadelphia region – presenting music, dance, theater, cinema, and visual art from Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as a broad spectrum of traditions from around the world.

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