Timucua Arts Foundation is a multi-faceted arts and education institution, presenting concerts and festivals, operating the unique and intimate Timucua venue, offering high-level, accessibly-priced programming in an intimate venue. Programming includes internationally-acclaimed jazz artists, indigenous and folkloric music and dance, contemporary classical music, avant-garde improvisation, film, site-specific theater, visual arts, and more.

Word Play is all of Timucua’s programming that is not related to music, such as poetry, spoken word, films, and of course, THEATER, and Nadia is now this program’s Chair! She looks forward to bringing more Ltinx artists and audiences to this great venue!

Nadia directed the video version of “Una Borinqueña en Florida,” a puppet show she wrote based on true stories and geared towards Puerto Rican children who left the island and moved to the mainland after the 2017 hurricanes. This show was performed in-person and toured throughout Central Florida for a couple of years and has now been adapted for video.

Besides writing and directing, Nadia also did a couple of the voices for the puppets featured in the video.

The show is performed in Spanish and is part of MicheLee Puppets’ “Puppets Helping Kids in Crisis” initiative, designed to help kids from Puerto Rico and Latin American countries heal from their trauma and adjust to life in the United States.

Nadia is grateful to have worked with such talented puppeteers and crew; she is thankful for such exciting and fun opportunity; and she looks forward to reaching even more children thanks to this video format.

The virtual panel discussion Women of Color in the Arts took place on March 31 and Nadia was one of the guest speakers. The talk was part of the Dr. Charles White Speaker Series, founded by the Creative Arts Department Anti-Racism Committee for Equity, at Stetson University. The Series’ mission is “to advance equity for and inclusion of historically underrepresented ethnicities and races” in the creative arts at Stetson University.

The discussion focused on career paths of women of color in the arts. Panelists included Stacey Derosier, MFA (lighting design), Nadia Garzon, MLS (acting and directing), Erica Palmiter, MFA (performance art and art education) and Winnie Yoe, MA (design and interactive art).

The series brings visiting artists of color to Stetson University’s campus to share their work and experiences with students and the community.

To read the full article, click HERE.

This interdisciplinary arts festival showcased Latin American artists working in a variety of art forms and mediums, including performing arts, music, visual arts, literature, etc., in the United States and around the world.

More than 95 artists from different parts of the world including Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Colombia, Mexico, Chile, Bolivia, Brazil, United States, Canada, Greece, Kenya, Nicaragua, Honduras, Cuba, Argentina and Guatemala participated in the videos that Descolonizarte Teatro received; their work was in Spanish, English and Nahuatl. Selected videos participated in the “Primer Encuentro Digital de Artistas Latinoamericanxs: EDALX!” organized by Descolonizarte Teatro and presented by Timucua Arts Foundation.

Descolonizarte Teatro supports and showcases Latin American talent, offers an opportunity to recognize the Latin American experience, and celebrates Latin American culture and its contributions in and outside the United States.

Nadia was interviewed by the Orlando Theatre Hour, WPRK 91.5. Nadia spoke about her professional career, theater, the local theater scene and of course, her new theater company, Descolonizarte Teatro.

You can listen to Nadia’s interview HERE

Descolonizarte Teatro made history in the first Spanish speaking theater performance at Timucua Arts Foundation

Nadia and her team are beyond grateful for all the support that they received in the official launch of Descolonizarte Teatro! It was a beautiful evening full of laughter, joy, and love!!! A huge success from the ticket sales (they were sold out before the performance time even came) to the audience’s response who just loved our work (standing ovation and all) and our mission!!!

Video: https://www.facebook.com/descolonizarteteatro/videos/480768219207785

Descolonizarte Teatro made a round of TV and radio interviews in preparation for their official launch at Timucua Arts Foundation. In their launching event, Descolonizarte Teatro will be presenting two Latin American plays: El Delantal Balnco by Chilean Sergio Vodanovic and El Censo by Mexican Emilio Carballido. Here are some pictures of the team during some local interviews.

Video of the interview in Mujer de Hoy:

https://www.facebook.com/descolonizarteteatro/videos/419335342324711

Descolonizarte Teatro is a professional theater organization, 501c (3) made up of veteran theater practitioners such as the Venezuelan Ricky Avila and Nadia Garzón (Colombian), who have spent almost 20 years cultivating and creating theater in Spanish in Central Florida.

Descolonizarte Teatro es una organización profesional de teatro, 501c (3). Está compuesta por teatreros veteranos como el Venezolano Ricky Avila y como Nadia Garzón (Colombiana), quienes llevamos casi 20 años cultivando y creando teatro en Español en la Florida Central. 

Due to Nadia’s interests, her career as an actress, director and professional voice talent, and her experience as an activist for immigrants’ rights and as a practitioner of theater for social change, Descolonizarte Teatro is born as a proposal to promote the Latin American culture, talent and experience, through theater. Descolonizarte Teatro uses theater as a tool for decolonization. Its main focus is to produce and consume theater that represents us Latin Americans (going back to our roots and culture) and to provide accessibility to the arts to all people regardless of their income.

Debido los intereses de Nadia, a su trayectoria como actriz, directora y talento de voz profesional y a su experiencia como activista para los derechos de los inmigrantes y como practicante de teatro para cambio social, Descolonizarte Teatro nace como una propuesta para promover la cultura, el talento y la experiencia latinoamericana por medio del teatro. Descolonizarte Teatro utiliza el teatro como herramienta de descolonización y su enfoque principal es producir y consumir teatro que nos represente (de nuestras raíces y cultura) y proporcionar accesibilidad a las artes a todas las personas sin importar sus ingresos económicos.

Nadia had the wonderful (and heartbreaking) opportunity to visit both the Nagasaki and Hiroshima bomb memorials in Japan, and with the support of Valencia College’s Humanities Speakers Series, they brought to Orlando an exhibit directly from the Nagasaki Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims. This is only the third time this exhibit has been in the U.S.

The exhibit was accompanied by talks by keynote speaker Mr. Sadahiro Kiyono, a survivor of the Nagasaki bombing (an 8-year old boy at the time), who will share his recollections of the event and the fallout over the years as the effects of radiation manifested among his friends and family.

The exhibition featured images of Nagasaki before and after the atomic bombing and the lingering effects of nuclear weapons on human beings. The exhibit moved from Valencia College to the Downtown Orange County Library where it stayed for the rest of the month. Talks took place in both locations as well as at the Winter Park Library.

Attendees to the reception, exhibit, and talks had the opportunity to learn to make origami cranes, which emerged in the aftermath of the bombing as symbols of peace, and to leave their thoughts on cards that will be returned to the Nagasaki Foundation to be preserved in their Peace Memorial.