Every moment is a journey, every journey is a process, every process is realized by a universe. I Am Julia is possible because of a universe of people, guides and forces that walk beside us every day.
Jorge Merced (Director)
Jorge Merced is associate artistic director at Pregones/Puerto Rican Traveling Theater in NY (company member since 1987). An acclaimed theater artist, he trained with Osvaldo Dragún, Eugenio Barba, Miguel Rubio and Teresa Rallo (EITALC 89 – Cuba), August Boal (Brazil, France), and the Alvin Ailey Center (NY). NY Directing credits include: Fellini’s La Strada with René Buch, El huesped vacío and Verano Verano (IATI), Evolution of a Sonero, The Blackout, Aloha Boricua, Neon Baby, El Bolero Was My Downfall (Pregones), and 11 years of workshop productions for the Asunción Queer Playwrights Project. He’s a NY City College-CUNY alum.
NELSON MATTHEW GONZÁLEZ (Lead Drummer)
Nelson Matthew González is a young master plenero and bombero. First nurtured by his grandfather, Benny Ayala, Matthew is a versatile percussionist, dancer and performer, immersed in Afro-Caribbean cultural practices since childhood. An alum of the LP21 Children’s Workshop and Boys Harbor Conservatory, endorsed by Toca Percussion, Matthew performs with countless ensembles and top artists of the Latino musical landscape, including Los Pleneros de la 21, Ilu Aye, Alma Moyo and Redobles de Cultura. In 2017 he founded his own ensemble, Kinto Zonó.
nINA rODRÍGUEZ (lead singer)
Born and raised in Buffalo, NY, Nina Rodríguez is a vocal powerhouse who uses the human voice as a sacred tool, to build bridges between the terrestrial human experience and the realm of the divine. The daughter of vocalist Maria Elena Candelario (Rumba Afro-Son & Francisco Aguabella renown), Nina stems from a dynamic and deep-rooted tradition of song, performing and recording with numerous artists of House, Salsa, Afro-Cuban lore and more. With her band, The Mysphitz, she combines popular Latino sounds and songs with unexpected influences and aesthetics of NuyoRican and urban Diaspora experiences.
Alex LaSalle (lead singer & Drummer)
Born in the town of Moca, Puerto Rico and raised in New York City, Alex LaSalle is a high priest of Afro-Cuban Palo traditions, an avid researcher and oral historian. Percussionist and vocalist, Alex is the founder of Alma Moyo, and member of Los Pleneros de la 21, Grupo Folklórico Experimental Nueva Yorquino. Through his performance and research contributions, Alex is a prominent fixture in the New York and Diaspora Bomba community and is credited for contributing to the revitalization of Bomba practice and knowledge in NYC and beyond.
Juan gerena (Drummer)
Juan Gerena is a New York City born Boricua percussionist. Raised with traditional sounds of Afro-Caribbean expressions and taught by great percussion luminaries like Johnny Almendra, Tito Cepeda, Robert Vilera and David Kovins, Juan is a versatile drummer playing a wide range of hand and stick Latin percussion. Endorsed by Toca Percussion, he has played with La India, Frankie Negrón, Héctor Martignon, Los Pleneros de la 21, Yerbabuena, Kinto Zonó and Bernie Williams, to name a few.