It has been one year since 10 members of the Hostos Repertory Company performed “Gender of Attraction,” a play by Chris Rivera, at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland. However, the transformative experience remains fresh in their minds and hearts.
On July 22, six members of the troupe returned to the Black Box Theater at the College to read from a special issue of Hostos Library's student literary and art journal, “¡Escriba!/¡Write!,” in which they reflect on the life-changing trip.
Hostos professor and librarian Miriam Laskin edited and wrote the forward for the issue, just as she had the first time the Hostos Rep was invited to participate in the Festival Fringe in 2013. Putting together the journal is a labor of love for Laskin, and she said the essays featured in the recent issue captivated her. “It was so amazing to read what they were feeling about having gone all that way,” she said. “So many of them wrote that it had given them a whole new way of looking at the world.”
Julian Adams was among those who had written about how his perspective has changed after visiting and performing in Scotland. “Encounters with new people from different parts of the world helped expand my viewpoints on life and traveling altogether,” he shared.
Destiny Allen spoke of the overwhelming support the troupe received during the festival — including from President David Gómez and Senior Vice President Esther Rodríguez-Chardavoyne, who visited the student-actors in Edinburgh. Allen also reflected on how the experience not only served to deepen the group’s bond, but it also helped her get to know herself better. “I learned a lot about myself and gained the confidence to believe in myself, to feed my faith and not my fears,” she said.
Jairo Peña reminisced about the incredible sights and food he enjoyed in Edinburgh, and Thalia López, who earned an internship for this year’s festival, said the experience helped her become a better communicator and stage manager. Thanna Son shared she made a new friend while abroad and now has a strong desire to see more of the world.
Frank López said he was glad to have had the opportunity to share his character’s story with an international audience. “One thing that I have taken from this once-in-a-lifetime experience is that my heart and feelings can touch others through my performance, and no one can take that away from me,” he said.
The members of the 2018 Hostos Rep have since gone in many different directions. However, no matter where they go, they will remain connected through their adventures in Edinburgh.
About Hostos Community College
Eugenio María de Hostos Community College is an educational agent for change that has been transforming and improving the quality of life in the South Bronx and neighboring communities for over half a century. Since 1968, Hostos has been a gateway to intellectual growth and socioeconomic mobility, as well as a point of departure for lifelong learning, success in professional careers, and transfer to advanced higher education programs.
Hostos offers 27 associate degree programs and two certificate programs that facilitate secure transfer to The City University of New York’s (CUNY) four-year colleges or baccalaureate studies at other institutions. The College has an award-winning Division of Continuing Education & Workforce Development that offers professional development courses and certificate-bearing workforce training programs. Hostos is part of CUNY, the nation’s leading urban public university, which serves more than 500,000 students at 25 colleges.
Media contact - Rich Pietras: rpietras@hostos.cuny.edu