THANKS to everyone who came to see Don’t Cry For Me

And thanks so much for all your comments. Here you have some of them:

Dear Paulino, I want to express my deep gratitude and admiration for your Naked Stages performance piece. I learned so much about you. I loved the different characters and you embodied each one with so much skill and commitment. Your mom was especially touching. Dr. Knowles was hilarious, yes! Anyways I just wanted to let you know how much your artistry was appreciated. You killed it! Much love and respect!
~Kenna-Camara

Paulino, This piece demonstrates much more range and depth of your performing skills.
~Jane Peck

Great work Paulino! Loved it!
~Jon Ferguson

Congratulations on a fabulous show!
~Marie Olofsdotter

The performance was excellent and thought-provoking.
~Scott Pakudaitis

You’re so totally endearing and committed on stage, it’s always great to see you perform.
~Jennifer Hupfer Ilse

You were awesome tonight, I was very impressed…
~Jerome H.

The mixing of Spanish and English in your performance without translating every word is terrific and your representations of such a range of characters. I hope you heard me laughing. Thank you!
~Kari R.

A wonderful piece, interesting and complete. You displayed a great range of emotions and the transitions between character was very clear. Great work!
~Emily

Thank you Paulino (and Dr. Knowles) for sharing such a moving personal piece.
~Kathleen S.

Thanks so much for sharing your journey. What an honor to get to be a witness to the expression of it. Best wishes – keep on creating!! Your spirit, humor, gentleness and humanness really comes thru.
~April K.

That was amazing!
~Gradglee S.

It was great! I was really impressed. You are a good and passionate actor.
~Michael W.

Very poignant show! Thanks for making it.
~David S.

Your story was very well put together – making me laugh and then wanting to cry. Very funny! I was constantly engages and loved hearing your story. Thank you!
~Lauren D.

Brilliant! Your timing and movement was delightful. The narrative was beautiful – had both tears of laughter/joy and heartache. I want to see more.
~Cian M.

Beautiful show! While there was a lot of humor, I also thought it was quite profound.
~Lisa B.

I can’t recall seeing a better first person narrative that was so moving. The use of language was superb.
~Loire J.

Thank you so much for your art. Our stories and struggles have so many similarities and strength, questions, gains and losses struck such a similar chord in me that I started bawling towards the end. It never happened to me before , not in a show anyway.
~Sinan G.

Paulino, me ha encantado. No esperaba algo tan impactante, genuino y verdadero. Eres un educador puro y se nota que querías usar tu obra no solamente para expresar tu historia, sino también educar a los que no saben cómo es inmigrar. Gracias por esta experiencia! Respeto mucho lo que has hecho aquí.
~Anna P.

Me has sorprendido, y me ha encantado, a la vez que me has hecho llorar. Cabrón! :-)
~Antonio Rodriguez

I feel fortunate that it’s the end of the year and I still have a job and I am in pretty good health. The unfortunate part is that I haven’t been able to fully paid some old medical bills. Since I am not a non-profit (although some day I feel like one) I can’t ask for donations but I came up with a few items to sell (instead of just asking for money) and I hope to make those bills history soon!

Please have a look at these limited yet heartful store items and consider a purchase. All prices include shipping and handling (to continental USA). If you have any questions please contact me at mail@paulinobrener.com

You can pay through PayPal (with or without a PayPal account, you can use you credit card). Or I also accept Dwolla

http://bit.ly/PBDwolla

If you want to pay by check please contact me at mail@paulinobrener.com and I’ll send you my address.

THANKS! GRACIAS! And happy holidays!

$ 5 - Eco-friendly Handmade Picture Envelopes (Set of 7)

Seven cool envelopes made with pictures from magazines and books. Unique and original. Set includes seven envelopes of different styles. Each envelope measures approximately 6.25″ x 5.”

$10 – Eco-friendly Handmade Picture Envelopes (Set of 20)

Seven cool envelopes made with pictures from magazines and books. Unique and original. Set includes twenty envelopes of different styles. Each envelope measures approximately 6.25″ x 5.”

$ 10 –  Multi-Fabric Soft Ball

Unique, Fun, and Squishy! Made of 6 different segments of upholstery. Makes a wonderful, unique gift! As this is a handmade item, there may be variations in images used, pattern placement, and stitching. Diameters of approximately 6 1/2

$ 10 - ”Don’t Cry For Me” by Paulino Brener DVD

A tall Argentine leaves his mother land to come to the U.S. and discovers that changing the language you speak might change who you are. Don’t Cry For Me uses satire, movement, and storytelling to explore connections between language and identity. Performed by Paulino Brener. Directed by Dario Tangelson.  This show was part of 2011 Naked Stages series at Pillsbury House Theater in Minneapolis, MN. The Naked Stages program and this video are made possible with funds from the Jerome Foundation.

$ 10  -   Poesías y canciones para los más pequeños (audio CD)

A collection of verses, songs and rhymes to use in the Spanish class or at home recorded by Paulino Brener. It also includes the story “Las Aventuras De Don Quijote” (simplified version).

$ 10 – Bailemos Juntos DVD

Explanation and review of movement of line dances with Spanish music from the “Bailemos Juntos” presentation. Includes the following lines dances: Ritmo Vuelta, El Baile del Gorila, Solo Se Vive Una Vez, El Tiburón, and more! Due to copyrights the team of “Bailemos Juntos” is not able to include the full version of the songs for the line dances on this DVD. The video of the complete line dance (without audio) is included as a reference.

$ 16.73 –  Any combination of two $10 items. Please email me with your selection.

$ 25.38 –  Any combination of three $10 items. Please email me with your selection.

As many of you know this year I have been honored to be part of a Naked Stages: A multi-layered program designed to empower artists to be their most bold and creative and to challenge artists and audiences alike to push past their previous boundaries. Nakes Stages is a 7 to 9 month development program that provides four distinctive artists the time and money to bring their visions to life on stage.

I am at the end of this process and I will be presenting a raw, real and completely original performance called “Don’t Cry for Me” (see info at the end of this post)

I am very proud of my performance and I hope to share with all of you. But “Don’t Cry for Me” will be just one more piece of the puzzle in the whole process.   As Laurie Carlos (NS Artistic Director) and Molly Van Avery (NS Administrative Director) explain in a psot in the City Pages, Nakes Stages is all about the process.  And they are so right!

I have had the chance to work with many directors, take workshops, perform in shows in my life but this experience has been the most powerful and enriching so far.  Through a series of workshop and feedback sessions I was invited (and challenged) to explore my own voice, discover or confirm my aesthetic, give and receive constructive feedback, collaborate and more.  All that in a very nurturing and encouraging environment.

But that’s not all. I was also provided with tools that really helped my creation process (access to a studio for rehearsals, workshops with professional performers, etc.) and other valuable production assets that I can use for my porftolio (professional pictures, video, communication/promotion strategies, etc.)

I am deeply thankful to Jerome Foundation, Pillsbury House Theater and their staff, all the awesome mentors and guest artists in the Naked Stages program, my fellow Naked Stages colleagues: Moe, Max, Ephraim. A very special thanks to Dario, a great director and teacher who help me a lot in the development of this piece. A thank you to everyone to encourage me to apply to this program.

“Don’t Cry for Me” is dedicated to my family.

——————

Dec 7-10 @ 7:30 pm

DON’T CRY FOR ME by Paulino Brener

In my  previous post I did a bit of ranting about my learning process about Minnesota culture.  It seems that I struck a chord with this topic because I had many comments here and on Facebook and Twitter and received many emails.  I want to thank everyone who took time to contact me or write a comment. I really appreciate that.  I might still be learning about Minnesota culture but I love Minnesota and Minnesotans!

I have asked my friends to share with me words that they associate with Minnesota and I came up with this word cloud.

Please leave a comment with a word that YOU associate with Minnesota.  Thanks! Gracias!

Save the date!

Dec 7-10 @ 7:30 pm
DON’T CRY FOR ME by Paulino Brener
A tall Argentine leaves his mother land to come to the U.S. and discovers that changing the language you speak might change who you are. Don’t Cry For Me uses satire, movement, and storytelling to explore connections between language and identity. Performed by Paulino Brener. Directed by Dario Tangelson.

Click here for more information

How are you doing?  Aren’t you loving the Fall?  Fall is gorgeous in Minnesota.

But Minnesota… why Minnesota?   Most of you know that I’ve been living here for while now and most of you know the reason(s) I am here. (If you don’t and you really really want to know, send me an email and I’ll be glad to tell you why). And even though I always thought that I adjusted pretty well (to climate and culture) and that I’ve gotten over all major culture shocks, there is always something that takes me by surprise. Sometimes those things are easy to learn and understand but it takes a while (a long while) to really get it.
Here you have one of example. May be you can give me some insights to understand this situation better.

Example :  Paulino and Peter Olsen (Paulino’s friend from the Midwest)

Paulino: (on Facebook or email) Hey Peter, I haven’t seen you in a while. Would you like to get together for coffee sometime and catch up?
Peter: Yeah, you betcha. Let’s get together soon.
… a couple of weeks pass by…
Paulino: Dude! Peter! When do you want to get together? What’s your schedule like these days?
Peter: Oh, yes, we should get together. I am busy this weekend but I’ll let you know.
…a month passes by…
Paulino: So… Peter… are you still interested in getting together? Let me know. Thanks
Peter: Oh, yes. I’ve just been busy. But we’ll get together soon. I’ll let you know.

… long time passes…

Peter never innitiates communication to even try to arrange a time to get together.  So, after a few cases like this with other Peter’s and Mary’s I start to wonder about the whole Minnesota nice thing.  Luckily I have many examples of other people (most non-Minnesotans but a few of them are) who make the whole “let’s meet for coffee” process much easier. :-)

Any thoughts?  Please leave a comment

Save the date!

Dec 7-10 @ 7:30 pm
DON’T CRY FOR ME by Paulino Brener
A tall Argentine leaves his mother land to come to the U.S. and discovers that changing the language you speak might change who you are. Don’t Cry For Me uses satire, movement, and storytelling to explore connections between language and identity. Performed by Paulino Brener. Directed by Dario Tangelson.

Click here for more information

I haven’t parked in Downtown Minneapolis for a long time. I actually try to avoid going there by car. I prefer to take the LRT. But today is Sunday, no games or big events, so a I agreed to meet a friend for coffee downtown and I took my car. I was confused by their method of parking. The parking spaces are far away from the sidewalk leaving a bicycle lane in between. I even stopped behind one of the parked cars because I thought he/she was stopped at a traffic light. When I realized there was no traffic light then I passed the car and notice there was no-one inside. “Oh, no,” I thought. “That’s a bad place for your car to break down.” The car was just parked. It was the only car parked in that block. I finally (ehem) read the signs and I understood what was going on. What do you think? Do you have a similar parking system in your city? Is this system efficient?

August 20 – October 1, 2011

THIS ALCINA IS ROWDY AND DELICIOUS!
In our colorful re-imagining of George Frideric Handel’s 1735 opera Alcina, the garden becomes a truck stop on the American highway. Scheming sorceresses Alcina and Morgana become truck stop waitresses, luring brave truckers astray. We combine Handel’s early baroque with outlaw country, trucker songs and classic old-time music.

Handel’s opera — based on Ariosto’s epic poem Orlando furious — features monsters, magic spells, rings of invisibility and a flying hippogriff. And, of course, the glory of love and music conquers all!

The magic of this island will be all the more savory, with Chef Nick Schneider’s five course sampling menu of locally sourced treats created especially for this performance.

Narration in Spanish and English!

More information at  MixedPrecipitation.org

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

Friday, Sept. 16 at 
noon
Warehouse District (outside of Local D’Lish)
North 1st Street and North 3rd Avenue, Minneapolis

Saturday, Sept. 17
Swede Hollow Park
East Beaumont Street and Payne Avenue, St. Paul
Meet us outside the park!

Sunday, Sept. 18
IOC Communty Garden
1512 Woodhill Road, Burnsville

Saturday, Sept. 24
Bronx Park Community Garden
2500 Georgia Avenue at Cedar Lake Bike Trail, St. Louis Park
**Audio Described Performance

Sunday, Sept. 25
CornerCopia Student Organic Farm
U of M St. Paul Campus
West Dudley Avenue and Lindig Street, St. Paul

Saturday, October 1
Nicollet Island Farm
Nicollet Street and Maple Place, Minneapolis

It’s nice to feed the ego once in a while,  isn’t it? :-)

Make your own, click here

Last Tuesday I saw the Gipsy Kings live concert at the State Theater in Minneapolis, MN. It was a great concert. I was very excited since I grew up listening and dancing to their music. I liked the concert as a whole but I was very impressed with the solo moments of each of the band members. I particularly liked the percussionist solo.

One thing that strike me after the show is that there were no females in the band. I was not super surprised but mildly disappointed. I believe in diversity and with a band with 9 members at least one could have been a woman, right?

So today I decided to look up for some information on women guitarists. I found out that most of them come from the Rock ‘n Roll world. You can read about the 12 Greatest Female Electric Guitarists in this Elle.com article.  Or some other examples  at Nineteen great guitarists who just happen to be women article con AfterEllen.com.

And then I also found this great video on youtube of Rodrigo y Gabriela playing Diablo Rojo live. They are both great. Enjoy!

I am very excited I am going to attend a live concert soon. It’s a very famous band and I grew up listening to (and dancing to) their music.

Can you guess who they are?

I’ll give you a hint. :-)