When I first heard about Center Stage, I had no idea about the consequences this program would
have on both my professional and personal paths. I didn’t know what to expect when Deirdre Valente (Center Stage General Manager) invited me to join her as Company Manager on this extraordinary project that brings so many diverse cultural expressions into the United States. Company Managers travel with each Center Stage group, facilitating all logistics of the tour. “You are are an immigrant yourself” she told me, “You know what it’s like to work and live here”. She was right. “Go on the road as a cultural ambassador and share all these experiences with these unique artists”. I remember thinking, “I can do this!”. Now, more than two years later, I am still surprised by the amazing people I have met, and the many meaningful experiences I have created along with them.

Center Stage has reached the remarkable milestone of paving the road for international performers in the U.S. for more than a decade. Hopefully, this is the first one of many more to come. This has been a team effort with general managers Deirdre and her colleague and partner in crime, the late Lisa Booth (1949-2023), working to produce the initiative from the Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs with the New England Foundations for the Arts.

One thing that is important to mention, because of the urgency of our times, is that this program is almost fully women operated (except ¡hola Robert! -- can't forget the Center Stage production manager!). And it couldn’t be done any differently. During these ten+ years, the crew has remained the same with Adrienne Petrillo and Kelsey Spitalny at the New England Foundation for the Arts, Julia Gómez-Nelson from Department of State, and GMs Deirdre and Lisa -- all of them being the architects of this incredible program.

In general, all artistic performances follow the same dynamic as a mirror: They reflect cultural gestures as a mosaic from far away, and allow us -sometimes- to look at ourselves in them; we can also recognize ourselves in what we see, hear, or feel through that shining crystal. However, the real gem and merit that Center Stage has is not only as a reflecting mirror, but also, being a prism that refracts the arts and culture that it receives. 

Center Stage is synonymous with cultural exchange and it also works as a portal into other cultures, times, and journeys with different people and places within the U.S. communities who experience them. Like this prism, each Season of Center Stage allows us to know many diverse and authentic artistic expressions, refracting the cultural light into many colors. I am convinced this rare opportunity of seeing such creations really is something that will echo through time, especially in young audiences. At the same time, we get to revalidate and experience our own diversity that we have here in the States by taking these foreign cultural acts on a unique and tailored route.

The importance of this program seems to be obvious, but the impact is felt in two significant ways. One: these ensembles are able to adventure for a month through American lands, gaining experience and perspective. Two: every single person that interacts with these cultural expressions is a part of a collective audience that leaves the venues and communities touched and changed in many ways. It is within this prism light in which we can recognize ourselves and create a more inclusive and diverse community, as a reflection of our cultural world.

I would like to share, as a sort of journal collage, some of the iconic experiences I've had with the projects I've had the luck to share the road with. I have felt adopted and that my family was extended after every single tour, creating invisible strings that cross invisible borders and parallels in our world; this gives me the feeling I belong, somehow, to these far away places.

The first tour I ever did with Center Stage was with the Peruvian theater troupe called Fílmico, and

our group description spoke for itself: inside a van there were a Peruvian, a Catalonian, a Colombian and a Mexican. This totally sounds like the beginning of a joke or a journey, and a very good one! I learned so much working among these amazing friends. I will never forget the first time I had to drive us to the airport in the midst of one of these super intense Portland snow storms at the end of March. I could feel how the four of us were so focused on the road, on the windshield resistance, and on my hands on the steering wheel. I could feel the weight of the sights on my hands, trying to successfully keep the van on the right track.
 

During the Twincussion tour, the Taiwanese twins were so impressed with the fancy and deluxe limo we got for our shuttle from DC to New York City, fully equipped, very comfortable, and with neon lights inside. They immediately started recording a social media post, as they did when they were impressed. “They gave us bodyguards!” They exclaimed with excitement while recording the vehicle with our elegant driver. “Safest trip ever!” Snow skiing, attending a hockey match, first-hand tips on how to order boba, and snow-walking were some of the times I really enjoyed having with them.

After some days being back home, Deirdre called me asking if I was willing to go back on the road right away due an unexpected situation in which I had to cover for my dear colleague Theresa. It was a tough decision since I was already out of town for a while, so I had to consult with my son Bruno. After some negotiation, that required literally balancing our pros and cons on a scale, he allowed me to do it. MVF Band, an amazing Armenian band, was next and my best memory with them was after our tour on our hike through the desert of New Mexico, outside of Albuquerque. Everyone in the band started calling me “Diego Jan”. Any translation into English does no justice to the word “Jan”. It could mean, “Life” or “Soul”, but we understand it better as “Dear”.

By the time Naghash Ensemble started their tour, I already had some Armenian tour-related words in my
pocket. This one was challenging from day one because instead of landing in DC, their airplane was diverted back to Canada before being able to land in the U.S. Later that night, all of the band members arrived, but without their checked bags. Of course. After daily, very stressful attempts to find them, and the airline trying to send the bags to us while changing cities every week, I was able on the very last day to get them back. That night, during a merry dinner, they gave me my favorite hat I still wear proudly. “And in this fine night Diego, we crown you as the “Chaos Coordinator“.” This title describes well my beloved -and everything but boring- profession.

Afterwards, I had a very unique tour with Tanghalang Filipino. For the first time, we hosted artists as part of an Artist in Residency program that brought individual artists to the U.S. with Center Stage to enrich their professional development -- for these artists in particular is was to prepare them to be Artistic Directors. I will treasure our Bostonian Duck Boat ride, in which I was able to drive. Also, the Arts & Survival Festival in Ashfield at Double Edge Theatre, walking with Amal, and the first time I ever did the Butoh Dance (as part of the activities with Ping Chong Company.) During our walks around NYC wonders, theater bookstores, propagandistic musicals, and museums, I got to know artists Marco and Lhorvie very well and they were my first experience with the amazing Filipino culture. During one of these walks, we were looking for a place to eat when suddenly Lhorvie screamed, in a way that only a person that has missed so much their homeland can, “JollieBees!! We HAVE to eat there! You never had it before? We need to fix that!” And that was my very first time (of many) meals in that unique fast food restaurant.

The first time I have ever spotted a fox in my life was in Norfolk, CT along with the amazing Sasa, manager of Resident Island Dance Theatre (RIDT), a revolutionary dance company from Taiwan I toured with. Foxes are known for their adaptability in almost any environment, and their ability to always find a solution for any challenge life (or work) shows them on their path. Sasa and I also relate to this due to our professions.

I had so many shared experiences during these weeks with this Taiwanese company, and this one was

 extra special because for the very first time in my career, my son joined me on the first week of tour. I think the best gift that RIDT could have given me was accepting me as part of their group. I had chance to tour with artists with special needs and limited mobility, some of them struggling on the sidewalks, being rejected by Uber drivers that will not take their chairs, and waiting in the line to check our bags in the airport because they don’t have a wheelchair priority unless you upgrade your seat. This experience really had touched me personally and professionally like no other in the past.

Another very special tour was also the last one of the year, with Helobung (which in Filipino means
“endless joy” - very accurate). This dance troupe landed so fondly in my heart because they made me feel back at home in my own country. One of my favorite parts was when I was in charge of the abundant and diverse merch they brought along. These sales helped to finance the children programs and educational workshops at Lake Cebu. The older Filipino ladies would always find the merch table first and in Virginia, at the Richmond Folk Festival, there was a really big convoy of them. The merch suddenly turned into some sort of Asian bazaar in the street. At some point the ladies kept talking to me and among themselves, until one of them finally asked me something very specific, in native Filipino, about a colorful necklace. She saw my face full of confusion and asked in English while removing her glasses and looking at me closer “Aren’t you Filipino?” My answer was solid “No, I am sorry," with so much fear in disappointing her. I added, “I am Mexican!” She placed her glasses again and said while doing a natural gesture only reserved for those countrymen, on my shoulder, “We have a word! You are a Mexipino!” she concluded. I smiled as a new baptized creature, and suddenly everything made sense at once.

Writing this in a brief way has been challenging, but I can see now all these refractions in a distance, I am and will always be so thankful to Deirdre and the whole Center Stage team. There is a Turkish proverb that says: “No road is long with good company.” This is completely true, and with the hope of having a new encounter with my old fellows that shared this program, this path, is one of the deepest hopes in my heart. Creating new ones is tomorrow’s dream, waiting and longing for seeing that light prism refracted again.