The Asylum Theatre, in partnership with the Library of America, is proud to present "Places We Call Home," an afternoon of professional readings by local actors and reflective conversation inspired by the upcoming publication of Latino Poetry, a new anthology edited by the poet and critic Rigoberto González. The free, public event will take place at Rita Deanin Abbey Art Museum, located at 5850 North Park St., on Sunday, September 1, at 2 p.m.
Recognition of this tradition's beauty and power has grown in recent years. At the same time, the perennial questions confronted by Latino poets—of exile and belonging, language and identity, struggle and solidarity, and labor and landscape—have become ever more urgent. What does Latino poetry reveal about America? How might it help us imagine a more just, joyful, and capacious future?
Latino Poetry: Places We Call Home is a national public humanities initiative directed by the Library of America with generous support from the National Endowment for the Humanities and Emerson Collective. It includes creating a groundbreaking anthology, events around the country, and an online media archive.
The Asylum Theatre is one of 75 partners across 31 states to be selected for this essential cultural initiative, along with two other Nevada organizations, Nevada Humanities and Great Basin College.
"We are honored to serve Las Vegas arts and the world stage by collaborating with contemporary Latinx poets, translators, and playwrights. This work reflects our decades-long commitment to empowering representation and creative opportunity for our richly diverse community," said Sarah O'Connell, Artistic Director of The Asylum's Resident Playwright. Gigi Guizado is the Latino Poetry program director and curator of the event, with the discussion moderated by Nevada State University poet and scholar Erika G. Abad.
"My work as a theatre translator and poet has been deeply influenced by striving to understand my ancestry
and cope with the feeling of being between two cultures. Although the sense of being "ni de aquí ni de allá" can be lonesome, many people share this experience. Celebrating the exploration of these themes in Latino Poetry is a great pleasure.
Erika, whose work also encompasses poetry, language, ancestry and identity, is a natural fit as our
moderator. Our mutual interest in these topics brought us together," said Gigi Guizado, Resident Playwright.
The Asylum Theatre exists to connect audiences to new work and artists to each other. Founded in 1997, it is a global gateway in Las Vegas, Nevada for contemporary voices championing creative collaboration, cultural exchange, translation, and new work development; funded by the Nevada Arts Council and NEA. This program is presented as part of Latino Poetry: Places We Call Home, a major public humanities initiative taking place across the nation in 2024 and 2025, directed by the Library of America and funded with generous support from the National Endowment for the Humanities and Emerson Collective.
