praachicago.org
JOIN US IN CELEBRATING
PRA A ’ S 25TH ANNIVERSARY
P RAA is turning 25 ! Join us as we celebrate this special anniversary by attending one of the many events we have planned. Dance the night away at Noche Caribeña or at a Baila Conmigo community concert, visit the Colonial Portraits, Inc. exhibit at P RAA Center, sip Coquito at the National Coquito Festival, and donʼt miss the Emmy Award Winning National Cuatro Festival!
Founded in 1998, in the Humboldt Park neighborhood, by Carlos Hernandez and other Puerto Rican leaders who did not see their culture and experiences represented by existing arts institutions, P RAA has worked to forge a creative path to bring new awareness, understanding, and appreciation to the artistic expressions of Puerto Rico.
Our journey has brought educational arts and music programs to children and youth in under resourced neighborhoods, featured local and international artists from Puerto Rico and beyond, showcased top “Cuatristas” and local musicians at major venues, and produced culturally rich programs and events for YOU “our audience.”
We have achieved so much because of the many investments in our work by donors, volunteers, community members and partners, sponsors, government entities, local businesses, and philanthropic establishments. Thank you for believing in our mission and vision!
Mark your calendars, save the dates, and letʼs celebrate together! We look forward to seeing YOU soon!
Colonial Portraits
Open now – March 31, 2024
PRAA Center, 3000 N. Elbridge Ave.
Noche Caribeña
August 12, 2023 | Navy Pier, Polk Bros Park Lake Stage
Somos Un Solo Pueblo Mexico y Puerto Rico
August 26, 2023 | Millennium Park, Pritzker Pavilion
Baila Conmigo
September 9, September 16, October 6, 2023
PRAA Center, 3000 N. Elbridge Ave.
25th Annual National Cuatro Festival
November 18, 2023
Harris Theater for Music and Dance, 205 E. Randolph St.
National Coquito Festival
December 9, 2023 | PRAA Center, 3000 N. Elbridge Ave.
Desde Mi Barrio
February 17, March 16, April 13, 2024
Latin Music Project Center, 2958 N Milwaukee Ave.
Felisa Rincón de Gautier Awards
March 14, 2024 | PRAA Center, 3000 N. Elbridge Ave.
2 5th Anniversary Calendar of Events
C olonial Portraits
Open now – March 31, 2024
PRAA Center, 3000 N. Elbridge Ave.
Colonial Portraits, Inc. (el Colonizado) is an experimental painting installation of portraits that have defined the face and identity of the Puerto Rican people. Each painting represents a defining moment in Puerto Ricoʼs long historical colonial struggle. Depicted are works by José Campeche (1751), Ramón Frade (1875), Rafael Tufiño (1922), Fransisco Rodón (1934), and Arnaldo Roche Rabel (1955) who painted the complex, and yet to be defined identity of the Puerto Rican people.
Students enrolled in P RAAʼs Studio Arts & Exhibition Apprenticeship Program researched the history of natural disasters and how our great painters captured the expression of the Puerto Rican (people). This generation of young aspiring artists, led by three established artists, edited and reproduced the works of six Puerto Rican masters by creating their own art in response to the adverse effects of hurricane María.
This exhibition first opened at the Chicago Cultural Center then traveled to Puerto Rico, and was exhibited at the Museo de las Américas and at Biblioteca Universidad Ana G. Méndez –Recinto Carolina
Noche Caribeña
August 12, 2023
Navy Pier, Polk Bros Park Lake Stage
In partnership with Navy Pier, this summertime outdoor dance concert is free and open to the public featuring international and local artists, as well as, up-and-coming musicians.
S omos Un Solo Pueblo Mexico y Puerto Rico
August 26, 2023
Millennium Park, Pritzker Pavilion
This one-of-a-kind historical event is a collaboration uniting the Mexican and Puerto Rican communities in a symphonic concert presentation. Featured will be popular and contemporary music repertoires from Mexico and Puerto Rico written by composers including José Pablo Moncayo, Juventino Rosas, Angel “Lito” Peña, and Rafael Hernández, whose internationally acclaimed works have gone beyond borders.
This musical journey embraces arrangements of popular and contemporary songs from Mexico and Puerto Rico that will surely captivate our audience. Local music groups the Latin Music Project Ensemble, the Mexican Folkloric Dance Company of Chicago, Cuerdas Clásicas, and AfriCaribe will be integrated as part of the performance offering cultural prominences that will complement the Mexican and Puerto Rican repertoires. The Chicago Philharmonic Society will graciously accompany international musicians from Puerto Rico and Mexico.
T his program is made possible by a grant from the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events with funding from the Millennium Park Foundation and the Pritzker Foundation.
9, September 16, October 6, 2023 PRAA Center, 3000 N. Elbridge Ave. Join us on the P RAA Centerʼs terrace for music from talented local artists. Come solo or bring a partner as we dance under the stars! Each event includes performances by P RAAʼs Latin Music Project Ensemble.
B aila Conmigo September
2 5th Annual National Cuatro Festival
November 18, 2023 Harris Theater for Music and Dance 205 E. Randolph St.
The Emmy Award-winning Annual National Cuatro Festival is a unique music event that brings the best Cuatro musicians, “Cuatristas” from Puerto Rico to Chicago for a one-of-a-kind concert experience.
National Coquito Festival
December 9, 2023
PRAA Center, 3000 N. Elbridge Ave.
The National Coquito Festival celebrates Puerto Ricoʼs holiday drink, Coquito (translation: small coconut). The event promotes and preserves Puerto Rican heritage through this iconic drink, music, and food. Most Puerto Rican families have a treasured coquito recipe & they will boast that their coquito is the best! This event gives coquito makers the opportunity to showcase their recipe in hopes of winning our annual contest judged by event participants.
D esde Mi Barrio
February 17, March 16, April 13, 2024
Latin Music Project Center, 2958 N Milwaukee Ave.
This community concert series features local and national musicians while celebrating rich music of Puerto Rican and other Latinx cultures.
Felisa Rincón de Gautier Awards
March 14, 2024
PRAA Center, 3000 N. Elbridge Ave.
Annually, P RAA honors community leaders for their distinguished community service. We recognize their contributions as role models and advocates who inspire others and the broader community.
Through the award ceremony, it is P RAAʼs goal to heighten and exemplify Ms. Rincon de Gautierʼs impeccable service and commitment to her community, women, and her country.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CHAIR
Ignacio Lopez, Ed.D
Dean, College of Professional
Studies & Advancement
National Louis University
VICE-CHAIR
Sylvia Mojica Castillo, PsyD
Psychotherapist Consultant
TREASURER
Robert Pantoja
Retail Banking Market President
BMO Harris Bank
SECRETARY
Diana Maldonado
VP – News Noticiero Telemundo
WSNS-TV Telemundo Chicago
JeNyce Boolton
VP Community Relations Mgr. – East Region
Corporate Social Responsibility
U.S. Bank
Eduardo Camacho
Retired Senior Compliance Facilitator
Chicago Public Schools
Cheryl Cooke
Director of Planning & Development Cook County, Illinois
Manuel Cuevas Trisan, JD
VP for Human Resource
Harvard University
Monica Diaz
President & Principal D & I – MD
Ernesto Matias
Former Education Officer, ISBE
Anastasia O’Brien, JD
Vice President & Deputy General Counsel
Exelon
PRAA STAFF
Carlos Hernandez
Founder & Executive Director
Nicole Alicea
Marketing & Administrative Manager
Jose Carrasquillo
Senior Latin Music Project Manager
Jorge Felix
Studio Arts & Exhibits Program Director
Susan Garr
Co-Director Somos Uno
Carmen Gonzalez
Facility Manager
Benjamin LaBoy
Music Instructor
Guillermo “Willy” Montes de Oca, Ed.D
Co-Director Somos Uno
Herbert Moreno
Accountant
Zabdiel Santiago
Latin Music Project Manager
Nancy Ward
Development Director
DESIGN True story.
PROGRAM PARTNERS
The Puerto Rican Arts Alliance is in part supported by National Endowment for the Arts, NBC5/Telemundo Chicago, Southwest Airlines, McDonald’s Hispanic Owners-Operators Association (MHOA), Fundación Felisa Rincón de Gautier, Accenture, Peoples Gas, MacArthur Foundation, Goya, Polk Bros Foundation, Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, Terra Foundation for American Arts, and The Elizabeth Morse Charatable Trust.
3000 N. Elbridge Ave. Chicago, IL 60618
The Puerto Rican Arts Alliance ( P RAA) is a community-based nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving Puerto Rican culture by maintaining traditions, showcasing Puerto Rican arts and music, providing music and arts educational programming, and cultivating pride in Puerto Rican heritage. Anchored in Chicago, P RAA is a vibrant, 25-year-old music and arts nonprofit organization that develops culturally enriching and transforming programs, performances, exhibitions, and events inspiring 30,000 annually while encouraging future generations to grow appreciation for Puerto Rican heritage and culture.
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For other cultural activities, programs and events visit praachicago.org
