¡Gaytino!
Written and performed by Dan Guerrero
Presented in partnership with Portland Latino Gay Pride 2008
With the support of Equity Foundation, El Hispanic News, the Unity Project of Oregon and the Mark Spencer Hotel

Mariachi to Merman. Sondheim to César Chávez. Show tunes and canciones en español. This remarkable life journey from East L.A. in the ’50s to New York’s Great White Way in the ’60s and ’70s and back to Hollywood, moves from the back of the bus to the front of American pop culture. A father/son relationship and a treasured boyhood friendship drive this 75-minute autobiographical play through decades of Chicano history and the gay experience from a unique and personal perspective. Touching, hilarious and absolutely one-of-a-kind, Dan Guerrero finally brings his two fascinating worlds together in a riveting solo show, stopping in Portland for two nights only on his way to perform at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

Dan Guerrero performed a critically acclaimed world premiere run of ¡Gaytino! produced by the Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles during the spring of 2006. His last stage musical performance was in an off-Broadway show in 1973. That’s a long time between bows.

Guerrero began his eclectic career in New York where he moved from East Los Angeles at age 20 to sing and dance in musicals. He performed off-Broadway, in regional theatre and summer stock and in countless cabaret revues including one that took him to the Nixon White House for a special performance. He later became a successful Broadway talent agent in the years from A Chorus Line to Cats, representing Tony Award winners and future Hollywood names including an 11-year old Sarah Jessica Parker. Back to Los Angeles, Dan became a born-again Hispanic fiercely working for more positive Latino images on the screen as a casting director, writer and, for the past 15 years, as a producer and director. Guerrero has been widely acclaimed as an innovative producer of Latino-themed programming in both English and Spanish for network and cable television. He has also produced and staged major live nonbroadcast concert and award show events at prestigious venues including the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., the Cite de La Musique in Paris, France and the National Hispanic Cultural Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He most recently directed the world premiere of Concierto Para Mendez for the Los Angeles Opera at the Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. The documentary film he produced and wrote with Nancy De Los Santos about his late father, legendary Chicano music icon Lalo Guerrero, has been airing on PBS stations nationwide.

Guerrero has been twice honored by the distinguished Imagen Foundation for his positive portrayal of Latino culture in his work and Hispanic Magazine recognized him as “one of the 25 most powerful Latinos in Hollywood.” He is proud the Dan Guerrero Collection on Latino Entertainment and the Arts has been established in the California Ethnic and Multicultural Archives at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

For more information about Dan Guerrero, visit www.danguerrero.com or www.myspace.com/officialmyspacegaytino.

June 6-7, 2008

While in Portland, artist Dan Guerrero will screen the award-winning documentary film he produced and wrote with Nancy De Los Santos about his late father, legendary Chicano music icon Lalo Guerrero, which aired on PBS television and has been shown at various film festivals around the world.

The documentary film Lalo Guerrero: The Original Chicano was nominated for the best documentary with the Alma Awards for 2006, aired on PBS and ABC television stations and screened at numerous film festivals. Thishour-long documentary celebrates the life and career of Lalo Guerrero, while documenting the contemporary history of Mexican Americans through his music. Taped interviews with Linda Ronstadt, Paul Rodriguez, Edward James Olmos, Ry Cooder, UFW co-founder Dolores Huerta, Cheech Marin and others, describe the influence and impact of Lalo’s music from a personal and professional point of view. Taped re-enactments and historic news footage illustrates the times he lived in and the music he wrote. Lalo tells his story as no one else can — with insight and humor. Rare photographs from the Guerrero Family Trust and clips of both television and live performances complete the tapestry.

Screening of “Lalo Guerrero: The Original Chicano” begins at 7 p.m., Thursday, June 5, 2008 at the Jupiter Hotel (800 E. Burnside St., Portland). The film screening, which is free and open to the public, is hosted by Portland Latino Gay Pride 2008 and serves to kick-off several days of activities (for details, see www.latinogaypridepdx.com).