This is episode #11 of Artful Thought, recorded live at the University of San Francisco's KUSF studio, which aired on Saturday, July 27th, 2019. I'm beyond stoked to talk with Paul S. Flores. His roles as a prolific poet, playwright, performance artist, youth arts educator, and USF theater professor continue to inspire and illuminate.

Due to copyright laws, I had to cut the music from the recording, but have embedded my Spotify playlist on KUSF to accompany the edited cut. The music includes legendary and current Latinx artists PALO!, Cimafunk, Celia Cruz, Johnny Pacheco, La Lupe, Obsesión, and the Colorado-based Mocochetes accompanied with their tribute music video to the 1969 Walk-Out Movement, Que Viva la Revolución.

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Paul’s Future & Ongoing Projects:

On top of teaching his popular Hip Hop Theater course here at USF, this fall he will also be teaching in SF State’s Theater Department, and two creative writing classes in the Prison Arts Project at Solano, Vacaville State Prison. His portfolio of outreach includes co-founding Youth Speaks, Brave New Voices: National Teen Poetry Slam (now on HBO), founder of Latino Men & Boys Program, former programming director at La Peña Cultural Center and currently the Paseo Artístico Coordinator at Acción Latina. As a performing artist, he has gone on tour with his creative works and collaborations all over the U.S. as well as internationally, including Cuba, Mexico, El Salvador— and most recently presented at 2019 Latinx Theatre Commons in Miami, Florida. His play, We Have Iré begins touring in December.

Creative Works

Along the Border Lies (2001 novel)
“Brown Dreams” (spoken word appearing on HBO’s Def Poetry, contestant on seasons 3 and 4)
“Gravity's Volume” (spoken word)
plays include…
PLACAS: The Most Dangerous Tattoo
YOU'RE GONNA CRY (SF Weekly's Best Politically Active Hip-Hop Performance Artist)
REPRESENTA!
We Have Iré: True Stories about Afro-Cuban Immigrant Artists in the US — his most recent docu-theatre production which received a 2019 Creative Capital Award

Future & Ongoing Acción Latina Events

El Tecolote’s “Unsettled in the Mission” -- Adriana Camarena (editor/writer)
Paseo Artístico’s “COUNT ME IN/CUENTA CONMIGO CENSUS 2020”

Abhay Shetty: A Talk on Poetry and the Ability to Let Go-etry

Artful ThoughtBy Darcy AllredJun 20, 2019