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Hebert Poll Gutiérrez
Playwright
(HAVANA CITY, CUBA, 1977)
Author, playwright, poet, and storyteller. I am a Cuban Canadian artist with 16 years of experience trying to connect with the world through art. I believe in the power of stories, in the power of the art to shape realities. Art is and will be my strategy to defend my triple cultural identity: My identity as an artist, as a Cuban, and as an Afro-descendant. I have published 10 books. My last published book is: Whispers from the black Gods (Poetry) The Elite Lizzard Publishing Company, Canada, 2022.
Some of my writings also appear in magazines and in more than 20 anthologies from Cuba, Venezuela, Canada, Spain, the United States, Mexico, Germany, and other countries. My theatre scripts have been represented by companies from Latin America, Europe, and Canada.
I am a member of several cultural organizations. Among them are:
SpanicArts, Calgary.
Playwrights Guild of Canada
FAVA (Film and Video Arts Society Alberta)
Alberta Media Arts Alliance Society (AMAAS).
I was named Calgary’s Artist of the Month of December 2021. The recognition was
awarded by the Immigrant Council for Arts Innovation (ICAI).
SOCIAL MEDIA:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/hebert.pollgutierrez
Twitter: @hebert_poll
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hebertpoll
The Great Race
Due to a terrible argument, there’s a fire in the forest. The characters in this story
never agree with each other. Awa the duck and Akiko the rooster don't get along with each other. Their silly feathered fight has lasted too long, and it’s affecting the animals, almost animals, and those who think of themselves as animals of the forest of Ibo Findo. They only have one solution left... The protagonists of this story are animals with afro-descendant names. Expecting what has to happen, it’s necessary to ask for help from the Afro-Cuban gods. Between fights and a bit of love, time passes by till the day of the Great Race.
Performed by Susan Sneath
Yoka's Flower
Shango, the God of Music and thunder, is sad. Time passes, and he has no gift to delight his beloved Oshun, the Goddess of rivers, pumpkins, and love. There is only one solution left. No matter the suffering of others. He will get a worthy gift for the owner of his heart, whatever it takes.
Performed by Susan Sneath
The Boys' Dance (video presentation)
Young musicians decide to give away some drums to Obatala, queen of the Afro-Cuban gods. Eshu, the evil wind, wants the drums for himself. There is only one solution left...
The play is based on traditional legends, but the author pays special attention to adapting them to contemporary contexts. This play is full of modern winks and humor, starring divine beings (orishas) who are happily contaminated by worldly imperfections.
Performed by Marcela Romero García
