Shea’s Performing Arts Center announced that Victoria Pérez has been named the interim Director of Arts Engagement and Education. Pérez will be an integral part of the leadership team and responsible for implementing and overseeing all arts engagement and education programming at Shea’s Buffalo Theatre, Shea’s 710 Theatre and Shea’s Smith Theatre in a way that is responsive to the needs and interests of area schools and the community. Current Shea’s programs include Shea’s On School Time Series, Shea’s In Schools Outreach, Shea’s Master Classes, Exploring the Arts, Junior Theatre Celebration, The Annual Kenny Awards, Shea’s Summer Musical Theatre Intensive and Actor’s Edge.
“I will do my best to continue the work already established and keep striving for authentic community engagement, impact to the artistic lives of burgeoning theatre practitioners and contribute to the wonderful artistic landscape that is Shea’s,” she shared.
Pérez is a multiple award-winning accomplished bilingual theatre artist with over 25 years of experience on the stage as a singer, actor, director, writer and teaching artist. Hailing from Puerto Rico and calling Buffalo her home, she is the co-founder and artistic director of Raíces Theatre Company, the only Latino theatre company in WNY dedicated to telling Latino stories.
She studied musical theatre at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy and recently made her Off-Broadway debut directing Marco Antonio Rodríguez’ world premiere of BLOOM at IATI Theatre. Pérez was also the assistant director of La Breve y Maravillosa Vida de Oscar Wao at New York’s Spanish Repertory Theatre.
In Buffalo she has performed and directed with almost every theatre company including Road Less Traveled (ensemble member), O’Connell and Company (company member) Ujima, MusicalFare, BUA, Alleyway, Kavinoky and Irish Classical. As a theater arts educator and administrator, she has worked for Shea’s Performing Arts Center, Arts in Education Institute of WNY, Creative Arts Team (NYC), Buffalo Center for Arts and Technologies, Antecesores, MUSE, Irish Classical Theatre, Theater of Youth and Young Audiences of WNY. Pérez has completed studies as a teaching artist through Lincoln Center and The Teaching Artist Project. She strongly believes that everyone has a story worth telling and sharing.
