How Did Miriam Col贸n's Education Shaped The PRTT?

After the highly successful run of The Oxcart, Miriam Colón founded the Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre in 1967 based in New York. From lead actress to founder to artistic director, Colón has worn many hats since the PRTT opened. Because of this, she has had a tremendous impact on the initial and continued success of the PRTT. Her experiences as an actress and as a Puerto Rican adjusting to life in the United States have shaped her and, in turn, significantly affected the structure of the curriculum at the PRTT. Through various biographies, we will analyze Colón’s journey up until 1967 when the PRTT was founded and how Colón’s life experience shaped the PRTT. The PRTT has had a tremendous impact on Latin@ theatre culture in New York, and in

The Puerto Ricans’ history in America began in 1917 with the approval of the Jones Act which granted American citizenship to all Puerto Ricans. (De La Roche 8). Allowing Puerto Ricans to live in the US as citizens gave Puerto Ricans the freedom they needed to implement their own culture into America. Their culture flourished in New York City, where they could explore poetry, theatre, music, and art without much objection. According to De La Roche, the “Puerto Ricans’ music and literature created a new culture in New York City” (De La Roche 4). This is the culture in which Colón would begin her career as a young actress and would eventually cultivate the idea of the Puerto Rican Traveling

She had already completed all theater courses at the University of Puerto Rico and was more than qualified to attend Erwin Piscator’s Dramatic Workshop and Technical Institute in New York where she was offered a scholarship by then chancellor Jaime Banítez. Realizing what a rare opportunity this was for Colón, Josefa Quiles agreed to pick up and move to New York where she worked in a garment factory to pay for their single furnished room, all to support Colón’s career. Her parents had divorced when she was young and her mother “played a major role in supporting her career ambitions” (Seller 144). When asked about her mother’s support, Colón stated: “She never interfered, whether I wanted to be an actress or nurse . . . what was important that I was absolutely sure she loved me . . . she was so giving” (145). This love and support was crucial to Colón’s creation of the Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre, since without it Colón would have never made the move to New York in the first