Tampa’s Stageworks Theatre Kicks Off Hispanic Heritage Month Festival

At Stageworks Theatre, the Unimos Festival starts Thursday evening, Sept. 25. The two-hour show marks the start of National Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs mid-September through mid-October.

"We wanted it to be kind of a smorgasbord of talent," said Alejandro Paz, Stageworks' box office and marketing associate, per St. Pete Catalyst.com, "to show that Hispanic and Latin Americans thrive in all areas of the arts."

Artists from across Tampa will take the stage. The night mixes dance by Tampa City Ballet with music from Las Mariposas. Paula Sofia brings spoken word, while Jessy Leros adds theater. Opera Tampa joins The Musicologist and Pride of Puerto Rico in the mix.

Outside the theater, vendors set up shop with local treats. "In Hispanic cultures, it's always a mix of the senses — there's food, there's music, there's texture, there's color," said Cecilia Claudio-Torres, an event planner.

On stage, JL Rey plans to show part of a new work by a local Puerto Rican writer. "I think it's important for people to see themselves onstage," Rey said. "Human beings have been telling stories since we were sitting around the campfire, and unfortunately, in most of American art, the stories of people who are either people of color, or people of another culture, get lost."

The show fits with Stageworks' push to bring Hispanic stories to Tampa. Each season now includes at least one Latin-focused show in both English and Spanish. Past hits brought In the Time of the Butterflies and Anna in the Tropics to local crowds.

Next up, Rey takes on Latin History For Morons by John Leguizamo in winter 2025. His past work shines through Cubiche, a personal show he wrote and starred in back in 2023.

Two minds picked the night's talent: Cornelio Aguilar and Nestor Menendez worked side by side. Paz puts it simply: "The arts are borderless, so what better communication tool is there for gathering together — and expressing and learning and teaching?"

Want to go? Check Stageworks Theatre online for tickets and details.