César Abreu

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Layers, a dance and music film created, written, and directed by César Abreu (MET Opera Ballet) takes the audience on a path of self-acceptance through three stages: Ceremony/Ritual, Introspection/Búsqueda, and Redemption/Rapture. The first goal of the project and the one related to this grant application is to research stories, choreographies, movement, melodies, struggles, challenges that have shaped dance and performance in the Puerto Rican diaspora over the years and create the dance film Layers. In collaboration, Angelica Negrón will compose the original score underlying the images of the dancers and Roxane Revon will enhance the visual aspect of the movie itself with her original images.

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César Abreu is from Bayamón, Puerto Rico. From the age of seven, he worked regularly on variety shows such as Súper Sábados, El Pueblito News, and was a cast member of the television sitcom Los Angelitos. Abreu was tapped for the Grammy nominated boy band phenomenon Menudo in 1990 and toured with them internationally. Ballet training brought him to the United States where he studied musical theater and dance in South Florida, followed by bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education and dance at The University of the Arts in Philadelphia and New York University, respectively. Abreu found a home in New York City where he was part of the cast of the National Tour of the musical Cats and served as co-choreographer of Broadway Bares (Fire Island edition). Capitalizing on an 18- year career as a dancer for The Metropolitan Opera, Abreu has also danced for The Santa Fe Opera, the Philadelphia-based Koresh Dance Company, and Seán Curran Dance Company, New York, among others. During the hiatus of indoor performance amid the Covid pandemic, César built upon his considerable professional performance experience, expanding his reach to produce, direct, and administer live performance, film, and video. He was the associate producer of the sold-out, experiential artist salon series, Art Bath NYC, and directed Communications and Branding at MAX: Media Art Xploration, an organization that fosters collaboration between the arts and science. His most recent short film SELF received Honorable Mention in the Covent Garden Film Festival, won awards for Best Dance Film at the Beyond the Curve Film Festival in France, Best LGBTQ+ short at the Best Shorts Competition, and is nominated for Best Dance Film at the Swedish International Film Festival. The film will premiere at Festival Videodanza de Puerto Rico on April 26, 2024, featuring Metropolitan Opera dance soloist Maxfield Haynes with music by Perception Project.