Oens

From the Age of Discovery to the effects of today's globalization, Oens portrays a disquieting, ordinary man and his journey to self-realization. The Portuguese suffix "Ões," from which the title of the play is derived, is used for making nouns into the plural and the augmentative forms. Most important, it is part of the name of the 16th century Portuguese poet Luiz Vaz de Camões (Camoens in English) who wrote the most famous epic poem in the Portuguese language, The Lusiads, which describes Vasco da Gama's voyage via southern Africa to India in 1497-1498. Published in 1572, this poem describes such a pioneering voyage, exposing a turning point in mankind's knowledge of the world. Bringing and mixing the past and the present, Oens shows that globalization is not a recently coined word in today's vocabulary. It all started with the Age of Discovery when explorers left Europe for the New World. Lots of changes have inevitably been taking place on the planet since then. For the better? For the worse? The audience will certainly decide after experiencing the play. Through music, mime and dance, Oens also enacts the eternal wish for a better world.

Awards
In June 2005, Mr. Loria was awarded the Frankie 2005 Chapters Métropolis Bleu Award for BEST TEXT (his soloTo the Winners) in the St. Ambroise Montreal Fringe Festival.
Mr. Loria has been awarded a State of Florida Enhancement Grant. The Individual Artist Fellowship Grant (period: 2007-2008) is awarded by Florida's Department of State (Division of Cultural Affairs) to support Mr. Loria's artistic endeavors.

Cast and Crew
	Wilson Loria is a writer, performer and a native of Brazil. Before leaving his country in 1986, Mr. Loria was a professional actor, performing at schools, slums and squares in his hometown of São Paulo. Teatro-Circo Alegria dos Pobres , the theater group to which Mr. Loria belonged for eight years (1975-1983), was totally dedicated to presenting plays to disenfranchised people on the outskirts of the city of São Paulo. The group also performed at institutions for abandoned children around that city as well as in the countryside of the state of São Paulo. The group consisted of 28 people including actresses, actors and musicians who studied Brazilian popular culture (mainly from the northeastern region of Brazil called “nordeste brasileiro”) in order to write their own plays. The group’s main resources were Literatura de cordel (literature on a string) and plays by well-known playwright Ariano Suassuna. Mr. Loria received his B.A. in English Language and Literature from the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo in 1984. His one-act play Nuns at Luncheon was first presented at the Gateway Theater in New York City in 1989. His monologues L’enfant de théâtre and Deadline were presented at Teatro Pregones (a Puerto Rican traveling theater group) in 1997. In 2000, Mr. Loria worked as assistant director to Brazilian performer Denise Stoklos in two of her plays: Vozes Dissonantes and Louise Bourgeois for the legendary off-off-Broadway theater La MaMa. Mr. Loria completed his Master’s degree in Performance Studies at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts in 2001. Mr. Loria’s one-act play Nuns at Luncheon was presented at the Venezuelan Consulate in New York City in 2001. In 2002, he presented his monologue L’enfant de théâtre at the University of San Francisco during the Regional Alternative Theater (R.A.T.) conference. To The Winners is a solo project directed by Venezuelan director Fernando Calzadilla. In June 2005, Mr. Loria was awarded the Frankie 2005 Chapters Métropolis Bleu Award for BEST TEXT in the St-Ambroise Montréal Fringe Festival. In 2007, he was awarded the State of Florida Enhancement Grant/Individual Artist Fellowship. After having lived in NYC for almost twenty years, Mr. Loria is currently living in St. Petersburg (Gulfport), Florida.
Fernando Calzadilla (Director) Fernando Calzadilla is a theater practitioner, scholar, visual and performance artist with a multicultural background that weaves hands on experience with theory to expand the scope of his art. With more than thirty years in cultural production, Mr. Calzadilla’s interdisciplinary practice comprises performance, theatre, ethnography, visual arts, and communication processes from a Performance Studies perspective. He is a Doctoral Candidate at New York University and was lead professor of Taller Telemundo: Escritores de Telenovelas, 2005.
Written and performed: Wilson Loria Directed by Fernando Calzadilla Music by Hiroshi Kono, Patricia Borneman, InhHume and Rhys Jones Costumes by: Alba Malida Realpe and Liz Gunn Sound and Visual effects: Patricia Borneman Lighting and sound: David Boston Graphic Design: Kore MacKenzie

Cast and Crew

Wilson Loria
is a writer, performer and a native of Brazil. Before leaving his country in 1986, Mr. Loria was a professional actor, performing at schools, slums and squares in his hometown of São Paulo. Teatro-Circo Alegria dos Pobres , the theater group to which Mr. Loria belonged for eight years (1975-1983), was totally dedicated to presenting plays to disenfranchised people on the outskirts of the city of São Paulo. The group also performed at institutions for abandoned children around that city as well as in the countryside of the state of São Paulo. The group consisted of 28 people including actresses, actors and musicians who studied Brazilian popular culture (mainly from the northeastern region of Brazil called “nordeste brasileiro”) in order to write their own plays. The group’s main resources were Literatura de cordel (literature on a string) and plays by well-known playwright Ariano Suassuna. Mr. Loria received his B.A. in English Language and Literature from the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo in 1984. His one-act play Nuns at Luncheon was first presented at the Gateway Theater in New York City in 1989. His monologues L’enfant de théâtre and Deadline were presented at Teatro Pregones (a Puerto Rican traveling theater group) in 1997. In 2000, Mr. Loria worked as assistant director to Brazilian performer Denise Stoklos in two of her plays: Vozes Dissonantes and Louise Bourgeois for the legendary off-off-Broadway theater La MaMa. Mr. Loria completed his Master’s degree in Performance Studies at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts in 2001. Mr. Loria’s one-act play Nuns at Luncheon was presented at the Venezuelan Consulate in New York City in 2001. In 2002, he presented his monologue L’enfant de théâtre at the University of San Francisco during the Regional Alternative Theater (R.A.T.) conference. To The Winners is a solo project directed by Venezuelan director Fernando Calzadilla. In June 2005, Mr. Loria was awarded the Frankie 2005 Chapters Métropolis Bleu Award for BEST TEXT in the St-Ambroise Montréal Fringe Festival. In 2007, he was awarded the State of Florida Enhancement Grant/Individual Artist Fellowship. After having lived in NYC for almost twenty years, Mr. Loria is currently living in St. Petersburg (Gulfport), Florida.

Fernando Calzadilla (Director)
Fernando Calzadilla is a theater practitioner, scholar, visual and performance artist with a multicultural background that weaves hands on experience with theory to expand the scope of his art. With more than thirty years in cultural production, Mr. Calzadilla’s interdisciplinary practice comprises performance, theatre, ethnography, visual arts, and communication processes from a Performance Studies perspective. He is a Doctoral Candidate at New York University and was lead professor of Taller Telemundo: Escritores de Telenovelas, 2005.

Written and performed: Wilson Loria
Directed by Fernando Calzadilla
Music by Hiroshi Kono, Patricia Borneman, InhHume and Rhys Jones
Costumes by: Alba Malida Realpe and Liz Gunn
Sound and Visual effects: Patricia Borneman
Lighting and sound: David Boston
Graphic Design: Kore MacKenzie