Every day is opening night.

Contact:
Rick Miramontez / Richard Hillman
rick@oandmco.com / richard@oandmco.com
212-695-7400

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, PLEASE

New York, NY (4/6/11) – Producers David Maldonado and Juan Toro announced today that Joseguillermo Cortines will join the cast of La Barbería (The Barbershop), the Spanglish comedic drama by David Maldonado (Celia: The Life and Music of Celia Cruz, ¿Quien Mato A Hector Lavoe?) and Ari Maniel Cruz now playing at New World Stages (340 West 50th Street – between 8th & 9th Avenues). Making his Off-Broadway debut, Mr. Cortines will assume the role of Beny (currently being played by original cast member Manny Perez) on Monday, April 11. This funny, yet emotional journey of hope, identity, and assimilation has been playing to enthusiastic audiences ever since it began performances on Thursday, February 3rd, officially opening on February 17th. La Barbería is performed mostly in Spanish.

When Beny Acevedo, landlord and proprietor of a bustling Washington Heights barbershop, gets a multi-million dollar offer to sell his building, he faces the toughest decision of his life. Set against a score of original contemporary Latin music emanating from the airwaves, La Barbería is a comedic and wistful portrait of a neighborhood in flux and a tribute to the strength of a community.

Mr. Cortines will join original members Mateo Gomez, Ruperto Vanderpool, Modesto Lacen, Sunilda Caraballo, Ivan Camilo, Graciany Miranda, Juan Carlos Diaz and Emme Bonilla. La Barbería is directed by Waddys Jaquez.

The creative team is comprised of Raul Abrego (sets), Sarah Sidman (lights), Hochi Asiatico (costumes) and David Lawson (sound).

Tickets are $55 – $62.50 ($70 for premium seats) and include a $1.50 facility fee. They can be purchased through Telecharge.com/212-239-6200 (212-239-6240 for Spanish) or at the New World Stages box office (340 West 50th Street).

The performance schedule for La Barbería is: Monday at 8pm, Wednesday-Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 4:30pm & 8pm and Sunday at 3pm & 7pm.

Biography

Born in the Dominican Republic in December of 1973, Joseguillermo Cortines began his artistic career in the late 80's. He started out as a guitarist, playing in several local bands such as Origami, Kinesis and Tabu-Tek. He also played with different renowned artists such as Frank Ceara, Nelson Frank and Luis Mansilla. In 1995, Joseguillermo began working on a TV program called “Fantastico,” and from there on continued his career as a TV host. Later that year, he launched a program on Mango TV along with Jenny Cabrera called “Sin La Muela En Vivo,” which very quickly captured a TV-hungry audience within the Dominican youth segment. He also worked on other TV shows, among which are “Cocoloco Internacional,” “Bouelevard 37,” “Bureo Café,” “Revista Noticiosa” and “Cine & Musica,” the last of which he functioned as a producer, writer and host. Later on, he launched his acting career working on several TV miniseries, such as “Hasta Que La Muerte Nos Separe,” “Cuando Llama El Amor,” “El Planeta” and “Apartamento 402,” and also starred in “Paraiso,” a mini-series produced by TV Española and aired primarily in Spain. Later in 1997, Joseguillermo took a bold step into theatrical acting, when he was asked by famous Dominican actress, producer and director Nuryn Sanlley to join her on stage. He then continued working with some of the most renowned producers in the D.R., including Amaury Sanchez and Raul Camilo. With great praise from critics and after putting forth very hard work, Joseguillermo received offers to star in several film productions such as Los Locos Tambien Piensan, Negocios Son Negocios, Viajeros, The Feast of the Goat, and Tres Al Rescate. In the aforementioned animated production, he not only recorded the voice for different characters, but also cast and directed the artists' recording sessions. Joseguillermo made his debut as a solo singer in December 2004, when he presented his musical production “Una Razón” to all of the Dominican Republic, achieving several number one hits on the local radio charts. Finally, he starred in the villain's role for the internationally known release “Tropico.” This soap opera opened new doors for Joseguillermo to experiment different frontiers. He hosted the 2008 season of “Lo Dejo En Tus Manos,” a home improvement program for Telemundo. On stage, Joseguillermo, played the role of Marius in Les Misérables, at the National Theatre in Santo Domingo, D.R and recently played the role of Carlos in the comedy La Movida in Panama City. He also played the role of Mauricio Montiel in the Telemundo soap opera “El rostro de Analía,” Javier Arenas in “Amores de Luna,” Osvaldo Guerra in “Más sabe el Diablo” and Marcos Castillo in “Sacrificio de Mujer.” He most recently played Bruno Lombardi in the Univision hit “Eva Luna.”

www.labarberiatheplay.com
www.joseguillermo.ws
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