ABOUT Pelú

I am CarlosAlexis Cruz, a physical theatre actor/creator with an immense desire of using theatre to provoke questioning within those who witness. I am originally from Puerto Rico and am very proud of my heritage: a mix of cultures in itself a bit aggravated by the fact that we are a US colony. Since finding my way to theatre arts, I have been always with a thirst of finding new ways of telling stories. That guided me towards the path of getting an MFA degree in Physical Theatre, with a main focus on the convergence of circus and theatre, and a specialty in mask theatre performance. 

Out of the necessity of wanting to be part of projects that would be more artistically committed to contribute to truly further out the Latino experience in the US, and at the same time, raise awareness of the way a subculture tries to coexist, I created Pelú Theatre. Pelú, in essence, is a virtual theatre company, a name that would perhaps facilitate an individual to create art without being second-guessed. From an artistic point of view, I am interested in fusions. I have always believed that out of the mixed of two things inevitably a third thing would emerge. This is true in art, true when you cook something, and particularly true with what goes on as result of the process of immigration: out of necessity an individual ends up at the face of living in a cultural limbo.

Within these fusions, I have been particularly drawn to the use of acrobatics and physical comedy to tell the story. As a result, I have created thus far three original productions under the realm of a street style circus theatre. Of these three original productions, perhaps the most emblematic of my work was the show titled A Suicide Note of a Cockroach. This show represents my growth as an artist not only in finding my own voice, but in fully developing an idea from just that, to a local production, to touring the west side of our nation including venues such as the Walt Disney Modular Theatre at the California Institute of the Arts.

As an artist I have found an outlet for the experimentation, for the communication, for the questioning. We are pretty fortunate that we live in a society that allows us freedom of expression (or at least they say). 

Artistic qualities are a gift, and in believing so, I take on the task of advocating for those other that perhaps have other vocations.

I find myself, as an actor pretty much in an isle. I am a Native Spanish speaker Latino, with a graduate degree in Physical Theatre, and with and extensive background in all acrobatics. This uniqueness, pretty much provided and easy gate to constant work, but I do believe that it even provides a wider realm of possibilities as an art instigator. 

As Pelú, I aim for: a socially committed Latino rooted work; a space for the exploration of all ways possible for the telling of a story drawn to the physical nature of our métier; a space for artistic collaboration keen to the fusion of all arts to make of theatre a live communal experience that only a live Pelú show could provide.