Academy
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Elvys Ruiz is a writer, playwright and cultural essayist. He studied Anthropology at the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (UASD) and graduated with honors obtaining a Bachelor of Science "Summa Cum Laude" and a Master of Science from Springfield College, Boston Campus. He also has a Specialty in Linguistics and Translation from the Open University of Catalonia, Spain. He has lectured at the main universities in the state of Rhode Island, in the United States. He has 20 years of experience in the field of translation. To his credit, he has published dozens of articles in newspapers and magazines both in the United States and in the Dominican Republic. He is the author of the books: “Café y Domino”, “Latin American Theater of the Diaspora” and “The Black Imaginary in Dominican Collective Memory.
Theater
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It began in the theater in 1981, in the Dominican Republic. To his credit, he has acted and directed theater in the main halls of his native country and has received numerous awards for his invaluable contribution to Dominican theater. He studied directing with Michael Griggs, director of the Bear Republic Theater, in California, United States. He has directed the plays: “El lugar”, by Carlos Gorostiza, Minister of Culture of Argentina (Casa de Teatro, RD); "Los Corsarios", Palace of Fine Arts, RD; “Miracle in the Old Market” by Osvaldo Dragún, (Casa de Teatro, RD); "The Stone of Happiness", by Carlos José Reyes (Gardens, National Theater, RD); “What More Do They Want From Me” (Providence, RI); “Café y Domino” (Providence, RI); "Chicken Cordon Blue" by Frank Disla, (Providence, RI); “There is a Country in the World”, by Pedro Mír (Providence, RI), among many avant-garde plays.
He has acted in the works “1540, Azúcar y Esclavos by Víctor Pujols Faynette (Palacio de Bellas Artes, RD); "Death Under the Rain" by Reynaldo Disla; "The Stone of Happiness" by Carlos José Reyes, (National Theater, RD); "The Last Charge to the Machete" by Frank Disla; “El Trono de Abomé” (National Theater, RD); "Fire on the Altar"; “Why the Goblins Shake Their Heads” by Armando Carias and Morelba Domínguez (National Theater, RD); and numerous works of collective creation staged in fields and neighborhoods of the Dominican nation.
He has given numerous talks and theater workshops, created theater groups and published numerous articles on theater in international newspapers and magazines. In 1984 his acclaimed play “Café y Domino” was awarded in the Dominican Republic and staged in Providence. His legacy to the Dominican theater is contained in the book "25 years of Theater and Dance" by Carmen Heredia de Guerrero, former director of the Dominican National Theater.
He recently created his theater company "Tribal" and the Center for Performing Arts and Theater Hall "Freddy Ginebra Giudicelli" to pay tribute to Freddy Ginebra for his invaluable contribution to Theater and Artistic and Cultural Expressions in the Dominican Republic.
House of the Americas
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Last year Elvys Ruiz was invited to Havana, Cuba as a speaker to participate in the 3rd International Colloquium of Studies on Native Cultures of America, which was held at the most prestigious cultural institution on the continent "Casa de las Américas" , from October 9 to 12, 2018. Ruiz was the only Dominican who participated in this conference with a presentation entitled: "Dominican Indigenousism in Literary Production"
For the second time, the Casa de las Américas scientific committee accepted Elvys Ruiz's proposal to participate as a speaker in the 1st International Colloquium of Studies on Afro-America: “Blacks in the colonial cities of the Americas: subversion, rebellion, resilience”, which will be held at Casa de las Américas, Havana, from June 19 to 21, 2019, within the framework of the International Decade for People of African Descent: recognition, justice and development, declared by the United Nations General Assembly (2015- 2024) and the celebration of the 60th anniversary of Casa de las Américas.
Ruiz's presentation is part of the theme "Genealogies and restoration of African ancestral memories." Under that topic, I will analyze blackphobia in the context of race relations in the Dominican Republic and its impact on the diaspora.
Acknowledgments
To his credit, he has received dozens of recognitions from both the Congress and Senate of the United States, state government, municipalities, private sector, public, academic centers and community entities, for his different contributions to cultural development.
Ruiz, is the current director of the Provider Diversity program in the Rhode Island Office of Diversity, Equity and Opportunity (ODEO). He has been working in state government for 20 uninterrupted years and has successfully administered millions of dollars in community impact programs.