We Have Iré

Written by Paul S. Flores and Developed with and Directed by Rosalba Rolón

Original Musical Compositions by Yosvany Terry

Choreography by Ramón Ramos

Sound Design by DJ Leydis

Videography by Eli Jacobs-Fantauzzi

Commissioned by Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

Co-Produced by Pregones/PRTT

NOW AVAILABLE ON CD

Click here to order We Have Iré Original Cast Recording

The word Iré comes from the Lucumí language and religion in Cuba derived from Africa and means—Blessings. Good Fortune. Balance. Destiny.

We Have Iré is a bilingual musical play that tells the true stories of Black Caribbean Spanish speaking immigrants living in the United States, and their influence on and experience with American culture—a poet, a musician, a dancer, and a DJ—all Cuban. We Have Iré looks at the challenges of being an immigrant artist and establishing one’s voice in a new country. The play is about their inspiring, difficult yet triumphal journeys from Cuba’s countryside to the big city, to the United States, and back.

Commissioned by Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and Co-Produced by Pregones/PRTT, We Have Iré comes to life with a 12-piece ensemble and a vibrant performance of Afro-Caribbean music, contemporary dance, spoken word, storytelling, and Jazz. Featuring performances by Grammy® nominated Jazz musician and composer, Yosvany Terry and his quartet, award winning choreographer and dancer Ramón Ramos Alayo, Oakland based hip-hop artist DJ Leydis, the first Afro-Cuban female DJ to play at the White House, and lauded spoken word artist Paul S. Flores.

We Have Iré was co-commissioned by Pregones/PRTT, GALA Hispanic Theater, Miami Light Project, MACLA, MECA-Houston, and the National Performance Network. And funded by The MAP Fund, Creative Capital, Creative Work Fund, National Association of Latino Arts and Culture, The Center for Cultural Innovation, and The National Endowment for the Arts. 

We Have Iré premiered on May 2019 at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, California. We Have Iré has been presented at GALA Hispanic Theater in Washington D.C., and Pregones Theater in New York City, and the Re-Encuentro National Latinx Theater Festival at Los Angeles Theater Center in November 2021.

Running Time: 80-minutes with no intermission. In Spanish and English with English supertitles. 

*The 2020 national tour dates for We Have Iré were suspended, per COVID-19.