Saturday, April 28, 2012

Miami Sun-Sentinel on "New World Waking"

A terrific article by Philip Valys.


"I was also a big, stocky kid in high school, but bullies made me feel weak physically and emotionally. When I discovered music and theater, that's when I found my strength."

This is why "New World Waking!" an anti-bullying concert debuting tonight at Aventura Arts and Cultural Center, resonates with Castellanos. He sings second tenor for INSIGNIA, the 16-man vocal ensemble of Miami Gay Men's Chorus, which is staging the 45-minute revue created by composer Steve Schalchlin. The concert packs 14 poignant, if brief, anecdotal numbers preaching peace and social justice while tackling themes of violence in wars, homophobia and transphobia, and broader-scale corporate bullying.
"It's a roller coaster of emotions that are hard to deal with, and definitely thought-provoking for me," Castellanos adds. "There's a song for every emotion, and this concert is a book full of inspirational stories and, unfortunately, ugly things we don't want to look at, like bullying and hurting other people and not accepting each other. When you face those things, you realize they don't have as much power as you thought they did."  

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