Mildred Ruiz-Sapp
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Mildred Ruiz-Sapp is an American poet, playwright, actor, singer, songwriter, and filmmaker.[1] Born and raised on New York's Lower East Side (Alphabet City), she co-founded THE POINT Community Development Corporation (Hunts Point) in 1993 and Universes (poetic theatre ensemble) (1996), in collaboration with Steven Sapp.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]
Mildred Ruiz-Sapp | |
|---|---|
Mildred Ruiz-Sapp at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, September 2019 | |
| Born | New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Occupations | Poet, playwright and actor |
Education and Career
Ruiz-Sapp earned her BA in Literature from Bard College in 1989 and is the co-founder and core member of Universes, a national ensemble theater company. Founded in The Bronx, New York, in 1995, Universes brings together a diverse group of multi-disciplined writers and performers of color who fuse theater, poetry, dance, jazz, hip hop, politics, blues, and Spanish boleros to create stage works.[13] The group, originally formed as a poetry collective performing slam poetry at clubs and cafés in Manhattan's Lower East Side, began with members Ruiz-Sapp, her brother, William Ruiz, Gamal Chasten, and Steven Sapp.
The group created the production titled Ameriville, a response to how America responded in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.[5] It premiered at the Actors Theater at Louisville’s Humana Festival in 2009.[14] Universes aimed to present the United States as a united community, rather than a fractured society divided by divergent customs and beliefs.[5] Ameriville was one of the few opportunities granted to Latina playwrights at the time, with Ruiz-Sapp playing a pivotal role in representing women playwrights of color.[15]
In 2025, Ruiz-Sapp co-directed Tipi Tales from The Stoop, a project that explores family history and generational trauma. In collaboration with Murielle Borst-Tarrant, the production tells the story of a young girl growing up in the only Native family in a Mafia-run Brooklyn neighborhood, embarking on a quest to preserve cultural traditions.[16]
Theater Credits Include
- Purgatory
- Another I Dies Slowly
- Live From the Edge
- Slanguage
- Blue Suite
- Ameriville
- Rhythmicity: Flipping The Script
- One Shot In Lotus Position
- The Ride
- The Denver Project
- UniSon
Television Credits Include
Film: Stay until Tomorrow by Laura Collela
Television: HBO's Def Poetry Jam (Season 4- Episode 9 (with UNIVERSES))
Awards/Affiliations
2008 Jazz at Lincoln Center Rhythm Road Tour
2008 Theatre Communications Group (TCG) – Peter Zeisler Award
2002–2004 and 1999–2001 Theatre Communications Group (TCG) National Theater Artist Residency Program Award
2002 BRIO Awards (Bronx Recognizes Its Own-Singing) from The Bronx Council on the Arts;
1999 OBIE Award Grant (The Point CDC & Live From Theater Theater)
1999 Bessie Awards (The Point CDC)
1998 Union Square Award recipient
Co-Founder of The Point CDC
New York Theatre Workshop Usual Suspect
Board Member: National Performance Network
Former Board member: Network of Ensemble Theaters