Nicholas Rodriguez

Artistic Director

Nicholas Rodriguez is a Fulbright Scholar, who began his early training under the mentorship of Ralph Gomez at the Inner City Ensemble.  He went on to graduate from the Juilliard School of Music with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Dance.  Mr. Rodriguez has danced with Ballet Hispanico, Molissa Fenley, Lillo Way Dance Company, and most extensively with his own company, Dance Compass, which he co-founded with Sharon Stephens. Mr. Rodriguez, a native of Paterson, NJ, has created and presented more than fifty original works within the state of New Jersey and he received three Choreographer's Fellowships from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.  Mr. Rodriguez has set original choreography on the Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble, The Yard on Martha's Vineyard, and for New Jersey's own Garden State Ballet and American Repertory Ballet.  His works have been presented at Montclair State University, the Theater of the Riverside Church, Dance Theater Workshop, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors, and in Paraguay, Ecuador, Bolivia, and across the US.  As a dance education, Mr. Rodriguez has served as the Associate Artistic Director of the Trenton Education Dance Institute (TEDI).  He also worked as a teaching artist for Jacques D'Amboise's National Dance Institute in New York City.  Mr. Rodriguez fist play, A Cherry Dies in Washington Heights, was selected for Theatro Pregones' Ausunsion Playwrights Series.  
 

Enrique Viñas was born & raised in Paterson and he began his arts training as a teenager on the streets of Paterson during the break-dance craze. Mr. Viñas  found his way to the stage after answering an open call for break-dancers for the play “Runaways”, which was performed by the Inner City Ensemble in 1982. Mr. Viñas began his classical training under Jeri Beaumont, Aaron Dugger and Ernesta Corvin.  Enrique, formerly known as Henry or “Hank,” also trained in acting with Ralph Gomez, Lynn Greene and David Schectner. After attending City College in New York City for Theater program, Mr. Viñas finished his degree in Communications Studies for Broadcasting at Northeastern University, Boston and while at Northeastern, he set out to find an organization to feed his heart and soul. Instead of finding it; Enrique spear-headed the rebirth of the now well-known and respected Latin-American Student Organizatin, fondly known as LASO.  At Northeastern Mr. Viñas grew the membership to include students of Latino descent and also opened the group to all ethnicities interested in Latino culture. Working closely with the administration and staff, the group helped build an academic program as well as a cultural and educational center: The Latin-American Studies Program and Student Center.  This organization has worked with community leaders as well as world leaders including, Cesar Chavez, Edward James Olmos, Rigoberta Minchu, Pedro Pietri.  That organization also built various community programs that included mentorship with the local high school and middle school-an accomplishment that Mr. Viñas is very proud of and credits that success to what he has learned while at the Inner City Ensemble -Paterson NJ.  Enrique lives with his wonderful spouse Alexa and his three boys that keep him feeling young and alive.

Daisy Harrison-Sirico began training in May 1977, following an audition conducted by Ralph Gomez, and within one season, she began touring extensively with the Inner City Ensemble. Ms. Harrison-Sirico was also the Company's first Acting Captain, and she performed in On Human Wheels, Life-Show, and After the Rain, an original play, written by Ralph Gomez, which was presented at Paterson's own Genesis Theater and at Town Hall in New wShow in 1978, as well as on Nine on New Jersey, Big Apple Minute and Imagines Latinos (Latin Images).  Ms. Harrison-Sirico also performed at several Inner City Ensemble gala events, which featured performances by Melba Moore, Edward Villella, Jacques D'Amboise, Ann Reinking, Ben E. King, and Evelyn “Champaign” King.  After graduating from the John F. Kennedy High School in Paterson, NJ, Ms. Harrison-Sirico went on to study at The American Academy Of Dramatic Arts in New York City.  In subsequent years, she worked and lived in Las Vegas and modeled for Stock Photography.  Shortly thereafter, Ms. Harrison-Sirico enlisted in the U.S. Navy, and she sang for the Navy choir.  After returning to the northeast, she appeared on the cover of the June 1989 issue of Cosmopolitan Magazine, and she was featured as a stock actress for their spread entitled: “Women Behind Bars”.  Ms. Harrison-Sirico has also performed in theater productions at The Brundage Park Playhouse, The Dover Little Theatre, The Castle Dinner Theatre and The Bickford Theatre. Ms. Harrison-Sirico performed as a Guest Artist with Nicholas Rodriguez & Dance Compass, where she was featured in Haunting Ground-a dance-theater work dedicated to the late Ralph Gomez. Ms. Harrison-Sirico is currently studying at New York University, where she is working on a screenplay adaptation of her memoirs entitled, From an Actor's Bed of Languishing, an autobiographical work that depicts Ms. Harrison-Sirico struggle with chronic disease and her search for medical support and spiritual solutions.   “Daisy” wishes to acknowledge the support of her loving husband and lifelong soul mate, John Sirico, II.   Ms. Harrison-Sirico, is proud to be serving as the Vice President of the Board-of-Directors, and she takes great pride in honoring her promise to her mentor Ralph Gomez to continue his work and keep his vision alive.

Lilana Amador  began her dance and theatre training at The Inner City Ensemble in Paterson, NJ.  She received her BA in Theatre with a concentration in Dance from Bates College in Maine, and her Masters of Fine Arts in Acting from the University of Minnesota.  Ms. Amador taught creative movement, theater, and playmaking to children at the Lab School in the Bronx for five years, and served two terms as the Chapter Leader of the school for the United Federation of Teachers. She is involved in the 52nd Street Project for the children of Hell's Kitchen in NYC.  Currently, Ms. Amador is an adjunct professor at Iona College in New Rochelle, NY. She also belongs to Bergen DanceMakers, a choreographers' collective. Liliana Amador-Marty has worked with Alison Oakes-Charbonnier for the past ten years, and tgether they created Amador/Oakes Dance Collaborative. Their work has appeared at the 92nd Street Y, Merce Cunningham Studio, Joyce Soho, WAX, and at the Riverside Church. Ms. Amador has also collaborated with Nicholas Rodriquez  & Dance Compass. She is married to Frank Javier Marty and they have two sons: Lucas Javier and Jude Frank.

Sonia Rosado served on the Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders since 2001. Ms. Rosado made history in November 2000 when she became the first Hispanic to be elected to the Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders, and again in January 2002, when she was selected to serve as Freeholder Director.  Freeholder Rosado was re-elected in 2003. Ms. Rosado was selected by her fellow Freeholders in 2006 to serve as Freeholder Deputy Director for a one-year term. The Passaic County-raised Freeholder graduated from Passaic High School, then she went on to receive her Bachelor's degree from Rutgers University in Newark and a Fellowship to the Master of Arts program in Urban Administration at Bucknell University.  Freeholder Rosado holds New Jersey State Certifications as a Social Worker and as a Vocational & Employment Specialist.  Ms. Rosado is delighted be part of the re-emergence of the newly established ICE company.  She was instrumental in supporting the success of the original company and was a Board member of ICE back in the 1980s

Enrique Vinas

Board President

Daisy Harrison Sirico

Vice President

Liliana Amador-Marty

Secratary

Sonia Rosado

Board Member

The new ICE Board of Directors and its Advisory Board, Jeri Beaumont, James Brega, Judith Pine Bobé, Philip Thomas, Norma Silber & Sharon Stevens Sutton intend to celebrate the life and achievements of Ralph Gomez by developing future arts programming in Paterson, NJ-training that embodies the spirit and vision of the original ICE organization.  Our mission is to "rekindle the magic" in Paterson, NJ with the support of former ICE Alumni, staff, fans and community supporters.