Growing up Latino in Texas during the 1970s and ’80s, Alvaro Saar Rios, now an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, didn’t experience many stories with characters who looked like him.
“It wasn’t until college that I became aware of writers who were telling stories of what it means to be Latino in the United States,” he said.
Today, Rios shares elements of the Latino experience as a playwright and head of the Theatre Practices program at UWM’s Peck School of the Arts. Rios is one of the most produced Latino playwrights for young audiences, and his works — 33 plays, three musicals and an opera — have been performed in theaters across the country.
Path to the stage
Rios never imagined working in the arts — he always wanted to be a doctor. After serving three years in the U.S. Army, he took his first theater class at Houston Community College, where he wrote his first play about a kid with a magical talking dog. There, he fell in love with the medium.
“I want to tell stories that reflect my experience in hopes it might inspire other kids, no matter their background, that their story is important,” he said. He adds that theater can be a powerful tool for building empathy by helping people understand others’ experiences.
Rios went on to earn a degree in English-creative writing from the University of Houston, but his heart remained on the stage. He received a Master of Fine Arts in Writing for Stage & Screen from Northwestern University and has been teaching at UWM since 2010.
Impact at UWM and beyond
Today, Rios passes the storytelling torch through the Theatre Department’s New Dramaworks series. Founded by Rios, New Dramaworks invites students to participate in the development and production of a new full-length play. In 2023, New Dramaworks produced its first play, “Piggsville,” Rios’ retelling of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” set in old Milwaukee.
“I felt it was important for students to be exposed to working on a new play that evolves all the way until production,” he said. “Developing new full-length plays isn’t something that’s done at every university.”
Rios also founded the New Dramaworks Short Play Festival, which allows any undergraduate student — including non-theater majors — to submit plays to be considered for full production by the Theatre Department.
Although UWM doesn’t offer a playwriting major, Rios offers independent study for students who have demonstrated strong writing skills, preparing them to write for the stage post-graduation. One former student, Maria Pretzl, wrote a play in Rios’ class that was recently produced for Milwaukee’s Renaissance Theaterworks New Play Festival.
Rios’ work extends outside of UWM, too. His new stage adaptation of the children’s novel “Esperanza Rising” premiered at the Marcus Performing Arts Center in May 2025, and he’s currently working on a novel based on his award-winning play, “Luchadora!” which has been produced more than 80 times across the U.S.
Whether Rios is writing, teaching or mentoring students, his goal is the same: to equip the next generation to share their stories. “You can apply these skills no matter what you pursue,” he said. “We all have a story to tell.”
