Flash Presentation Part 1
Flash Presentation Part 2

Our purpose is to create and produce aesthetically meaningful and relevant works of art that can contribute to entertain, edify, educate and bring integration and harmony to our surrounding community as well as to the society as a whole. The shallowness, frivolity and immorality which has been so much part of the popular media as well as the cultural and artistic movements of our  time, has clearly  contributed to the erosion of the moral and spiritual values in modern European society. Nonetheless, we cannot deny the value of the arts and entertainment industry as catalysts for spiritual awakening and cultural reformation.

1-Who we are:
We exist as a non-profit cultural organization based in Madrid, Spain. We are a community of performing artists who believe that the creative imagination is one of the most wonderful attributes God has given to humanity. We are Christian in our world view and are therefore committed to God first and foremost and then to our artistic work with love, care, passion and compassion. We believe in the great need to achieve the mastery of the craft in any artistic enterprise though we also believe that ‘virtuosity’, the mastery of the art and craft, can not be an aim in itself. It has to be a tool that goes beyond itself and helps the artist to find the best way to ignite meaning, depth and life to his art. It also has to help him in his quest for the best way to express in a vivid, convincing way the deep reality of the human condition and aids him in the attempt to make the inexpressible palpable to a receptive audience.

2-Our vision:
We want to entertain, edify, enlighten and educate. We would not only like to leave the audience with a soporific, shallow feeling of relief after the plot has been resolved. We would like them to take real interest in the problems, struggles and sufferings of our fellow human beings and think about the mysteries and contradictions of the human condition as well as the real meaning and purpose of life. We also think the arts and culture have a very important social role to play in our fragmented world.

3- Our philosophy
We work as an ensemble of artists devoted to a rehearsal process in which study, research and investigation play a very important part in the final production of any given show. Our approach is based on a working environment of integrity, relationship and real concern for one another as people made in the image of God. In the same way, we also consider the arts as one of those means given to us to help us enhance our awareness and understanding of the human condition.
We believe in the need to create and maintain an atmosphere of trust and commitment, from where a group of creative people becomes a small community of artists, in search of the genuine and vivid artistic expression of the real life on the stage. We also seek the integration of the arts on the stage through the use of music, painting, dancing and all the artistic expressions possible in any given theatre production. Every production is therefore the result of our ensemble work and the answers and creative ideas we find working together.

4-Our mission and purpose:
As Christians we believe that we are called to be light in the world, and therefore desire to be a testimony of God’s work in our own personal lives and in the very midst of our culture through our artistic work. We want to be people-oriented in everything we do, rather than task-oriented, and would like to be able to take the time to treat everyone with the same love, interest and compassion that the Lord Jesus would.  We want to lend a listening ear and take real interest in people’s lives as made in the image of God and with emotional, psychological, material, intellectual and spiritual needs, and not just see them as souls to be saved. Following the example of the Lord Jesus with the Samaritan woman, we want to establish a dialogue with our culture and the members of our audience, to build a common ground from where we can begin to talk and discuss issues which are interesting and relevant to their particular situation. In this way, we feel,  we can get them interested in values, principles, absolutes and finally get to talk about God.
Lastly, we want to provide a meeting point for conversation and debate about the problems of our modern societies and wrestle with the tough questions and issues of life.

5-Our General Values                                         

-Ensemble work

-Community living

-Commitment to one another, honest and open relationships

-Constant attitude of artistic research and investigation in the rehearsal process

-Search for reality, depth, meaning and honesty in our artistic work

-Integration of the arts on stage

-The actor and dancer as craftsmen and artisans; acting and dancing as an art

-Constant sharpening of our aesthetic sensitivity and the use of the artistic imagination in our search for beauty

-No star system; all roles are equal only some are longer and others shorter

-Creativity and the artistic imagination as a gift from God

-No splits between sacred and secular, our lives are sacramental which means everything we do, even the most pedestrian and insignificant act in our daily life, should be done for the glory God.

-Love, compassion, respect and honesty in our dealings with each other as fragile and sacred beings made in the image of God.

6-Our spiritual values

Character- We endeavour to promote moral excellence, servant hood through our lives and artistic work, integrity and genuine love and concern fort he needs of the whole person as made in the image of God.

Compassion- We want to be actively involved with the current needs of our societies, deal with the issues relevant to their particular situation and speak in a spirit of compassion and understanding.

Craftsmanship- As every other artist we strive for the mastery of the art and craft and artistic excellence in our work.

Content- We believe that the true source of inspiration is the God who made the heavens and the earth and having looked around his creation exclaimed “it is good”. And therefore we desire to be inspired by him in our creative enterprise so that we will be able to enjoy the freedom to produce art that comes from the heart and gives expression to the entire spectrum of life.

Communion- We value the privilege to commune with a group of committed people who love God and want to be a blessing to others through their lives and talents. Above all we value the privilege of being able to commune with God in corporate prayer and worship as well as in private devotions and encourage the expression of such a privilege as a way of life.

Christian unity- We encourage the acceptance and appreciation of our diversities as well as the recognition of the need we have of one another as members of the same body.

Discipleship- As followers of the Lord Jesus Christ we acknowledge the need for constant growth in our spiritual lives and our daily walk with Him.

7-Our history and pilgrimage:
After working with YWAM for several years in the area of the arts and evangelism in countries like Colombia, Spain, Portugal and England, Hector felt lead by God to start his own theatre company in 1992 in Madrid, Spain. The Aslan Theatre Troup was made up of amateur people who loved God and had a great passion and desire to reach their culture through the arts. All the members of the company studied and worked as an ensemble. They were all committed to long hours of rehearsal, improvisation and exercises to explore the creative process and the way to find reality and meaning in the approach to the production of any given play. After eight years of research, study, work and the production of shows the work came to a halt. This led Hector and Lilli, his wife, to seek God for the next move they were to take in their lives. The answer came as a radical change which meant putting aside the work with the troupe and leave on a sabbatical. Together with their three year old son, they went to get some new insights and education in the performing arts by meeting other Christians working in the theatre, dance and entertainment industry and spend some time in a Christian performing arts school or university. It was going to be also a time of refreshment and strengthening of their spiritual lives.

In 2004 they did a discipleship training course with YWAM in Denmark, went on a mission trip to Africa for two months and after that came to North America where they met and got to know about twenty-two Christian companies working in the performing arts from New York to Los Angeles. “We visited some Christian Colleges and Universities on the way with the purpose of finding a place where we could spend some time to get more training and experience in theatre and dance. God finally brought us to Belhaven College in Jackson MS, where Lilli has been able to do a one year dance certificate and I have been as an artist in residence in the theatre department. It's been one of the most wonderful and fruitful experiences we've had in our pilgrimage during these three years. We've been blessed by the great Christian commitment and high academic standard of the staff and faculty in the Dance and Theatre department. We've also been able to sit in on theology classes and interact and have some good, edifying discussions and conversations with some of the professors".

"As our time of searching, praying and training came to a closure in February 2006 with the production of The Great Theatre by Calderon de la Barca (one of the most important plays of the Spanish Baroque period), a clear picture of what God was leading us into was coming more and more into focus. It's the project for the creation of The Aslan Performing Arts Centre in Madrid, Spain. A place where we would be embracing not only theatre and dance but also the fine arts and music”. It will be a place for artistic creativity, debate, relationship and learning through theatre performances, dance recitals, music concerts, art exhibitions, conferences and classes in all of these artistic disciplines. “So, right now, after coming back to Spain in September 2006, we’re in the process of recruiting and laying the foundation for the work. Our plan is to launch the first phase of the project in January 2007.
It is our conviction that the time is ripe for the artists to rise and take their position in God and fulfil there call to be mind-moulders and help shape and influence our societies with Godly principles and values through the arts.

As the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization put it in 2004, "…doing the work of an artist should be seeing as a sacred calling. Like all other work it is to be shaped by the great narrative of scripture and through the One into whose image we are to be conformed… It is no small matter to be invited to participate in this redemptive work of care and compassion through the arts. Withdrawal is contrary not only to the cultural mandate, Gen. 1:28, but also to the gospel invitation to be salt and light in the world… The arts are an efficient helper to assist in reshaping the imagination and opening a window onto the grand vista of God's redemptive purpose in Christ".

Finally, if you are wondering how  this family has been able to do all this, the only  answer they always give is "God is still alive, present and active and into the business of making the impossible come about even for a bunch of fragile, inadequate and unworthy people like us". It has all been an adventurous journey of faith and of seeing God meet our needs and opening doors when things looked absolutely impossible from our human perspective, and the journey has only begun".

Producing Artistic director and founder
Hector Ramirez

Born in Colombia, he got his first experience in the theatre at the early age of 8, taking part in a major production in his native town. At the age of 14 he started taking lessons in the Culture House Drama School and at 18 he was already working with one of the major theatre companies, Teatro Casa Vieja, and had the great privilege of being mentored by some of the most renowned names of his country, people like Enrique Buenaventura, Santiago Garcia, Alfredo Esper Blois and others. He became a member of the Colombian Actor's Guild.
As Hector turned 20 he moved to Spain where he took part in the production of the world famous Toy Maker and Son. Later he went to study TV production in Canada and worked as floor manager for some TV programs in Italy. He's been in workshops and courses with John Strassberg from the Actors Studio in New York, James de Paul, Bruce Myers of the Peter Brook International School in Paris, Jacques Lecoq and in the Globe Theatre in London. He's been a regular participant in the annual Almagro Classical Theatre Festival in Spain and The Greenbelt Festival in England. He's also attended the annual “Art Within” Symposium for producers and writers of faith.
As founding artistic director of the Aslan Theatre Group he has directed The Quest, The Soap Opera, El Cantico, Othello and The Comedian. He has served as artist in residence at Belhaven College from January 2005 to February 2006 where he directed The Great Theatre of the World, by Calderon de la Barca.