Welcome to Mango Street. It’s not a fancy place. It’s a neighborhood like many you’ve seen: noisy kids playing on cracked sidewalks, dreams whispered on front porches, and families that are just getting by. Aquí vive Esperanza—a young Latina girl growing up caught between two worlds, dos culturas, two languages.

Ballet 5:8’s The House on Mango Street brings Sandra Cisneros’s beloved novel to life through dance.
Esperanza Cordero is trying to figure out quién es—who she is, who she wants to become, and how she’ll get there. She dreams of a house she can be proud of, lejos de aquí, far from Mango Street. But what does it really mean to belong? ¿Dónde está mi hogar?

Choreographed by Julianna Rubio Slager, Ballet 5:8’s Co-Founder and Artistic Director, this original ballet blends classical ballet, contemporary movement, and música to explore themes of identity, home, and comunidad.

“But this isn’t it. The house on Mango Street isn’t it.” —Sandra Cisneros

Through Esperanza’s voice, we find freedom—even in the smallest house on the humblest street.

This project is part of the NEA Big Read, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.
Supported by the NEA, this community initiative uses literature, dance, and dialogue to spark conversations around cultural identity, belonging, and the shared human desire to be seen and heard. Through performances, workshops, and public events, The House on Mango Street becomes a bridge between generations, languages, and neighborhoods.

¡Bienvenidos a Mango Street!
Want to bring a performance, workshop, or book dialogue to your comunidad? Contact us below.

Upcoming Events | Próximos Eventos

📚 September 27 – Elevating La Cultura Book Discussion #1

Time: 1:00–3:00 PM
Location: 3509 S Wolcott Ave, Chicago, IL 60609
Join us for a free community celebration with food, conversation, and performance! Enjoy tamales, café, and conchas as we gather for a bilingual discussion on the themes of The House on Mango Street. The evening also features special performances by Ballet 5:8 and guest artists, presented in partnership with Elevating La Cultura.

📚 27 de septiembre – Discusión de Libro con Elevating La Cultura #1
Hora: 1:00–3:00 PM
Lugar: 3509 S Wolcott Ave, Chicago, IL 60609
Boletos: Reserva Aquí

Acompáñanos en una celebración comunitaria gratuita con comida, conversación y arte. Disfruta de tamales, café y conchas mientras compartimos una charla bilingüe sobre los temas de La casa en Mango Street. La noche también contará con presentaciones especiales de Ballet 5:8 y artistas invitados, en colaboración con Elevating La Cultura.

💃 October 19 – Performance with Chicago Latino Dance Festival

Time: 5:00p
Location: Ruth Page Center for the Arts
Experience Ballet 5:8 as part of the Chicago Latino Dance Festival, celebrating Latin voices in dance and culture. Located in the River North neighborhood of Chicago.

💃 19 de octubre – Presentación en el Chicago Latino Dance Festival
Hora: Por Confirmar
Lugar: Ruth Page Center for the Arts
Disfruta de Ballet 5:8 como parte del Chicago Latino Dance Festival, celebrando voces latinas en la danza y la cultura.

📚 October 21 – Lozano Library Book Discussion

Time: 6:30–7:30 PM
Location: Lozano Branch, Chicago Public Library

Join us at CPL’s Lozano Branch for a thoughtful community book discussion. This family-friendly, multi-generational conversation will explore the themes in The House on Mango Street. Come connect with fellow book lovers, the Latino community, and those living between worlds for a night of comunidad!

📚 21 de octubre – Discusión de Libro en la Biblioteca Lozano
Hora: 6:30–7:30 PM
Lugar: Biblioteca Lozano, Chicago Public Library
Boletos: Reserva Aquí

Reúnete con la comunidad en la Sucursal Lozano de la Biblioteca Pública de Chicago para una charla literaria reflexiva. Será una conversación familiar e intergeneracional sobre los temas de La casa en Mango Street. ¡Acompaña a otros amantes de la lectura, a la comunidad latina y a quienes viven entre dos mundos para una noche de verdadera comunidad!

📚 November 8 – Elevating La Cultura Book Discussion #2

Time: 1:00–3:00 PM
Location: 3509 S Wolcott Ave, Chicago, IL 60609

Join us for a free community celebration with food, conversation, and performance! Enjoy tamales, café, and conchas as we gather for a bilingual discussion on the themes of The House on Mango Street. The evening also features special performances by Ballet 5:8 and guest artists, presented in partnership with Elevating La Cultura.


📚 8 de noviembre – Discusión de Libro con Elevating La Cultura #2
Hora: 1:00–3:00 PM
Lugar: 3509 S Wolcott Ave, Chicago, IL 60609
Boletos: Reserva Aquí

Acompáñanos en una celebración comunitaria gratuita con comida, conversación y arte. Disfruta de tamales, café y conchas mientras compartimos una charla bilingüe sobre los temas de La casa en Mango Street. La noche también contará con presentaciones especiales de Ballet 5:8 y artistas invitados, en colaboración con Elevating La Cultura.

Upcoming Performances

Bring The House on Mango Street to Your School or Community

Lleve La Casa en Mango Street a su escuela o comunidad

Adapted from Sandra Cisneros’ groundbreaking novel, The House on Mango Street Ballet is a powerful, bilingual experience that brings literature to life through movement. This new work follows Esperanza, a young Latina navigating identity, language, culture, and belonging.

Performed by Ballet 5:8’s all-female Second Company, the ballet invites students into Esperanza’s world—opening conversations about self-expression, community, and generational tension.

Adaptada de la reconocida novela de Sandra Cisneros, esta nueva obra narra la historia de Esperanza, una joven latina que enfrenta preguntas sobre identidad, lengua, cultura y pertenencia.

El ballet es interpretado por la Segunda Compañía de Ballet 5:8, compuesta exclusivamente por mujeres, y abre espacio para conversaciones auténticas sobre la expresión personal, la comunidad y las tensiones entre generaciones.

What We Offer / Lo que ofrecemos

  • In-school performances available beginning January 2026
    Funciones escolares disponibles a partir de enero de 2026

  • Logan Center school matinees May 8th and 9th, 2026 at the Logan Center (Chicago)
    Funciones escolares en el Logan Center durante mayo de 2026

  • Transportation stipends available for qualifying schools
    Estipendios para transporte disponibles para escuelas que califiquen

  • Bilingual study guides and discussion materials
    Guías de estudio y materiales en inglés y español

  • Pre- and post-performance classroom prompts
    Actividades de reflexión antes y después de la función

  • Optional artist Q&A and community dialogue
    Opcional: sesión de preguntas con las artistas y diálogo comunitario

Ready to connect? ¿Quiere más información?

Let’s build something beautiful together.
Construyamos algo hermoso en comunidad.

Email us here. Escríbenos aquí.

Meet the Characters

  • Esperanza: Young, observant, full of dreams. She wants more from life than her small home on Mango Street.

  • Narrator (Shadow Esperanza): Esperanza’s inner voice, showing her hidden thoughts and feelings through movement.

  • Nenny: Esperanza’s little sister. Innocent, playful, and carefree.

  • Mama: Kind, supportive, but limited by circumstances beyond her control.

  • Papa: A quiet, steady presence, providing for his family, but distant emotionally.

Neighborhood Girls:

  • Lucy: Esperanza’s down-to-earth friend, practical and dependable.

  • Rachel: Lucy’s spirited younger sister, bold and playful.

  • Marin: Older, worldly, caught in dreams of escaping through romance.

  • Sally: Beautiful, troubled, seeking safety from a harsh home life.

  • Alicia: Smart, ambitious college student quietly resisting cultural pressures.

  • Cathy (Queen of Cats): Snobby neighbor whose friendship quickly fades.

  • Aunt Lupe: Bedridden aunt who inspires Esperanza to write, seeing potential others miss.

  • Alicia’s Father: Controlling, dismissive father who doesn't see Alicia's worth.

  • Sally’s Father: Shadowy, abusive presence in Sally’s life.

Neighborhood Boys:

  • Tito: Teasing boy who doesn’t understand boundaries.

  • Meme Ortiz: Chaotic and reckless, embodying youthful wildness.

  • Darius: Boy whose surprising insights hint at deeper layers.

  • Red Clown Boys: Threatening, faceless figures who symbolize danger.

  • Marin’s Fantasy Man: Idealized figure Marin waits for but never finds.

  • Illustration of five men dressed in colorful outfits, each labeled with different fashion styles. From left to right: a man in an orange t-shirt and blue pants labeled "Meme Optic," a man in a white tank top and red pants labeled "Red down Sally's Fader," a man in a blue shirt and beige pants labeled "Drinks," a man in a teal t-shirt and blue pants labeled "Tito," and a man in a red shirt and beige pants labeled "Fantasy man Alisa's Deal." Each figure has a distinct style and pose.

    Neighborhood Boys

  • Watercolor illustration of six women standing together, with signatures of their names below. The women are dressed in casual, colorful clothing.

    Esperanza & Family

  • A drawing of six women standing together, each with distinct outfits and hairstyles, with their names handwritten below: Lucy, Rachael, Mairi, Sally, Alise, and Colby, against a white background with a color palette at the top.

    Esperanza's Friends

“Ballet, as with many of the ‘fine arts,’ is perceived as art for the aristocracy. The art form is commonly expensive, exclusive, and occasionally elitist, but Ballet 5:8 subverts these common values to provide accessible, high-quality dance training to students of all ages, levels of ability, and ethnic backgrounds. Their school commits to fostering a nurturing environment where instructors care for the students’ spirits and bodies. This is Ballet reimagined. This is a studio telling a different story.”

— ”Making Ballet Accessible”, podcast with Emanuel Padilla

Bring dance back to the people.