Ariel Estrada: Finding Empowerment Through Creativity, Artistry and Self Defense

The Empowerment Podcast By Naga

Meet Ariel Estrada, an actor, singer, playwright, arts advocate, director, and producer living in New York City. Ariel’s trajectory, his journey through early childhood challenges, and experiences of racism and abuse as an adult have given him a unique perspective on healing and empowerment.

One of many cool things about Ariel? He uses his artistry and talent to create healing for himself and others. He is the Founder and Producing Artistic Director of Leviathan Lab and wrote his one-man show, “Full Contact”:

“What does it mean to have a body? Ariel Estrada investigates his experiences as a 20-year survivor of a brutal martial arts cult, interweaving his Filipino father’s immigrant story with his own coming-of-age as a gay man at the height of the AIDS crisis. Through these histories, he brings to life the emotional battle between father and son, and his ongoing battle to take pride in himself as a gay Filipino American man against all odds.”

Ariel and I trained martial arts together and experienced the same weird and abusive cult-like dynamics simultaneously. We both left, got out, and cut ties independently of one another. But then, we found our way back to friendship as we were both processing what happened years later. It’s been really great to reconnect.

arielestrada.com

leviathanlab.com

arielestradadesign.com

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Special thanks to my producer/editor, Henry Smart-Denson

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