Fine arts teacher Carlos Acevedo is the only playwright in Puerto Rico to win the nation’s top theater playwright award three times — and now, he is bringing that same creative passion to the halls of Trinity Prep. With over three decades of experience in professional theater and a deep love for teaching, Acevedo hopes to inspire the next generation of performers and storytellers.

   Long before stepping into the classroom, Acevedo spent years as a theater and entertainment events producer, with his career taking him from his home in Puerto Rico to cities across the United States. About a decade ago, he transitioned to teaching, starting in Dallas before moving to Miami and Orlando.

   Even while pursuing his teaching career, Acevedo continues to nurture his love for professional theater through his own production company, which he has maintained since his college years. Founded in 1993, the company has produced everything from musicals like “Grease” and “Oliver Twist” to dramas such as “Death of a Salesman” and “The Crucible.”

   Although his career as a producer brought him joy and professional success, the exhausting demands of the job began to take a toll on his mental health, ultimately leading him to the classroom.

   “I had success in producing theater,” Acevedo said. “Not everyone can say that, but I did, and I was living (well) from producing theater. But I got tired. It’s so hard. You work so much. So at one point, I was looking for something different. I got the opportunity to teach at a high school in Dallas … and I fell in love with everything. It changed my life.”

   Seeing his students grow and develop genuine connections with fine art inspired him daily, further fueling his love of teaching.

   “(What’s kept me passionate about teaching is) how the students approach the art of theater, how they get engaged in it (and) how they grow into theater,” Acevedo said.

   Acevedo’s teaching style helps students fully embody their characters, encouraging them to tell compelling stories through the use of raw emotion.

   “I like to get the audience caught up in the storyline and make them believe it, feel it and have all these emotions running through them,” Acevedo said. “I want to tell a story. Through my teaching, that’s what I tell my students or the actors … how are you going to live through your character?”

   However, acting is just one piece of the creative puzzle. Through his unique teaching style, Acevedo urges students to find their creative side through all aspects of theater, whether onstage or behind the scenes.

   “I love being creative,” Acevedo said. “If I can pass that to my students, either building a set, building props, acting or writing, it’s all about being creative.”

   Acevedo believes that the fine arts offer much more than mere creativity. They provide personal growth and qualities that more traditional subjects simply cannot foster.

   “To me, (the fine arts are) absolutely necessary,” Acevedo said. “Theater is about growing up. It’s about learning about yourself, and you’re not going to get that in science, math, or English class. (It’s about) getting to develop your (personality), getting to know yourself better (and) getting to know who you’re going to be when you grow up.”

   Acevedo has already seen clear signs of this type of growth on the Trinity campus, where students show a genuine enthusiasm for the arts and a maturity that fuels his excitement for the year ahead.

   “I’m very impressed with what I’ve seen so far (at Trinity),” Acevedo said. “My first impression is that (everyone is) very mature. I’ve seen that they are very much engaged in drama classes and enjoy learning and doing exercises. I love the school, I love the atmosphere, I love the teachers and I love the administration here.”

   Inspired by his early experiences at Trinity, Acevedo is looking ahead with plans to grow the theater program and deepen its impact on campus culture and the community.

   “My goal(s) are to create more excitement, to bring something new to the school (and to) expand the program,” Acevedo said. “Everything has to do with growing in terms of what shows we do and how we do them.”

   While Acevedo certainly has bold visions for the future, his deepest motivation remains simple: the joy of giving something meaningful to his students — something that helps them grow not only as performers, but also as people.

   “It is amazing just to know that you have something that you can give to others that (they) can grow and learn from,” Acevedo said. “(It’s) like nothing else to see that joy in the students.”