Staff, Leadership and Artists

"El Jardín de La 21na"

JULIA LOÍza gutiérrez-Rivera

Interim Executive Director

Contact: julia@lp21.org

Julia L. Gutiérrez-Rivera is a New York City born and raised Puerto Rican, cultural worker and practitioner of Bomba and Plena expressions. As the youngest daughter of Los Pleneros de la 21’s founder, Juan Gutiérrez, a passion and respect for cultural arts and identity have been at the epicenter of Julia’s life from birth; a passion she has channeled into a 20+ year career as an arts administrator and practitioner of Bomba and Plena. Julia was a student of LP21’s inaugural cohort of the Bomba and Plena Children’s Workshops in 1989. Nearly 30 years later, Julia has toured globally with Los Pleneros de la 21 and other musicians and ensembles, teaching, performing and producing. As a culture bearer, Julia was the lead dance instructor for LP21’s Bomba and Plena Adult Workshops for a decade, coining the popular Tambutéalo Tuesday series. She has formed part of Bámbula, Alma Moyo, The Legacy Women, and co-founded Redobles de Cultura. She has received two Artist in Residence Awards from Pregones/PRTT, a NYFA Artist Fellowship in Folk Arts, a Folk Arts Apprenticeship grant from the Maryland State Arts Council, and an Individual Artist Grant from the New York State Council on the Arts. As an administrator, Julia has worked and consulted with several notable Latine and Folk Arts organizations including: Pregones/PRTT, Hostos Center for Arts and Culture, MAPP International Productions, The National Council for the Traditional Arts, Carnegie Hall, The New York Folklore Society, Local Learning, and Smithsonian Folklife Festival. She has sat on numerous grant panels and presented at conferences, offered professional development in Folk Arts Education. In 2025, and after nearly a decade of her last administrative role with Los Pleneros, Julia stepped into the Interim Executive Director position--supporting LP21 as long-time director, founder, and her father, Juan Gutiérrez-Rodríguez, retired from administrative duties. Julia remains steadfast in building upon her community’s and father’s legacy, working to grow Los Pleneros de la 21 for the years to come. Julia holds a BA from the Universidad de Puerto Rico, Recinto de Río Piedras, and a Masters from Milano, the New School in Nonprofit Management and Urban Policy. She was on NYFA’s Advisory Council, on the Board of Cultura Plenera and the Center for Traditional Music and Dance.

Ashleigh Hendrix

Operations and Development Manager

Contact: pleneros21@lp21.org

Ashleigh has served as an operational champion for Los Pleneros de la 21 since 2017. A dedicated arts administrator and educator with over two decades of experience spanning non-profit programming and administration, funding development, and bilingual music and language education, Ashleigh bridges day-to-day administrative management with a passionate advocacy for cultural placemaking and the master practitioners who anchor the organization. She holds an M.A. in Ethnomusicology from Hunter College and dual B.A. degrees in Piano Performance and Spanish from the University of Texas at Arlington.

LeAna López

Program Manager

Contact: leana@lp21.org

LeAna López is a first-generation Nuyorican artist, educator, and Programs Manager of Los Pleneros de La 21. Born and raised in Spanish Harlem, she began her lifelong practice of Puerto Rican Bomba and Plena at age seven through LP21’s Children’s Workshop, learning from revered elders and master practitioners of the traditions.

Today, LeAna teaches Bomba and Plena across LP21’s youth and adult programs and brings her work as a teaching artist into schools and cultural spaces throughout New York City. A lifelong student, she is committed to creating accessible, safe, and welcoming spaces for the transmission of these traditions while honoring their integrity and fundamento. As a performer, she has worked alongside leading groups and practitioners throughout the diaspora. 

LeAna holds a B.A. in Africana and Puerto Rican/Latino Studies from Hunter College and an M.A. in Special Education from Brooklyn College. She recently completed the Library of Congress-funded project, From NYC to Puerto Rico: Documenting Evolving Practices and Perspectives of Bomba and Plena in the Diaspora, documenting the voices, experiences, and evolving practices of practitioners across New York City and Puerto Rico.

When she isn’t in the classroom or on the stage, LeAna is Mama to two toddlers, Lucas and Daniela, who fuel her passion and continually remind her why teaching, nurturing, and pouring into the next generation is so important.

Yadira Alejandro

Program Coordinator

Contact: programs@lp21.org

Yadira is an educator with more than 20 years of teaching experience who has supported and participated in LP21’s community performance and education programs for many years. She holds a B.A. in Elementary Education from the University of Puerto Rico at Aguadilla and an M.A. in Spanish Literature from the City College of New York. Throughout her career, Yadira has remained deeply committed to education, culture, and community. Having introduced hundreds of New York City students to Bomba and Plena through LP21’s Cultural Arts Education for Students initiative, she continues to bring these traditions into meaningful educational experiences for young people. Yadira and her family also play active and essential roles in the Bomba and Plena Community Workshops (BPCW), contributing to the preservation, practice, and continuation of Puerto Rican cultural traditions across generations. As LP21’s Programs Coordinator, she brings her extensive experience as an educator, her passion for Bomba and Plena, and her strong commitment to community to support programs that inspire, connect, and uplift families while helping ensure these traditions continue to thrive.

Nelson “Mateo” González

Musical Director

Contact: mateo@lp21.org

Mateo was first taught Bomba and Plena by his grandfather, and master Plenero, Benny Ayala. He received a degree from the Harbor Conservatory, where he became an accomplished artist of all Latin percussive instruments, and is currently endorsed by Toca Percussion. Mateo has been with LP21 since he was a chamaco in Bomba and Plena Community Workshops. Now, he has become LP21’s leading drumming instructor for Bomba and Plena Adult Workshops.

Teaching Artists and Programs Support

Ensemble Familia

Juan J. Gutiérrez Rodríguez * Nelson "Mateo" González * Julia L. Gutiérrez-Rivera * Carlos Espada * Victor Pablo García Gaetán * Pablo Mayor * Donald Nicks * Juan Gerena * Raul Ríos * Ivan Renta * Paola Lebrón....y muchos más