Rafael Casal


Rafael Santiago Casal is an American writer, performer, and producer originally from the Bay Area. Casal's first television appearance was performing on three seasons of HBO's Def Poetry Jam, and as a creator online with millions of YouTube/Facebook views for his music, poetry, web shorts, and political commentary.
His theater-in-verse work has brought him around the country and the world both in the realm of activism and arts performance at hundreds of colleges and venues. Casal is the co-founder and artistic director of the BARS workshop at The Public Theater in New York.

Early life

Casal grew up in Berkeley and Oakland, California. He was expelled from Berkeley High School after two years and earned his diploma through an alternative independent study program. Casal is of Irish, Spanish, and Cuban descent.

Career

Poetry

When he was 18, Casal appeared on HBO's Def Poetry Jam. At the same time, he was touring, performing, and teaching nationwide with YouthSpeaks. He is a two time Brave New Voice Poetry Slam Festival champion. Casal spent three years serving as creative director at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's First Wave Spoken Word and Hip Hop Arts Learning Community while earning his degree at night.

Music

In July 2010, Casal released The BAY BOY Mixtape with Daveed Diggs under the Getback Productions crew the pair co-founded with Chinaka Hodge. Casal has also released several solo albums: Mean Ones, As Good As Your Word, and Monster. In 2018, Casal and Diggs released the Collin and Miles EPs to accompany their film, Blindspotting.

Film

In 2018, Casal and Daveed Diggs released their premiere film, Blindspotting, which they had been writing for 10 years. The pair wrote, produced, and starred in the film that uses verse to tell the story of their hometown of Oakland.
Casal is set to make his directorial debut in First Sight, a sci-fi romantic comedy about falling asleep to find the person of your dreams.

Filmography