Julio Torres Reimagines World Through Colors and Notebooks

Julio Torres, celebrated for his unique perspective in comedy, shared insights into his creative process, primarily through his extensive notebooks. These journals serve as a multi-purpose hub for developing ideas for his HBO special, 'Color Theories,' as well as for his design projects and upcoming book.

The notebooks are a visual map of Torres's fertile mind, containing sketches, ideas for movies and books, and even furniture designs. He uses them for everything, demonstrating a non-linear approach to creativity where multiple projects coexist and evolve simultaneously.

Torres's journey to comedy began in El Salvador, leading him to New York with aspirations of screenwriting. His transition to stand-up comedy, though initially challenging, honed his distinctive observational humor and the art of creating a compelling persona.

His HBO special, 'Color Theories,' uses colors as a classification system to explore the world, with anthropomorphized colors representing various concepts. For instance, yellow signifies joy, while orange blends childlike wonder with rage.

Central to the show's narrative is navy blue, depicted as the villain representing oppressive systems, law, and order. This contrasts with other colors that signify passion, mystery, and rebellion against these structures.

Torres's method involves extensive repetition and refinement in his notebooks, transforming initial thoughts into concise, impactful jokes. He visualizes concepts, like drawing lines to represent boundaries and the violations thereof.

The show's development included a touring phase where Torres tested material, eventually leading to its theatrical presentation in New York. The set itself was designed to resemble a giant pop-up book, directly inspired by his notebooks.

Crucially, the show's ending was discovered when a dramaturg pointed out that Torres's own act of classification was inherently navy blue, revealing a personal connection to the systems he critiqued.

Now 39, Torres is exploring directing and writing for theater and other creative ventures, including an opera and a furniture collection, indicating a maturing artistic phase.