Guillermo “Yiyo” Ornelas is a Bay Area–based performer, teaching artist, grant writer, and advocate for arts education and cultural equity. A queer, first-generation Mexican-American, Yiyo has dedicated their career to empowering youth, families, and artists through creative expression and structural support.

They have worked with Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts, San Francisco Youth Theatre, and the Teatro Project, served as Vice-Chair of the Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area, and now sit on the board of Aviva Arts. As a grant writer, Yiyo has helped secure funding from the San Francisco Arts Commission, Center for Cultural Innovation, and Parks Alliance, including a $50,000 Arts Equity Grant for Tradición Peruana Cultural Center. They also received SFAC support for Fantasmitas: Cinco Sueños Regresando al Sur, which premiered nationally in 2024.

Alongside advocacy, Yiyo performs with Magic Theatre (The Travelers, Dirty White Teslas Make Me Sad), Los Angeles Theatre Company, Brava Theatre, and dances with Afro-Peruvian ensemble Jaranón y Bochinche. They hold a B.A. in Sociology and Theatre & Performance Studies from UC Berkeley, where they earned the Mark Goodson Award for Distinguished Artistic Talent.