October 08, 2009

El Festival de Los Danzantes – a three-day cultural and folkloric dance conference featuring performers from throughout California and Mexico – begins Friday, March 14. at California State University, Fresno and in downtown Fresno.

About 600 dancers of all ages and ability are expected to attend the festival, which is open to the public.

The family-friendly event is hosted by Los Danzantes de Aztlán, the premier folkloric dance troupe, which is based in Fresno State’s Chicano and Latin American Studies Department. Co-sponsors are Arte Americas, Warnors Center for the Performing Arts, Golden 1 Credit Union and the university’s College of Social Sciences.

There will be concerts each night, workshops throughout Saturday and Sunday for those who register, and several merchandise and food vendors.

The Gala Show is from 7 to 9:30 p.m. Saturday at the Warnors Centre for the Performing Arts (1400 Fulton St.), followed by "La Pachanga," a dance featuring the internationally-renown Columbia cumbia band, "La Sonora Dinamita." A culminating Festival Concert will be from 4 to 6 p.m. Sunday at Fresno State’s Satellite Student Union.

Tickets for the Saturday night's gala are $15 and $18. For La Pachanga, tickets are $20 to $25. All other events are free.

The festival follows in the tradition of one started by John Estrada and Danzantes Unidos Inc. in 1979 at UCLA, explains Dr. Victor Torres, director of the Fresno State troupe and festival coordinator. Torres said Estrada’s goal was to provide Mexican Folklorico dancers the “opportunity to meet, study, share and perform in a united celebration.” Held annually around the state, this is its second consecutive year in Fresno.

“With such a strong presence of Mexican folkloric dance here in the Valley, it makes sense that Fresno State, as the major four-year university in the area, should serve as a major source of information and support for folkloric dance,” said Torres.

The major festival events begin at 7:45 a.m. Saturday with day-long folkloric dance workshops at Fresno State (in the Quad on Campus Drive between Social Science and McKee Fisk buildings, enter from Barstow Avenue). Dance and music workshops will meet in classrooms from 9 a.m. to noon and 1-3 p.m.

A stringed instruments workshop (guitar, violin, viruela, etc.) will be presented by Los Hermanos Herrera, a family specializing in various genres of Mexican folk music. The floreo de reata workshop will be presented by Javier Escamilla, a renowned floreador (trick roper) who has preformed worldwide and also will be part of the Gala Show.

Joining him will be Fresno State's Los Danzantes de Aztlan, Los Hermanos Herrera, Compania de Danza Ticuán from Tijuana, the Ballet Folklorico Mexicano de Carlos Moreno from Oakland and Paso de Oro from Santa Fe Springs.

Workshops resume at Fresno State from 9 to 11:30 a.m. Sunday, followed by a recital performed by students from each workshop begining at noon at the Satellite Student Union.

Among participants will be Grupo Folklórico Los Mejicas from the University of California, Santa Cruz; Danzantes de Merced; Los Danzantes de Aztlán, Juvenil, Ballet Folklórico y Marimba de Fresno and Los Danzantes de Roosevelt High School, all from Fresno; SoLuna Mexican Folk Ballet from Bakersfield; Grupo Folklórico Alma de Clovis High; Maravillas de Selma; Ballet Folklorico Mexico Azteca from Burbank; and Grupo Folklórico Macias from Escondido.

Register at http://danzantesjuvenil.com.

For more information, contact Torres at 559.278.4115 or victort@csufresno.edu. Tickets are available at Arte Americas and the Chicano and Latin American Studies Department.