After a 55-year run, Hispanic/Latine dance company Ballet Hispánico is bringing a performance featuring an audience interactive element to the Performing Arts Center on Sept. 24.
According to Artistic Director and CEO Eduardo Vilaro, the company was founded by Tino Ramirez in 1970 to uplift the Latino community. Vilaro said that Ballet Hispánico is more than an outlet for dance, but a movement.
“It was created to show the breadth and depth of who we are as Latinos in America,” Vilaro said. “It’s a movement because we do three things. We celebrate the Latino cultures here in America. We uplift young people who are looking to be artists. We train, we give scholarships, we inspire the next generation — and not only Latino kids — all kids that come to us. And then three, we go out into the community and serve the community with joy and an experience of dance.”
Ballet Hispánico is set to perform three numbers for Cal Poly. Additionally, Vilaro plans to take the audience through a Latin social movement at the end of the show, where participants are invited to stand up from their seats.
Director of Cal Poly Arts Molly Clark encourages students to go to one of the 42 performances being held at the Performing Arts Center this season.
“I think even more exciting is going to something that you don’t like, an artist you don’t know and going in with no expectations. Exploring the arts, finding out what you like and what you don’t like, what moves you and perhaps even changes your perspective on something,” Clark said.
“It’s an incredible opportunity for students to have this caliber of program on their campus. So I really encourage them to take advantage of it.”
The three acts will be performed by the company’s 15 members. Vilaro started dancing for Ballet Hispánico in 1985 and has moved up in his role over the last 40 years.
Pieces “House of Mad’moiselle,” “Club Havana” and “Buscando a Juan” will all be featured at the upcoming performance.
“Each [performance will] have a different flavor, but it culminates in a piece called “Club Havana,” which really takes people back to Cuba in the 1950s,” Clark said.
Taught by Pedro Ruiz, “Club Havana” will include conga, rumba, mambo and cha cha.
“House of Mad’moiselle” will explore iconic female representations found in Latin American culture and “Buscando a Juan” focuses on Juan de Pareja, an enslaved Afro-Spanish artist who was the assistant to Diego Velázquez, according to Vilaro.
“I love this piece [because] I got to delve in and really bring out themes of transatlantic slavery. There is a depth to that experience for people, and it really just lifts up the veil to get us to understand the intersectionalities that come together to make us who we are as Latinos, because we do have an African legacy. We do have Asian legacies. We are not a monolith; we’re so much. And so I was thrilled to be able to create a work that has a lot of those themes,” Vilaro said.
To see these pieces live, tickets are available on the Performing Arts Center website. Ticket prices range from $31 to $71, depending on the location. Student ticket prices stand at $17 for most shows.
“For people who are interested in ballet and contemporary dance, this is a company that you don’t want to miss,” Director of Cal Poly Arts Molly Clark said.
