Ballet Folklórico de México Performs Graceful Spectacle Oct. 10
September 18, 2007
Ballet Folklórico de México, created in 1952 by acclaimed dancer and choreographer Amalia Hernández, performs at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 10, in Penn State's Eisenhower Auditorium. From ancient Aztec rituals to the vibrant fiestas of modern Mexico, the company of dancers and musicians enlivens the stage with pageantry, grace and cultural authenticity.
The company‚s repertoire of about 40 ballets, composed of more than 75 folk dances, conveys a broad swath of history and dozens of cultures from what is now Mexico. From pre-Colombian civilizations and Spanish imperialism to revolution and independence, the dances and music evoke a vivid journey through the past.
Tickets for the Center for the Performing Arts presentation are $31 for an adult, $18 for a University Park student and $22 for a person 18 and younger. Buy tickets online at www.cpa.psu.edu or by phone at (814) 863-0255. Outside the local calling area, dial 1-800-ARTS-TIX. Tickets are also on sale at four State College locations: Eisenhower Auditorium (8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays), Penn State Tickets Downtown (10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday), HUB-Robeson Center (11 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays) and Bryce Jordan Center (10 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays). A grant from the Penn State Student Activities Fee Funds makes University Park student prices possible.
The creations of Hernández, who died in 2001, are based on many of the most cherished traditions of the Mexican people. While the choreographed stories of nature, war, religion, mythology, courage, love and death are traditional in origin, Hernández refined and enhanced them for modern audiences.
The company has two troupes that alternate tours and performances in Mexico and abroad. More than 22 million people have witnessed the ballet's sophisticated, technically brilliant and exquisitely costumed presentations. The company, which has more than 15,000 performances to its credit, has appeared in 60 countries on more than 100 international tours.
Hernández, who had been a modern dance teacher and choreographer, decided in 1952 to create a folklore company. The original troupe, known as Ballet Moderno de México, had just eight members. She garnered the notice of government tourism officials, who asked Hernández to take her company on tour to other countries in the hemisphere.
After a noteworthy appearance at Chicago's Pan-American Games in 1959, for which the company first adopted the name Ballet Folklórico de México, Mexican President Adolfo López Mateos provided the troupe with government backing. In 1961 the Mexican government chose the company as its official representative at Paris' Festival of the Nations. There, the ballet earned the first of its more than 200 awards for artistic merit. For more than four decades the company has performed three times each week at the Palace of Fine Arts in Mexico City.
Dotty and Paul Rigby sponsor the presentation. WJAC-TV is the media sponsor. Funding from the Penn State International Dance Ensemble Endowment and the Penn State Equal Opportunity Planning Committee also supports this event. Audio description, which is especially helpful to patrons with sight loss, is available for this performance at no extra charge to ticket holders. Artistic Viewpoints, an informal moderated discussion featuring Salvador López, Ballet Folklórico de México artistic director, is offered in Eisenhower Auditorium one hour before the performance and is free for ticket holders. Artistic Viewpoints regularly fills to capacity. Seating is available on a first-arrival basis.
Contact: Laura Sullivan, 814-863-6379