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Paso-A-Paso Bienvenidos to our premiere edition. ¡Muchas gracias! to all of you who called or wrote to congratulate us on our latest achievements. We were very happy to hear from you and hope that you will continue to support our efforts. With our publication of PASO-A-PASO we will keep you informed of upcoming events and Alegría de San José performances. In "Esquina Cultural" we will include cultural information on upcoming holidays. In our "Spotlight On. . ." section, we will help you get to know us better by featuring an individual member of our organization. We welcome your comments and suggestions and hope that you enjoy this premiere edition of our newsletter, PASO-A-PASO. Alegría in San Diego The statewide Danzantes Unidos Festival took place at San Diego State University April 7, 8 & 9. Among over 750 participants, DeniseRose Torres and Barbara Perez-Diaz attended workshops and performances. Rudy Garcia and Magdalena Blackmer were among the thirty-two instructors who led the workshops and Maria Luisa Colmenárez assisted with on-site registration. Upcoming Performances Sunday, April 30, 11:30 am Cinco de Mayo Celebration Friday, May 5, 6:30 pm Oakland A's Opening Game Saturday, May 13, 4 pm Hidden Villa Saturday, June 17, 5 pm private function Sunday, June 18, 2 pm SF Ethnic Dance Festival Saturday, June 24 private function Sunday, June 25 United Nations 50th Ann. "Esquina Cultural" La Batalla de Puebla On May 5, 1862, a great battle took place on the outskirts of the city of Puebla. The battle pitted the well trained and armed French forces under General Charles Latrille, Count of Lorencez against the ragged and poorly equipped Mexican army under the command of General Ignacio Zaragoza. The outcome of this battle has been the cause of celebration in Mexico and in Mexican communities in the United States for 133 years! Napoleon III, nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte, longed to recreate in the Second French Empire the glory that his uncle had brought to the first. He aggressively expanded France's overseas holdings and sought to regain it's lost empire in America. President Benito Juarez, Mexico's first full-blooded indian president, stood in the way of Napoleon's dreams. On May 5, 1862 the armies met on the field of battle and Mexico's forces emerged triumphant. It was a great triumph not just from a military sense, but it was a triumph for the Mexican people, who had up until then been a disunited lot. The battle of Puebla is an example of what a people united in a common cause can achieve, and it is this that is celebrated .. the Spirit of Cinco de Mayo. --Rudy F. Garcia "Spotlight On . . ." Magdalena Blackmer was born and raised in San Francisco, California where she began her dance training at a very early age. She continued her dance training while a student at UC Davis where she served as Student Manager for the resident folklorico dance company, Danzantes del Alma and received her B.A. in Spanish and Chicano Studies in 1984. She has been a member of Grupo Folklorico Mizoc de Sacramento, Grupo Aztlán de San Francisco, BF de Carlos Moreno and Los Lupeños. She has served as an instructor/consultant for BF Xochitl of Concord, BF Cuahtemoc of South San Francisco and Grupo Mexico Danza of Hayward. She has been active as a community volunteer for the following organizations: Galeria de La Raza, Bar Association of San Francisco, Lupeños Executive Board and the ACLU Speaker's Bureau. She will be the first instructor in the Folklorico Dance Instruction Series which Alegría de San José will offer through the San José Civic Light Opera at their studios located at 1717 Technology Drive in downtown San José. The first six-week session will focus on dances from the state of Colima and will be geared toward beginning level adults and teenagers. Classes will begin on June 1st and will be held every Thursday from 7 to 8:00 pm. Strap on your best dancing shoes and come join us!! San Francisco EDF Have you heard the news? Alegría de San José will be performing in this year's San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival on June 18, 1995. The group will have the honor of opening the performance which will take place at 2 pm at the San Francisco Palace of Fine Arts. Musical accompaniment will once again be provided by the fabulous, Mariachi Azteca, under the direction of Juan Francisco "Pato" Diaz. Alegría will be performing an "Acuarela Michoacána" choreographed by Los Angeles-based artist, Lalo García. The Palace of Fine Arts is located at 3301 Lyon in the Marina District. Tickets can be purchased through BASS or City Box Office (415) 392-4400. Before May 20, 1995 you may purchase block seating through Alegría by calling us at (510) 770-0535. Alegría in Tucson Members DeniseRose Torres, Magdalena Blackmer and Maria Luisa Colmenárez will be heading out to Tucson, Arizona the end of April for the 10th Annual Tucson International Mariachi Festival. Magdalena will be participating in the folklorico dance workshops, while DeniseRose and Maria Luisa will attend the violin section of the mariachi music workshops. We wish them all a great trip and hope that they will bring back plenty of new material. ¡Feliz Cumpleaños! Roxana Reyes 4/14 Amalia Carrasco 4/16 Gabriel Gonzalez 6/8 Patricia Salvador 6/19 Congratulations! . . . to the Taugher/Smith and Colmenárez families on the latest addition, Olivia Hortensia Colmenárez, born on April 12, 1995. Another dancer, perhaps? . . . to members José Borrego and Roxana Reyes for their upcoming union in matrimony. May your dancing shoes grow old together. . . . to member Barbara Perez-Diaz for once again being named Workshop Coordinator for the San José Mariachi Festival. (More info in our next issue.) Go, Barbara! Stay tuned . . . Alegría members travel to the national dance conference in Jalapa, Veracruz, Mexico in July. Alegría de San José celebrates it's first anniversary in August. Join us for another Oakland A's performance in September. Esquina Cultural looks at Mexican Independence Day, 16 de Septiembre. ¡Hasta pronto! Alegr’a de San JosŽ - A Forum for the Creative Expression of Traditional Mexican Folk Culture 6051F Joaquin Murieta Avenue, Newark, CA 94560 | (510) 770-0535 | e-mail: AlegriaSJ@aol.com |
