May 2, 1997 Contact: Jennifer McNulty (408) 459-2495; mcnulty@ua.ucsc.edu

UC SANTA CRUZ HOSTS FOLKLORICO LECTURE AND DANCE PERFORMANCES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SANTA CRUZ, CA--The University of California, Santa Cruz, is showcasing folklorico dance in May, with a lecture and video demonstration by master choreographer Rafael Zamarripa on May 16 and the Annual Spring Concert by Grupo Folklorico Los Mejicas de UC Santa Cruz on May 30 and 31.

Folklorico dance is a highly choreographed dance style that displays the diversity of Mexican culture. Typically, a performance consists of various "cuadros" or suites, each of which is made up of music and dance that represents a particular state, region, or historical period. Like classical ballet, folklorico dances often tell stories, frequently of courtship.

Master dance teacher Rafael Zamarripa's Spanish-language lecture will begin at 5 P.M. on May 16 in 105 Oakes College on the UCSC campus. The title of his talk is "Nuevas Formas de Danza Folklorica," or New Forms of Folkloric Dance. The event is free and open to the public.

Zamarripa, who founded the Grupo Folklorico de la Universidad de Guadalajara, is credited with taking the tradition of folk ballet to new levels of innovation and skill. He is currently a Tinker Visiting Professor in Latin American Studies at Stanford University.

The performances on May 30 and 31 by Grupo Folklorico Los Mejicas de UC Santa Cruz will take place on the Performing Arts Mainstage at UCSC. Both performances begin at 7 P.M., and this year's events mark the group's 25th anniversary. Tickets will be available after May 15 at the UCSC Ticket Office at (408) 459-2159. Ticket prices are $10 for adults; $7 for non-UCSC students; and $5 for UCSC students, senior citizens, and children under 12.

Folklorico dance became important in Mexico during the postrevolutionary period as a way to display ethnic diversity. In the United States, the folklorico phenomenon flourished during the late 1960s with the rise of the Chicano movement as a medium through which Chicanos could preserve, affirm, and promote their cultural identity, said Olga Najera- Ramirez, an associate professor of anthropology at UCSC who was a member of Los Mejicas in 1974-79 and is now faculty adviser to the dance troupe, one of the oldest student-directed organizations on campus.

This release is also available on the World Wide Web at UCSC's "Services for Journalists" site (http://www.ucsc.edu/news/journalist/) or via modem from UC NewsWire (209-244-6971).

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