Ballet Hispánico Joins Forces With Miami-Dade Arts Education Collective To Provide Arts Education To K-12 Students

Ballet Hispánico joins forces with the Miami-Dade Arts Education Collective in an effort to bring arts experiences to thousands of Miami-Dade students during these challenging times. The Collective, whose membership includes the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County, Miami Theater Center, and the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs' Culture Shock Miami program, and South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center (SMDCAC), is committed to providing diverse and high-quality arts programming to students across all grade levels throughout the 2020-2021 school year. As of January 20, the Miami-Dade Arts Education Collective has reached nearly 50,000 students through virtual performances.

Ballet Hispánico will take students from all grades on a virtual guided journey through Latin-American dance and music, April 12 through April 23, 2021. This interactive, fun-filled exploration features excerpts of the Ballet Hispánico repertory pieces Línea Recta, Con Brazos Abiertos, Tiburones, and Club Havana which will be narrated by Artistic leadership. Latin music and cultural connections, choreography insights, and dance history come together to deepen the students' experience of dance. Viewers will be exposed to world-class choreographers and the cultures of Spain, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Americas, Students from Conchita Espinosa Academy, Thomas Armour Youth Ballet School, and Dr. Henry E. Perrine Academy of the Arts have been invited to send questions and participate on a dance routine that will be the highlight of the virtual performance.

Club Havana (2000)

Latin dancing at its best. The intoxicating rhythms of the conga, rumba, mambo, and cha cha are brought to life by choreographer Pedro Ruiz, himself a native of Cuba, as he imagined his very own "Club Havana."

Con Brazos Abiertos (2017)

Michelle Manzanales explores with humility, nostalgia and humor the iconic Mexican symbols that she was reluctant to embrace as a Mexican-American child growing up in Texas. Intertwining folkloric details with a distinctly contemporary voice in dance, set to music that ranges from Julio Iglesias to rock en Español, Con Brazos Abiertos is a fun and frank look at a life caught between two cultures.

Línea Recta (2016)

From one of today's most sought-after choreographers comes a powerful and resonant work that explores an intriguing aspect of flamenco dance: the conspicuous absence of physical partnering. While maintaining the integrity and hallmark passion of the genre, choreographer Annabelle Lopez Ochoa imagines an original and explosive movement language premised upon the theme of partnership and performed to flamenco guitar by Eric Vaarzon Morel.

Tiburones (2019)

In Tiburones, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa addresses the discrimination and stereotypes placed upon Latinx culture and the power the media has in portraying these themes by diminishing the voices of Latinx artists. Ochoa will deconstruct gender roles and identity to revitalize an authentic perspective of Puerto Rican icons appropriated within the entertainment industry.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, students are unable to go on typical field trips to participate in live arts performances. While virtual performances cannot replace the magic of live theater, the Collective seeks to engage students by making arts performances available and accessible via online/virtual offerings instead of the traditional, in-person field trip. The Collective provides the virtual content to teachers and students at no charge through a collaboration with the Miami-Dade County Public Schools' (MDCPS) Cultural Passport Program as well as private, charter and homeschools, keeping students engaged with the arts.

The season includes eight virtual performances. The first performance, "A Kids Play About Racism," created with elementary students in mind, started on October 19 and will extend through May. So far, 53 teachers have participated, reaching nearly 3,000 students. "Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom" ran from October 26 through November 13 and had 28 participating teachers, reaching about 2,890 students. Encompassing the fourth largest school system in the nation and the largest county in the state, the Collective has the potential to reach well over 400 schools and upwards of 400,000 students.

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