Take a colorful trip south of the border as four local schools combine to present "A Celebration of Mexican Culture," on Friday, November 11th and Saturday, November 12th.

The "Celebration" performance will feature performances by the Ballet Folklórico’s of Allan Hancock College, Pioneer Valley High School, Righetti High School, Santa María High School, along with Righetti High School’s Marimba Band. The show will be held at the Ethel Pope Auditorium, located at Santa María High School, 901 South Broadway. Showtime is at 7:00pm.

The "Celebration of Mexican Culture" is a two-hour program featuring ten different regions of traditional Mexican folk dance and several contemporary selections as well.

The performance will include dance selections from the Mexican states of Baja California, Chihuahua, Colima, Michoacán, Nuevo León, Sinaloa, Veracruz, and Jalisco. Combined with this impressive variety of traditional folk dances will be a presentation of traditional and contemporary Mexican and Latino songs performed by Righetti’s Marimba Band.

The program is festive and colorful, and is filled with a great variety of exciting music and dances reflecting the diverse world of Mexican and Latino music and dance.
Students can’t wait to take the stage.

“Celebration is really special because you can see how hard every group has worked to deliver such a great performance and give the audience a feel of our culture,’’ said Jennifer Bribiesca, 11th grade and two-year member of the Marimba Band. “We've all put so much time and effort into our dances and songs to perfect them. It's exciting to see all the schools come together and be proud of who we are, and to see young kids looking up to us, is such a heartwarming feeling.’’

“What makes it more special is that we are all teens embracing our Mexican culture,’’ said senior Froy Escalante, a four-year member of the Marimba Band. “I am most excited to see the different dances from all regions that the schools have to offer. We will have many traditional songs to offer that you might recognize and will be able
to sing along too. I love the feeling of being able to continue to promote our culture. This show is a good representation of our Mexican culture. I guarantee that if you're in the audience you will feel and see all the hard work all the schools have put into this show just for you.’’

Tickets for the "Celebration" performance can be purchased from the students as well as the Business Offices at Pioneer Valley, Righetti and Santa María High Schools. All seats are $10.00 in advance - $12.00 at the door.

Dress rehearsals are scheduled for Wednesday, November 9th and Thursday, November 10th from 6pm to 9pm at Ethel Pope Auditorium, providing an ideal photo or video opportunity.

Ricardo Gabaldón, Director, Righetti High School Marimba Band and Ballet Folklórico
rgabaldon@smjuhsd.org 937-2051, Ext. 2502

Dianne McMahon, Director, Hancock College
dmcmahon@hancockcollege.edu

Angel Hoyos, Director, Pioneer Valley & Santa Maria High School
ahoyos@smjuhsd.org