Center for Mexican American Studies Hosts Chicano Dance Symposium

October 14, 2009

Event: The Center for Mexican American Studies (CMAS) at The University of Texas at Austin presents "SIGLO XXI Modern Movimientos Danza: A Symposium on Chicano Dance."

When: Oct. 16-17, 1-8 p.m.

Where: Various locations on The University of Texas at Austin campus. Friday, Oct. 16: Texas Union, Santa Rita Room. Saturday, Oct. 17: Anna Hiss Gymnasium, Dance Studio and F. Loren Winship Drama Building, B. Iden Payne Theater.

Background: In partnership with the university's Department of Theatre and Dance, the symposium will feature panel discussions, dance workshops, live performances and a shared social dance that will give attendees an opportunity to experience new directions in dance that reflect Mexican-American/Chicano culture.

In addition to presentations by various performing arts scholars and faculty affiliates from CMAS and the Department of Theatre and Dance, participants will include:

• Cindy Garcia, dance theorist, performance ethnographer and playwright at the University of Minnesota, who will discuss "The Performative Body: Culture in Motion."
• Ann Vachon, institute director of the José Limón Dance Foundation, who will discuss "Dancing at the Intersections: Embodied Knowledge in the Works of José Limón."
• Performances by the Aztlan Dance Company, Grupo Flor y Canto, the Guadalupe Dance Company and the Latina Dance Project.

"By bringing together and showcasing a diverse range of dance and dance scholarship, the goal of the symposium allows those in attendance to learn from each other and about themselves, enabling and encouraging new creative capacities and critical insights for the continued development of Mexican-American/Chicano dance, body, culture and community," said Roén Salinas, symposium coordinator and doctoral student in the Department of Theatre and Dance.

The two-day event is free and open to the public. Visit the Center for Mexican American Studies Web site for a schedule of events.

For more information, contact: Jessica Sinn, College of Liberal Arts, 512-471-2404; Domino Renee Pérez, acting director, Center for Mexican American Studies, 512-471-4557; Roén Salinas, symposium coordinator, Center for Mexican American Studies, 512-471-4557.