CALPULLI MEXICAN DANCE COMPANY
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Mission Statement
Calpulli Mexican Dance Company’s mission is to celebrate the rich diversity of Mexican and Mexican-American cultural heritage through dance-based programming including live music. Programs are delivered in three areas: original full-scale dance theater productions that tour locally, nationally, and internationally; free and low cost community outreach activities, including donation-based music and dance lessons that serve Mexican and Mexican-American children and families; and school-based arts-in-education and cultural enrichment programs. Calpulli Mexican Dance Company is Mexican-led and most of our board, staff, and artists are from Mexican and Latino communities and we present all programs bilingually in Spanish and English. The word “calpulli '' is the Nahuatl word for clan or family united by a common thread; or an organizational unit or a syndicate, reflecting our vision to create a “family” for artists and audiences to explore a range of themes through a Mexican lens.
About This Cause
Calpulli creates original full-scale productions featuring folkloric and contemporary dance, rich traditional and theatrical wardrobe, folkloric music, and new compositions. Our productions demonstrate the spectacular beauty of Mexican culture, and tell compelling and relevant stories. They include Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead); Boda Mexicana (Mexican Wedding); Navidad: A Mexican American Christmas; and Puebla: The Story of Cinco de Mayo, which was created with a National Dance Project 2018 grant from New England Foundation for the Arts. In 2023, Monarcas: Stories of Inspired Immigrants will debut. We tour locally and nationally, and made our international debut in the Kingdom of Bahrain in 2015 and our European debut in Turkey in 2019. Calpulli’s Arts-in-Education services enables us to leverage the creative assets of our Artistic Production work and bring them into educational settings. Calpulli has created a curriculum in Mexican dance, music, folklore, and history that is integrated with the subject matter in our theatrical productions and is tied to education benchmarks mandated by local and state authorities. Our master teaching artists deliver interactive programs that fills a critical gap for students, educators, and administrators. Each year Calpulli serves thousands with classes, residencies, and assemblies in schools around NYC and beyond. Calpulli Community provides free and low-cost dance and music classes targeted to Mexican immigrant and Mexican American families in and around NYC. With a target audience of typically low-wage and otherwise vulnerable families, in 2007 we removed all financial barriers to these families by beginning to offer youth classes on a voluntary or suggested donation basis. This program provides a rare professional development opportunity, and approximately two dozen students have continued on to pursue careers in the arts, and four are currently dancing with the professional company. Calpulli's 2023 Arts Education Programs will bring our in-depth curriculum grounded in Mexican dance, music, folklore, and history to schools and community locations in and around NYC. Programming includes multi-week residencies, individual workshops, assemblies performed by the professional company, student demonstrations from our rigorous community program, virtual programs, and lecture / demonstrations in various aspects of Mexican culture. Calpulli launched its first in-school education program in 2003, and our first community class was held in 2006. Since then have grown to meet the demand for classes and lessons from families, schools, community members, and from our students, many who have trained with Calpulli throughout their school years. We are committed to making our services available in all the settings where we can reach young people passionate about Mexican dance and music, and we apply the same high artistic and educational standards in both our community and in-school programs, to meet a wide range of needs. Calpulli helps schools and educators satisfy city, state, and national arts education standards. Our master teaching artists are experienced in delivering interactive programs integrated into the school’s curriculum and social/community goals. A detailed study guide supports educators in meeting educational benchmarks, and helps the learning continue beyond the dates of the engagement. We work closely with schools to create in-school programs that will serve Mexican communities, sometimes engaging students and families through the cultural connection. These programs also expose students and teachers from other backgrounds to Mexican culture, allowing Mexican American children to see their heritage on an equal footing with other cultures, which is important in a time when political rhetoric sometimes casts Mexican and other Latino immigrants in a negative light. Community classes bring free and donation-based dance and music classes targeted to Mexican immigrant and Mexican American families in and around NYC. NYC classes take place in Queens and Manhattan, and we also offer classes in locations such outside the city that have significant Mexican communities. Dance classes are available in three age-based sections, plus an advanced class for students interested in pursuing a professional career in dance. We also offer guitar and beginner and advanced accordion, for all ages. Many students participate in frequent performance opportunities that give them a special experience on stage. At this time approximately 20 youth have gone through our dance training program and continued on to pursue careers in the arts. Four are now dancing with the professional company, and eight had roles in our most recent production, Navidad: A Mexican American Christmas. Students tell us that they enjoy participating in the dances for the physical activity, and for the connection to their family heritage.