Oscar Guevara's art workshop at the Coachella Community Homes had their last night on Friday, October 23. There was pizza & juice for all the students. I dropped in and was treated to some pizza & to their beautiful work. It is not just the art but watching the students' characters develop knowing that someone cares about their creativity and talent. Thank you Oscar.
Here is their excellent work!
Everything that the students chose to use on their letters came from items at home.
Their creativity is truly amazing!
Oscar says this is the class mascot.
Lots of detail in these letters to express each student's individuality.
Karina's creativity comes in many forms
The maturity is these young students is amazing!
Thank you McCallum Theatre for your attention to the East Valley.
McCallum Theatre Presents Fourth Annual Family Fun Day!
Our Crisalida Art Van was a very prominent feature this year at the McCallum Theatre Family Fun Day, a fundraising event for the McCallum Theatre with proceeds benefiting Theatre operations and arts education and outreach programs that McCallum provides to the community.
Family Fun Day began at noon on October 18 in front of the McCallum Theatre. There were loads of fun activities for the entire family…including face
painting, balloon pops, a silent auction with great prizes, hula hoops,
food vendors, cotton candy, snow cones, popcorn, action figures, a clown, music and balloon animals.
I couldn't resist getting a picture of this awesome face painting job.
The party really got going when the Mariachis provided by Crisalida got there and performed from 1-2 pm.
This is what I meant by prominent, right in front, with Oscar's Art displayed around the Art Van.
On a Family Fun Day it is only fitting to have a nice family photo.
I sat in that chair and gave away a lot of children's books. It was fun seeing the children's expressions as they picked out the books.
The Mariachis looked sharp in their outfits and their music was a real hit with the crowd.
Another Crisalida job well done. Thank you McCallum Theatre!
Tuesday, October 6 was the 2015 date for National Night Out, a yearly event that brings the people in the community and the Fire and Police Departments together for an evening of information, food, and fun. This year was a little extra special because Crisalida was there providing the bad ass sound of AMFM. Following are photos from various participants. A shout out to Target for sponsoring the event & to Rosalva Campos for hooking us up. A special thank you to the McCallum Theatre for believing we in the East Valley have something to offer the Art World. And thank you to all who continue to support our efforts to illuminate what was always there all along, East Valley Community Talent. That's what Crisalida is all about, bringing out our shine.
This is one member of AMFM, Rolo.
And this is Mario "The Giant" Garcia also of AMFM.
This is a top notch facility. Please drop by and check it out. Your teens will love it!
The Emergency Community Response Team (plus Irene Rodriguez) provided lots of info.
The Target Mascot Dog pulled me in for a group photo.
These are Indio's Finest. They are there when we need them. Respect.
Been so busy behind the scenes that I hadn't submitted a blog in a minute. So here's what's been going on in Crisalida-land. David Gonzalez and I had a very nice visit with Nancy Vance from the Indio Senior Center on Sept 23rd where we brainstormed regarding upcoming events involving Olga Loya, a wonderful performer & workshop facilitator from Fresno (http://olgaloya.com/) who will be in the Coachella Valley November 16-20. There is a great vibe at the ISC every time I have been there. They have a great facility there and lots of potential for collaborating.
Nancy Vance and I
On Sept 24 we did some equipment organizing and storing. Oscar is down for the count.
The rest of the week was devoted to the 10 Minute Play Fest that involved 7 plays which all took place at a taqueria. The subject matter ranged from issues of immigration, abortion, Alzheimer's, grieving of a lost love, veganism, and a tattoo love triangle that had a gay theme. Sept 24th was dress rehearsal for Tacos, Teardrops, & Tequila. Sept 25th and 26th were performance nights and the turnout was impressive. Following are highlights from the three evening's performances.
David conducting a Q & A after the dress rehearsal.
Jorge Perezchica zooming in for a good shot.
Carlos Garcia stole the show with a sentimental story of the celebration of a love that has passed on.
All the actors joining hands raised on a job well done. Bravo!
My friend Juan Rodriguez was a big help in getting the food table set up.
Check out David's blog on the 10 Min Play Fest...great pics!
http://crisalida-arts.blogspot.com/2015/09/east-valley-rep-10-minute-play-festival.html
Someone once said the first way to find your sense of direction is to acknowledge you are lost, take in the information around you, and use it to make sense of your position. Makes sense, no? For a week in Mecca, about 20 participants questioned their position in their respective communities. Issues of Ageism, Poverty, Documentation, Ecological Health, and Gender Binaries. Storytelling, sharing through poetry, art, and theater became our way of piecing together our story as a community together. Each year F.I.R.M.E.’s (Film Inquiry Research and Media Education) approach has been different in delivery through video, printmaking, journalism, and even photography. It has however remained the same in contextualizing, questioning and giving voice to the stories all around no matter the medium.
Students performing their craft
Performing while also delivering a strong message
Here I am taking a nice pic with a student
This past summer our program shifted mediums once again and encompassed performance, writing and photography. The critical analysis provided in these sessions had participants dig deep, starting, as we all do, with Identity and through a progression of poetry and games built out our perspectives to our inter-connectivity and interrelations. While most people will gladly watch a performance, it is difficult to imagine oneself as the performer. Although Augusto Boal introduces us all as performers in daily life through Theater of the Oppressed theories it can be intimidating to perform for an audience. To allow ourselves to be comfortable, a series of games helped to begin questioning ourselves, our lives, and our families. These games were at the core of the week-long camp. Posing as statues, shouting and whispering poetry. Everyone who started on day one stuck through and performed amazingly after only one week. The final presentations were brilliant representations in four performance styles the groups were randomly assigned. Silent Theater, Poetry, Song and Teatro Campesino-style presentations.
Maria Galaviz a true multi-tasker, great cook, baker, poetry teacher, etc
Presenting Crisalida with an award for all their participation
As a final presentation all of the groups performed throughout Mecca in Guerilla Style street theater as they came up to unsuspecting audiences. “ Callense Cabrones nos traen arte!” Shouted a day laborer outside as he quieted the crowd of men awaiting work outside of the supermarket in Mecca. (“Shut up, they are bringing us art!”), Despite the 118 degree weather the performances all went well. To wrap up our storytelling camp all our participants, sponsors and families broke bread and celebrated our communities' interconnections and the individual stories in between.
Thoughts & Poems by Maria Galaviz and Her Students One day I was invited to a workshop that was being given by poet & writer David Gonzalez. On that occasion he asked if someone knew of a person who could teach workshops on poetry and short stories and I answered that I could. In that moment I did not understand the great challenge that I was about to embark on; you see my experience only consisted of teaching poetry to children.
Building a dream. The building of our dream started when I invited a group of women to write poetry and short stories. And they all asked, "What is that? I can't do that! I don't like poetry! I can't learn anything! I am too old!" I smiled and I told them that life begins at 50.
I asked them if they loved someone or something; if they liked to see the sun rise! if they liked the rain! if they loved nature, their children, their grandchildren, their mate. And they all answered "yes". And I told them, "Put all those feelings on paper and that is poetry."
The turning over of all our feelings from our heart and mind on to paper nourishes our heart and our soul and frees us of our demons. These are some thoughts of our female & male poets after 16 classes and having the most marvelous view of our salted lake (Salton Sea) which was and will be an endless fountain of inspiration for any artist.
Purepecha Native Art/Crafts
Maria~Rios: You are like the air that I breathe The air is felt but it can't be seen Just like your heart, it can't be seen but I feel that great love in me.
Irma~Soto: The dreams of my children are also mine The joys they give me are my dreams The love that is theirs is my life Wherever they go I will be there.
Maria~Pozas: I have a bright star name Jaquelin that is the light in my eyes. My beautiful child you are all mine.
Maria~Galaviz: I want the sea to continue its song I want the sky to rain like before I want birds singing in the sky I want the stars to shine in the night
Maria~Ortega: The youth in your skin is coming to an end but not that of your soul that will always be young and beautiful and you will always have a lovely soul.
Arturo~Castellanos: In the fields you learn much Not only to work the grape but rather life itself. One passes time alone Talking to the grape and you learn much about yourself.
These thoughts are examples of beautiful poems that we wrote with all our hearts despite the fact that the majority of the students would arrive to class on many occasions directly from working 8 or 10 hours in the field under the hot desert sun. They would arrive with a sack of inspiration! with an immense joy! and an enviable vibe that would fill the room and it was contagious. And we shared a plate of food but mainly we shared a great friendship and together we built family ties that will last a lifetime. For all that and more I thank you. Likewise the whole group gives thanks:
North Shore Poetry Graduating Students
To Crisalida for giving us the opportunity for our art to be born, to flourish and mature in the same way a butterfly does. To McCallum Theatre for bestowing the grant that allowed us to cover all of our needs which made it possible for us to produce art in the East Coachella Valley. To David Gonzalez, poet and writer, for guiding us in our search and flourishing of dormant art in the East Coachella Valley.
But the desert awoke with its beauty with its beautiful light of its radiant sun with its mountains that have the color same as that of its inhabitants warm and smiling, hardworking and productive but above all in one beautiful word that contains everything, human. Author: Maria Galaviz
Pensamientos y Poesias de Maria Galaviz y Sus Estudiantes Un dia fui invitada a un taller, que estaba impartiendo el poeta y escritor, David Gonzalez. En esa ocasion pregunto si alguien conocia a alguna persona, quien pudiera impartir talleres de poesia y cuentos cortos, y yo le conteste que yo podria darlos. En ese momento no comprendi el gran reto que estaba apunto de vivir pues mi experiencia solo consistia en enseñar a hacer poesia a niños.
Construyendo un sueño. La construccion de nuestro sueño comenzo cuando invite a un grupo de señoras a hacer poesia y cuentos cortos. Y todas preguntaron !que es eso! !yo no puedo hacer eso! !no me gusta la poesia! !yo no puedo aprender nada! !ya estoy vieja! Yo sonrei y les dije que la vida empiesa a los 50.
Les pregunte si amaban a alguien o a algo !si les gustaba ver salir el sol ! !si les gustaba la lluvia! !si amaban la naturaleza, a sus hijos, nietos, y a sus parejas. Y todas contestaron que si, Y yo les dije "Pongan todos esos sentimientos en papel y eso es poesia."
El volcar todos nuestros sentimientos de nuestro corazon y mente, en un papel nos alimenta nuestro corazon y nuestra alma, y nos libera de nuestros demonios. Estos son algunos pensamientos de nuestras poetizas y poetas despues de 16 clases. Tuvimos la vista mas maravillosa de nuestra laguna salada (Salton Sea) que fue y sera una fuente inagotable de inspiración para cualquier artista.
Artesania Purepecha
Maria~Rios: Tu eres como el aire que respiro. El aire se siente. Pero no se deja ver. Asi como tu corazon No se ve, pero siento ese gran amor por mi
Irma~Soto: Los sueños de mis hijo son los mios Las alegrias que me dan son mis sueños El amor de ellos son mi vida Donde vayan ellos yo estare alli. Maria~Pozas: Tengo un lucero llamado Jaquelin Que es la luz de mis hojos Mi niña hermosa eres todo para mi.
Maria~Galaviz: Quiero que el mar siga su cancion Quiero que el cielo llueva como antes Quiero en el cielo pajaros cantando Quiero que en la noche brillen las estrellas.
Maria~Ortega: Se esta terminando la juventud de tu piel. Pero no la de tu alma. Que por siempre sera joven y hermosa. Y siempre tendras un alma bella.
Arturo~Castellanos: En los files se aprende mucho. No solo a trabajar la uva. Si no de la vida misma. Uno pasa tiempo solo. Hablando con la uva. Y aprendes mucho de ti mismo.
Estos pensamientos son una muestra de poesias hermosas que hicimos con todo nuestro corazon . Apesar de que la mayoria de las personas llegaban a las clases en muchas ocasiones directo de trabajar 8 o 10 horas en el campo bajo el quemante sol del desierto.
Llegaban con un costal de inspiracion! Con una alegria inmenza! Y una vibra envidiable, que llenaba el salon y era contagiosa. Y compartiamos un plato de comida, pero sobre todo compartimos una gran amistad. Y todos juntos construimos lazos familiares que duraran toda una vida. Por todo eso y mas les doy las gracias. Asi como todo el grupo les da las gracias.
A Crisalida: Por darnos la oportunidad de que nuestro arte naciera, floreciera y madurara tal como lo hace una mariposa.
A McCallum Theatre: Por otorgarnos la beca que nos permitio cubrir todas nuestras necesidades, que nos permitieron producir arte en el Este del Valle de Coachella.
A David Gonzalez: Poeta y escritor por guiarnos en nuestra busqueda y florecimiento del arte dormido en el Este del Valle de Coachella.
Pero el desierto despertó Con su belleza Con su hermosa luz de su radiante sol Con sus montañas que tienen el color igual a la piel de sus habitantes. Calidos y sonrientes, trabajadores y productivos. Pero sobre todo en una palabra hermosa que encierra todo, Humanos. Autor:Maria Galaviz.
