2008 Woodie Awards
Folk dancing highlights many Mexican cultures
Miranda Wycoff
Issue date: 1/26/06 Section: Features
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El Grupo Folklorico Atotonilco will perform Friday in Hendricks Hall as part of the Performing Arts Series.
El Grupo Folklorico is a Mexican folk dance company out of Kansas City that has earned many awards and honors since its start in 1979. It has also been recognized as the premiere Mexican folk dance company in the United States.
Maria Chaurand founded the dance group which began as a group of 16 children and a handful of costumes. It now boasts more than 80 students and almost 25 advanced students who dance a variety of dances from all over Mexico.
Chaurand started the non-profit group because of her love of dancing, particularly Mexican folk dance.
"I've been dancing since I was a little girl," Chaurand said. "We put on fiestas for our community to benefit the church with a bazaar and a show. It was just something I was raised with."
When she got older, Chaurand was inspired by a dance group from Kansas. She saw there was so much more to the dancing that she did as a young girl. It was a discipline just like tap, ballet, etc.
"After that, I started going to conferences in Mexico and all around the United States and learning what I could and bringing in teachers from Mexico to have them stay and teach us," Chaurand said.
Now, Chaurand's dance company says it represents dances from each Mexican state.
"In Mexico, there are 32 different states, and what is unique about our company is we show every state represented differently," Chaurand said. "Every state has its own costume and its own style of dance."
Chaurand said at least eight different states will be represented at Central, including the indigenous form of dance and the dance influenced by the Spaniards.
"We are really looking forward to coming to CMSU," Chaurand said. "It will be an exciting time. People will forget their problems and want to leave dancing."
Curtain time for the show is 7:30 p.m., and tickets are available through the PAS Ticket Office located in Mo's Print and Copy Shop in Union 213 or by calling 543-8607.
Student ticket prices are $12.50 for the gold seats, $8 for the silver seats and $5 for bronze seats. Regular Ticket prices are $25, $16 and $10.
El Grupo Folklorico is a Mexican folk dance company out of Kansas City that has earned many awards and honors since its start in 1979. It has also been recognized as the premiere Mexican folk dance company in the United States.
Maria Chaurand founded the dance group which began as a group of 16 children and a handful of costumes. It now boasts more than 80 students and almost 25 advanced students who dance a variety of dances from all over Mexico.
Chaurand started the non-profit group because of her love of dancing, particularly Mexican folk dance.
"I've been dancing since I was a little girl," Chaurand said. "We put on fiestas for our community to benefit the church with a bazaar and a show. It was just something I was raised with."
When she got older, Chaurand was inspired by a dance group from Kansas. She saw there was so much more to the dancing that she did as a young girl. It was a discipline just like tap, ballet, etc.
"After that, I started going to conferences in Mexico and all around the United States and learning what I could and bringing in teachers from Mexico to have them stay and teach us," Chaurand said.
Now, Chaurand's dance company says it represents dances from each Mexican state.
"In Mexico, there are 32 different states, and what is unique about our company is we show every state represented differently," Chaurand said. "Every state has its own costume and its own style of dance."
Chaurand said at least eight different states will be represented at Central, including the indigenous form of dance and the dance influenced by the Spaniards.
"We are really looking forward to coming to CMSU," Chaurand said. "It will be an exciting time. People will forget their problems and want to leave dancing."
Curtain time for the show is 7:30 p.m., and tickets are available through the PAS Ticket Office located in Mo's Print and Copy Shop in Union 213 or by calling 543-8607.
Student ticket prices are $12.50 for the gold seats, $8 for the silver seats and $5 for bronze seats. Regular Ticket prices are $25, $16 and $10.