Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with West campus events
Events that celebrate the diversity of Latin music, theater, poetry and more are in the spotlight as Arizona State University’s West campus celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month.
“Latin, European and Caribbean cultures represent the influences of many different customs,” said Julie Amparano, a faculty member in ASU’s New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences and chairwoman of the Hispanic Heritage Committee at ASU’s West campus. “We want to give the campus and the community at large the opportunity to experience the tremendous variety within the Latin community.”
All events, on ASU’s West campus at 4701 W. Thunderbird Road in Phoenix, are free and open to the public (visitor parking on campus costs $2 per hour). Attendees are asked to bring a donation for a non-perishable food drive.
The schedule is:
Exhibit – “Cuba and US: A través de mi ventana (through my window)”: 6 p.m., Sept. 15, reception; 6:30 p.m., program, La Sala Ballroom, University Center Building. Patricia Clark, a faculty member in ASU’s New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, will screen selected video works from her ongoing creative research on the subject of Cuba. She will discuss the concepts behind the work, describe the impact of current developments between Cuba and the U.S. and trends evident on the island, and comment on her role as an artist who engages in work about a culture, country, and ideological system different from her own. The title “Cuba and US: A través de mi ventana” acknowledges her role as an outsider and also points to the relationships that exist between Cubans and U.S. citizens, and their respective social, cultural and governmental systems.
“Stand and Deliver” with special guest Erika Camacho: 6 p.m., Sept. 16, Kiva Lecture Hall, Sands Classroom Building. Following a screening of the film starring Edward James Olmos about legendary math teacher Jaime Escalante, Camacho will describe what it was like to be a student of Escalante's in East Los Angeles. Camacho expected to become a store cashier until she took algebra with Escalante; today she is a math professor in New College on ASU’s West campus.
Poetry Readings by Divine: noon, Sept. 28, room 265, University Center Building. Divine is well-known on ASU’s West campus for hosting the annual West Side Poetry Jam during Black History Month. Divine began writing poetry at the age of 12 and performed her first poem at 17. Although the spoken and written word is her first love, she also is a teacher and actress.
Maestro Soler: Poet of the Guitar: Oct. 4-5. Guitar virtuoso Francesc de Paula Soler will hold a master class/workshop as well as a recital. According to a Washington Post review, “Soler showed himself to be unusually sensitive to color and the rhapsodic rise and fall of the phrases,” adding, “he played dazzling solos with his left hand on the fingerboard, unleashed a battery of right-hand percussive effects on the body of the guitar, and engaged in some creative pitch-bending on blues-tinged melodies.” Soler’s master class/workshop will be held at 10 a.m., Oct. 4, in the La Sala Ballroom in the University Center Building. His recital will take place at 6 p.m., Oct. 5, in the Kiva Hall in the Sands Classroom Building.
Theatrical Production: “The Eagle and the Serpent” (preceded by Hispanic Heritage Month Closing Reception): 6 p.m., Oct. 15, reception to follow, Kiva Lecture Hall, Sands Classroom Building. Seven actors in 50 roles will recreate the history of Mexico from 30,000 B.C. to the present in 78 minutes or less. “The Eagle and the Serpent” was written by James E. Garcia; the production is directed by Arturo Martinez.
In addition to the Hispanic Heritage Committee, co-sponsors for the series of events are Concilio Estudiantil de Lideres Latinos and the First Draft Creative Writing Club on the West campus.
For more information, call (602) 543-5300.