Érick Rodríguez's administration at the head of the CND will strive for "technical excellence."

▲ Érick Rodríguez was a principal dancer with the National Ballet of Cuba and the National Ballet of Cuba. Photo by Alfredo Domínguez

Fabiola Palapa Quijas

La Jornada Newspaper, Tuesday, April 29, 2025, p. 4

Érick Rodríguez, artistic director of the Compañía Nacional de Danza (CND) since last February, shared in an interview that he hopes the group will be an institution in constant growth, generating repertoires while offering dancers opportunities for learning and development.

Among Rodríguez's goals is to provide a space for national and international choreographers and to present premieres, at least one major one a year; we're going to do all of that .

The former principal dancer of the CND has a clear vision of what he wants to achieve: to take the company to a level of artistic and technical excellence, for which he will implement projects that foster creativity and innovation.

He explained that to have a great repertoire, good dancers are necessary, and the company has them, but they must be given the tools to achieve a diverse movement language .

Rodríguez has had a distinguished career in classical dance. His experience as a principal dancer with the Cuban National Ballet has given him a broad and in-depth understanding of the discipline; one of his challenges is bringing in teachers who can share their knowledge with the dancers and improve their technical and artistic skills.

He acknowledged that a company always faces organizational, time, and budget challenges, but fortunately, it has the support of the National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature. He commented that perhaps the challenge ahead is to bring the CND to more states in the country and to tour nationally and internationally. I repeat, the support we've had over these past three months and this year so far has been wonderful .

Attractive replacements

The director mentioned that the group will be reviving classical pieces; for example, they revived Swan Lake in February and will perform it again on October 10 at the National Auditorium.

Also as part of the International Dance Day activities , Coppélia will be presented on May 4th in the Miguel Covarrubias Hall of the University Cultural Center. This classic piece will celebrate its 155th anniversary this year and was one of the first works to integrate the use of pointe shoes, character dance, and pantomime.

The work will also be presented on May 31, June 3, 5, 7, and 10 in the main hall of the Palacio de Bellas Artes with a new dance adaptation directed by Rodríguez and Elisa Carrillo.

For the June 10 performance, the CND will feature guest dancers Laura Barbosa Dos Santos, lead soloist, and Carlos Michel Parreño Franco, lead chorus member, both members of the Monterrey Ballet.

Érick Rodríguez also announced that this year they will be working with CND choreographers Raúl Fernández, Michele Cutri, Jaqueline López, and Sonia Jiménez, as well as Mexican choreographers Sofía Camacho, Carla Segovia, and Yansi Méndez.

We also have international choreographers working with us. We'll be performing a work by Nacho Duato, a world premiere by Julián Núñez, a work by Brazilian Ricardo Amarante, and a piece by American James Whiteside.

He added that in November, the CND will present Le Corsaire for the first time at the Palace of Fine Arts, and that in December they will offer performances of The Nutcracker at the National Auditorium.

Regarding the work of artistic director Elisa Carrillo, Rodríguez commented that she is responsible for and supports international relations; she provides contacts and seeks out international guest choreographers and teachers . He recalled that thanks to Elisa Carrillo, Nacho Duato worked with the company.

He also supports us with all his knowledge and extensive experience in the artistic field, for example, which repertoire would be best for us to dance, what suits us best as a company. Broadly speaking, that's his role. We maintain very good and constant communication.

From the Editorial Staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Tuesday, April 29, 2025, p. 4

Dance performances, courses, master classes, video dances, emerging dance showcases, and the 4x4 TJ Nights choreography competition make up the program for the 26th International Dance Showcase / Tijuana Cuerpos en Tránsito 2025.

From today until May 8, the Tijuana Cultural Center (Cecut) will host this year's gathering of artists from Brazil, Mexico City, Querétaro, Veracruz, and Baja California.

For 10 days, the public will be able to enjoy contemporary dance, theater, and video dance works that explore themes such as violence, memory, love, and identity.

Participating companies and artists include enNingúnlugar from Querétaro; Onírico Danza-Teatro del Gesto from Mexico City; Giro 8 Brazilian Dance Company; Alma Libre Scenic Laboratory from Baja California; and SISU, among others.

In the context of International Dance Day, the exhibition will begin today with an opening ceremony in the performance hall, followed by the presentation of the finalist works for the 41st Guillermo Arriaga National Dance Award 2024, in collaboration with the National Dance Coordination of the National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature (Inbal).

"Of Witches and Brooms" is one of the pieces presented at the opening of the program, which invites reflection on the danger of normalizing violence through a metaphor in which a woman turns a broom into a weapon of struggle, of power, or even on her deathbed.

The public will also be able to see Why Don't We Ask Those Who Died?, a stage production that takes viewers into the world of a young woman suffering the trauma of the COVID pandemic.

Tomorrow at 7 PM, the enNingúnlugar collective will present When the Barbarians Arrive: A Transmedia Trilogy on Silences, Asses, and Revolutions. The first part of the semifinal of the 13th 4X4 TJ Nights Choreography Competition, a co-production with Lux Boreal Danza, will take place on May 1st at 8 PM at The Beer Garden. The second part of the semifinal will take place on May 2nd at 8:30 PM at Norte Brewing Co. On the same day at 7 PM, Errantes: Viaje a la memoria, by Onírico Danza-Teatro del Gesto, will be presented in the Cecut performance hall.

On Saturday, at the same venue and time, Giro 8 Brazilian Dance Company will present Beginzaría todo otra vez, a work that portrays and celebrates the essence of love by tracing its journey from the philosophical reflections of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle to more contemporary discussions and concepts.

On May 4th, activities will begin at 2:00 PM in the Performance Hall with the fourth Emerging Dance Showcase. Then, at 4:00 PM, Ondulaciones will perform with a video dance show, Coctelito, in the Carlos Monsiváis Hall.

Also on Sunday at 7:00 PM, the Grand Finale of the 13th 4x4 TJ Nights Choreography Competition will take place in the lobby of El Cubo. The audience will be announced the winners of the Audience Award, Best Performer, Honorable Mention, and the 4x4 TJ Nights Award. Admission to this event is 250 pesos.

The program will continue on Monday, May 5th, in the performance hall at 7:00 p.m. with Why Do Things Repeat?, presented by the Faculty of Dance of the University of Veracruz. The following day, at the same time, there will be a performance of I Am from the North and I Also Get Lost, by the Baja California group Alma Libre Laboratorio Escénico.

The transdisciplinary piece The Benefit of the Doubt, by the Baja California company Otra Vida Laboratorio, will be presented on May 7 at 7:00 p.m.

The 2025 Bodies in Transit program will conclude on May 8 at 7:00 p.m. with a performance of Quietude by the SISU group.

▲ The Laboratorio Escénico Danza Teatro Ritual participated in the celebration of International Dance Day with the butoh piece "El sueño de la Luna" (The Dream of the Moon). Photo by Michael Blase

From the Editorial Staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Tuesday, April 29, 2025, p. 5

With a Huateque of Tradition and Scene, performed by a thousand dancers, the National Center for the Arts (Cenart) began the celebrations for International Dance Day last Saturday.

The program included performances, master classes, lectures, discussions, comparsas, and free workshops, as well as the sale of dance merchandise, in 13 Cenart spaces.

Attendees enjoyed classical, contemporary, and experimental performances, as well as folklore, flamenco, butoh, tango, danzón, Arabic, and Indian dance.

The activities began in the Plaza de las Artes with Tierra de danzas, which revives the traditional dances of the Milpa Alta municipality; it was also presented in the context of the Year of the Indigenous Woman.

Among the lectures offered were The Presence of Indigenous Women in Stage Dance and The Representation of Indigenous Peoples in Mexican Folk Dance, both held in the José Vasconcelos lecture hall.

At the Teatro de las Artes, the experimental folklore company Danzariega presented Pero esta... es una voz en marcha (But This... Is a Voice in Motion ); later, it was Paula Villaurrutia's turn with the one-woman show Flores blancas (White Flowers).

The Huateque of Tradition and Scene continued yesterday in Plaza Legorreta with the presentation, from Huachinango, Puebla, of Yeyécatl (a dance of voladores, huahuas, and sones); at 2:00 PM in the main auditorium, the discussion "The Zapatista Movement and Dance" took place; and at 4:00 PM, in the Theater of the Arts, "When They Tried to Silence Me... I Danced!" by the Independent Folkloric Ensemble of Amecameca.

Later, the play "Woman, Site of Memories" was performed at the Teatro de las Artes by the Jóvenes Zapateadores company from Jalapa, Veracruz, and the activities concluded with the traditional Oaxacan band Niz Dua Ban-d.

Among the groups that participated in the world day dedicated to the art of dance were the Mexican Dance Academy, the Herencia Mestiza Folkloric Ballet, the Choreographic Workshop of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, the National School of Classical and Contemporary Dance, Danza Capital, Siroco Danza Contemporánea, Colectivo Sobre-Saltos, Leviatán Dance Project, the Contemporary Dance Production Center, Flamencalli, and Unum Corpus Creaciones Escénicas.

The Huateque of Tradition and Scene also included dance for babies in the Blas Galindo auditorium with the Ensemble of Alientos and the show Baby Dance, and the presentation of the book Nobody Can Take Away What I Danced: Memory and Experience of a Dancer, by Solange Lebourges.

From the Editorial Staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Tuesday, April 29, 2025, p. 5

Barro Rojo Performing Arts, the Contemporary Dance Production Center, the Oscar Ruvalcaba Contemporary Dance Company, Mexican Flamenco, the Choreographic Workshop and Youth Contemporary Dance Company of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, the National Dance Company, Hip Folk, and Amada Domínguez are some of the groups that will celebrate International Dance Day today.

The Centro Cultural del Bosque (CCB), the Jardín Escénico, and the National School of Folkloric Dance will host Pluriversal Dances, an event organized by the federal Ministry of Culture and the National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature (INBAL).

The program includes a variety of genres, from folk, world, and urban dance to classical, neoclassical, contemporary, tango, flamenco, and experimental offerings.

Choreography, video dance and documentaries, classes, workshops, laboratories, talks, performance conferences, and reflection circles are also part of the commemoration.

From 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., approximately 145 free activities will be presented, with the participation of more than 1,200 cultural dance representatives from across the country.

At the presentation of Danzas Pluriversales, Inbal's deputy director general, Haydee Boetto Bárcena, stated that independent companies and groups with diverse backgrounds that reflect intergenerational dialogue in pursuit of the development of the dance field in Mexico are also scheduled .

The opening performance will be held at the Guillermina Bravo Dance Theater with a presentation of Afromexicanos by the Afro Rhythm Company Mujeres Sangre Nueva at 10:00 a.m. The closing performance will be held at the Ángel Salas Plaza of the CCB with Escena Ballroom at 8:30 p.m., featuring a showcase of this dance style by a Mexican collective.

More than a dozen scenarios

The performances will take place in 16 venues, including the cultural center's theaters, the forums and green areas of the Scenic Garden, the halls of the National School of Folkloric Dance, as well as plazas and alternative spaces at the CCB.

The academic activities will be led by creators, researchers, and scene managers, such as Rossana Filomarino, Lígia Tourinho (Brazil), María Julia Rodríguez Sivera (Argentina), Lo Coletti, Pablo Parga, Isabel Romero, Sara Gómez, Jesús Laredo, and Héctor Garay, among others.

The participating artists and groups come from Aguascalientes, Baja California, Campeche, Mexico City, Chihuahua, Coahuila, State of Mexico, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Michoacán, Morelos, Nuevo León, Puebla, Querétaro, Sinaloa, Sonora, Veracruz and Yucatán.

It was announced that the activities are free; in addition, there will be discounted specialized books on sale throughout the day.

The full program can be found on the National Dance Coordination website and on its social media (@danzainbal).

Since 1982, April 29th has been celebrated as Dance Day, promoted by the International Dance Council and the International Theatre Institute, and supported by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

Fabiola Palapa Quijas

La Jornada Newspaper, Tuesday, April 29, 2025, p. 5

The Choreographic Workshop of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (TCUNAM) joins the celebration of International Dance Day, commemorated every April 29 since 1982, with a program that includes the premiere of the work Nosarrastra, by choreographer Édgar Zendejas, inspired by the poem Patrolling Barnegat , by Walt Whitman.

The group, directed by Irina Marcano, will perform tomorrow at the Orientación Theater of the Centro Cultural del Bosque and on May 4 at the Miguel Covarrubias Hall of the University Cultural Center (CCU).

Zendejas, a choreographer with a distinguished career in Mexico, Canada, and the United States, expressed that his work explores the human struggle against nature and the internal forces that inhabit our being.

"Whitman's poem speaks of a savage trinity: the sea, the wind, and the darkness of night. These natural events can be beautiful or catastrophic.

In the work, the sea symbolizes the deepest emotions of human beings; the wind is a constant murmur of thoughts; and the darkness represents fear , the choreographer and founder of the Ezdanza company explains to La Jornada .

Through metaphors, Zendejas reflects in Nosarrastra on how external and internal adversity defines and transforms us. The work captures the constant struggle to move forward in the face of the impossible, revealing the capacity for resilience—hence the phrase , "After the storm comes peace ."

The choreography was composed by composer Hugo Morales Zendejas, accompanied by Sofía Escamilla Galindo (cello) and Adrián Robledo (bass clarinet). The musicians will perform live at the May 4th performance.

Regarding the experience of working with the TCUNAM, Édgar Zendejas commented that the dancers are talented and can work with different styles and artists. They adapted what he proposed without losing their personality; as a choreographer, seeing my work performed by other artists fulfills me .

In addition to premiering Nosarrastra, the TCUNAM program includes contemporary offerings such as Enigma and Vals capricho by Irina Marcano; the bolero Te fuiste a tiempo by Carla Segovia and Guillermo Aguilar; Huma by Melva Olivas; and Ionización by Gloria Contreras, a piece based on the eponymous score by French-American Edgard Varése.

The presentation on April 29th at the CCB's Orientación Theater (Paseo de la Reforma and Campo Marte s/n) will be at 6:40 p.m., and on May 4th at the CCU (Insurgentes Sur 3000, Ciudad Universitaria) at 12:30 p.m.