April 10, 2002
Contact: Sarah Ray
802-443-5794
sray@middlebury.edu
Posted: April 10, 2002
MIDDLEBURY,
VT - “The Rise of Latin Popular Culture in the United States:
A New Definition for the American Melting Pot” will be the topic
of a symposium presented by the Middlebury College student organization
Alianza Latinoamericana y Caribeña (ALC) on April 19-21. The activities
include lectures, a traditional Latin dinner, a film and a cultural café
featuring a reading by author Julia Alvarez and a performance by Afro-Cuban
folkloric dance troupe Los Afortunados. All events are free and open to
the public.
On Friday, April 19, the
symposium will kick off at 4:15 p.m. with a keynote address by Marisa
Rivera-Albert, president of the Arlington, Va.-based National Hispana
Leadership Institute, who will discuss “The Latino Revolution for
the 20th Century.” The talk, as well as all other symposium lectures
and discussions, will take place in the Robert A. Jones House on Hillcrest
Road off College Street (Route 125).
At 6 p.m., a traditional
Latin dinner will be served in Le Château on Château Road
off College Street (Route 125).
The following day, Saturday,
April 20, at 11 a.m., Columbia University Assistant Professor of Music
Christopher Washburne, who also teaches at the New School for Social Research,
will give a lecture titled “Are There Any Puerto Ricans in the House:
The Musical Mergings of the Americas.”
Alma Martinez-actress, former
member of a California-based theater group and arts organization El Teatro
Campesino, and doctoral candidate in drama at Stanford University- will
give a talk, “The Latina/o Image in Film and Hollywood: the Popular
Image of Latina/os in the United States,” at 2:30 p.m.
Martinez’s talk will be followed
at 3:30 p.m. by a panel discussion, where the speakers will include Jennifer
Browdy de Hernandez, professor of gender and cultural studies at Simon’s
Rock College in Great Barrington, Mass. The topic will be “The Case
of the Cafecito: A Dominican-American Hybrid Blend.” Throughout Central
America it is a household ritual to offer a “cafecito”-a small
cup of dark, rich, potent coffee-to any visitor, especially a stranger.
Christy Haubegger, founder
of Latina magazine, will give the final lecture of the symposium, “What
does the Hispanic Demographic Hold for American Business?” at 4:45
p.m.
At 8:30 p.m., a cultural
café titled “A Voyage Through Latin America” will include
dancing, singing and acting performances by students; readings by Julia
Alvarez, author of “How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents”
and “In the Time of the Butterflies;” and a performance by Los
Afortunados, an Afro-Cuban folkloric ensemble of musicians and dancers
established in 1985 and based in New York City. The cultural café
will take place in the McCullough Student Center on Old Chapel Road off
South Main Street (Route 30).
On Sunday, April 21, at
3 p.m., the symposium will conclude with director Maria Ripoll’s film
“Tortilla Soup,” an Hispanic-American ensemble feature set in
Southern California about a veteran chef, played by Hector Elizondo, who
is slowly losing his sense of taste. It will be screened in Dana Auditorium
in the Sunderland Language Center on College Street (Route 125).
The Latin dinner is free
but tickets are required. For tickets and information about the dinner,
contact Middlebury College ALC President Erwin Alberty at 802-443-3543.
For information about the
symposium, contact symposium organizer Eve-Anadel Coronado at ecoronad@middlebury.edu
or 802-443-6276.
Events Calendar Listings
“The Rise of Latin Popular
Culture in the United States: A New Definition for the American Melting
Pot”
Presented by Middlebury College Alianza Latinoamericana y Caribeña
April 19-21
Friday, April 19
4:15 p.m.
Keynote Lecture: “The Latino Revolution for the 20th Century”
by Marisa Rivera-Albert, president of the Arlington, Va.-based National
Hispana Leadership Institute
Robert A. Jones House, Hillcrest Road off College Street (Route 125)
6 p.m.
Traditional Latin Dinner: Free, but tickets are required. For tickets
and information about the dinner, contact Middlebury College Alianza Latinoamericana
y Caribeña President Erwin Alberty at 802-443-3543.
Le Château, Château Road off College Street (Route 125)
Saturday, April 20
11 a.m.
Lecture: “Are There Any Puerto Ricans in the House: The Musical
Mergings of the Americas” by Columbia University Assistant Professor
of Music Christopher Washburne, who also teaches at the New School for
Social Research.
Robert A. Jones House, Hillcrest Road off College Street (Route 125)
2:30 p.m.
Lecture: “The Latina/o Image in Film and Hollywood: the Popular
Image of Latina/os in the United States” by Alma Martinez, actress,
former member of a California-based theater group and arts organization
El Teatro Campesino, and a doctoral candidate in drama at Stanford University.
Robert A. Jones House, Hillcrest Road off College Street (Route 125)
3:30 p.m.
Panel Discussion: “The Case of the Cafecito: A Dominican-American
Hybrid Blend” with speakers who include Jennifer Browdy de Hernandez,
professor of gender and cultural studies at Simon’s Rock College in Great
Barrington, Mass.
Robert A. Jones House, Hillcrest Road off College Street (Route 125)
4:45 p.m.
Lecture: “What does the Hispanic Demographic Hold for American
Business?” by Christy Haubegger, founder of Latina magazine.
Robert A. Jones House, Hillcrest Road off College Street (Route 125)
8:30 p.m.
Cultural Café: “A Voyage Through Latin America”
will include dancing, singing and acting performances by students; readings
by Julia Alvarez, author of “How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents”
and “In the Time of the Butterflies;” and a performance by the
New York City-based Afro-Cuban folkloric dance troupe Los Afortunados.
McCullough Student Center, Old Chapel Road off South Main Street (Route
30)
Sunday, April 21
3 p.m.
Film “Tortilla Soup:” Director Maria Ripoll’s film is
an Hispanic-American ensemble feature set in Southern California about
a veteran chef, played by Hector Elizondo, who is losing his sense of
taste.
Dana Auditorium in the Sunderland Language Center, College Street (Route
125)
All events are free and open
to the public.
For information about the
symposium, contact symposium organizer Eve-Anadel Coronado at ecoronad@middlebury.edu
or 802-443-6276.