Ballet Hispánico, the nation’s largest Latinx/Latine/Hispanic cultural organization and one of America’s Cultural Treasures, offers their signature En Familia Matinee, a special program for young audiences and their families curated and hosted by Artistic Director & CEO Eduardo Vilaro. Tickets for the Saturday matinee are $20 (fees included) and are available here, thanks to the generosity of the RBC Foundation USA, the charitable arm of RBC Capital Markets, and New York City Center.
En Familia Matinee offers a journey through Latin American culture and traditions as Eduardo leads the audience on an interactive and fun-filled afternoon featuring excerpts of classic pieces from the Company repertory: a re-staging of Talley Beatty’s electrifying Recuerdo de Campo Amor, the flamenco-immersed Línea Recta by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Geoffrey Holder’s Caribbean-influenced Danse Creole, and the Latin social dance extravaganza Club Havana by Pedro Ruiz. With cultural and historical content and movement exercises for the whole family, the audience is in for a performance to remember. After the show, young audience members will have the opportunity to meet the dancers they saw on-stage for a photo op, learn dance moves and enjoy Caribbean beats from musicians throughout the theater!
“Leading our En Familia programming is one of the best parts of my job,” said Eduardo Vilaro, Artistic Director & CEO, Ballet Hispánico. “Nothing beats seeing the joy on the faces of our families as they experience the depth and diversity of Latine cultures come to life through our repertory! We are so grateful for the RBC Foundation and New York City Center who have helped to create this opportunity for families to join us for this special program, at this ticket price. Ballet Hispánico has been creating access for generations of BIPOC audiences since 1970. We couldn’t be prouder to introduce yet another way to expand inclusion!”
“An inspiration to audiences of all ages, Ballet Hispánico exemplifies the vibrancy and spirit of New York, making them an ideal partner for City Center,” said Michael S. Rosenberg, President and CEO, New York City Center. “We are excited to introduce this new event as part of our 80th Season at the Center of the Arts and provide access for even more New Yorkers to experience world-class performances at affordable prices.”
“We are delighted to continue and expand our partnership with Ballet Hispánico and New York City Center,” said Marcos Torres, Managing Director, RBC Capital Markets and Jennifer Grazel, Managing Director, RBC Capital Markets and Director, RBC Foundation USA. “As a globally recognized cultural force, the Company’s impact and importance grows with every year. Their mission energizes us and helping to support them benefits us all.”
En Familia Matinee Program
Club Havana (2000)
Cuban (Afro-Latin) dancing at its best. The intoxicating rhythms of the conga, rumba, mambo, and cha cha cha are brought to life by choreographer Pedro Ruiz, himself a native of Cuba, as he imagined his very own “Club Havana.”
Danse Creole (1976)
Geoffrey Holder’s work was inspired by the style and rhythms of Trinidadian dance and the influence of European colonization on the island.
Línea Recta (2016)
From Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, one of today’s most sought-after choreographers comes a powerful and resonant work that explores an intriguing aspect of flamenco dance: the conspicuous absence of physical partnering.
Recuerdo de Campo Amor (1985)
Talley Beatty’s piece celebrates New York’s Latin dance halls and nightclubs from the 1960s and 1970s with a fusion of Latin American rhythms and highly athletic jumps, lifts, and turns.
All tickets for En Familia Matinee are $15 and can be purchased online at NYCityCenter.org ($3 facility fee and $2 reduced handling fee), by calling 212.581.1212, or in person at the City Center Box Office ($3 facility fee).
Ballet Hispánico 2024 New York City Center Season
PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE:
Thursday, April 25, 2024 at 6:30 pm – Gala Performance
Friday, April 26, 2024 at 7:30 pm
Saturday, April 27, 2024 at 2:00 pm – En Familia Matinee
Saturday, April 27, 2024 at 7:30 pm
Sunday, April 28, 2024 at 2:00 pm
Ballet Hispánico returns to New York City Center from April 25 to 28, 2024. A Company that “compels audiences to think differently and lean into an unseen, unimaginable cultural vibrancy” (aBroadway World), Ballet Hispánico amplifies Latinx artists and cultures through innovative contemporary works.
In honor of Eduardo Vilaro’s 15th season as Artistic Director of Ballet Hispánico, the program features the World Premiere of Buscando a Juan, Vilaro’s new work inspired by The Met’s exhibition of Juan de Pareja, Afro-Hispanic Painter, that explores sancocho, a mixed soup of cultures and diasporas; a restaging of Mad’moiselle, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s exploration of iconic male/female images and gender identity in Latin American cultures and her first major work under Vilaro’s tenure; and 18+1, Gustavo Ramírez Sansano’s celebration of the vulnerability, care, and hope that comes with each artistic endeavor. Tickets start at $45 (fees included) and are available here.