One of the great things about living in a major metropolitan area is the amount of art that is produced by artists from around the world. The Bay Area has always had a substantial international arts community. Two years ago, producer Andrew Wood created the San Francisco International Arts Festival [SFIAF], which is preparing its third annual presentation on May 18. It's an event that celebrates the wide spectrum of local international artists, as well as inviting visiting artists from other cultures.
The focus of this year's festival, Perspectivas/Perspectives, is the Latino Arts, and so it will feature artists from Central America, South America, Mexico, the United States, as well as both Puerto Rico and Cuba. According to Wood, "It's imperative that people in the United States maintain an interactive and ongoing dialogue with the people of Latin America, with whom they must share this continent. It is also important that we get to see and hear first-hand artistic work that can articulate the social conditions, ideas and nuances of political thought emanating from Latin America."
This year's festival will be particularly relevant due to recent political events, including this month's Day Without Immigrants. There's an especially strong focus at the point where the arts meets politics, so you should expect a lot of vibrant work, enthusiastic audiences and a lack of the traditional, Eurocentric perspective.
Some highlights follow, sorted by country or countries of origin.
Peru: Grupo Yuyachkani will perform Santiago, a political-theatre piece dealing with Peru's truth and reconciliation hearings following two decades of violent conflict between state and armed opposition. (Project Artaud Theater)
Brazil/United States: ABADÃ-Capoeira (San Francisco & Rio) will collaborate on Danças dos Guerreiros (Dances of the Warriors). This martial art is known for its artistry, and was developed to invoke the spirit of resistance displayed by African slaves in Latin America. (Project Artaud Theater)
Mexico/United States: Me xich co Teatro collaborates with East Bay artists to perform NiNO MAiZ/Corn Child, a theatrical collage based on the writings of youth from both Mexico City and Richmond, California. (Project Artaud Theater)
Mexico/United States: New chamber music group Earplay will present The Maiz Project in collaboration with Mexican composer Guillermo Galindo. (Herbst Theater)
Colombia: Eddy Armando (Teatro Experimental La Mama) will direct Superaci—n, created with La Casa Cultural Colombiana. This theatre piece will explore the experience of Colombian immigrants, including the challenges, compromises and motivations of this particular culture within Latin America. (Project Artaud Theater)
Mexico: La Cebra Danza Gay is a gay dance troupe dealing with the challenging issues of gay rights in a macho culture. The company is known for being alternately serious and outrageous. (SomArts Cultural Center)
Costa Rica/United States: Navarrete x Kajiyama and Alma Esperanza Cunnningham Movement are two local modern dance companies presenting separate pieces on the same program with Maria Pendones from Costa Rica. Contemporary dance has been one of the staples of SFIAF. "Dance has been part of the backbone of the festival's development," according to Wood. (Dance Mission)
United States: The San Francisco Chamber Orchestra will perform Fiesta de Tambores, a program featuring music from Mexico, as well as works written by both Cuban-American and Mexican-American composers. (Brava Theater Center)
Puerto Rico: Puerto Rican art exhibit Not Enough Space: Oscar Lopez Rivera and Carlos Alberto Torres. This exhibit focuses on Lopez Rivera and Torres, two Puerto Rican political prisoners, on the 25th anniversary of their imprisonment. (Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts)
Cuba/United States: Cuba Collaborations — Beyond the Embargo, an exhibition of works by a group of prominent Cuban and American artists who have continued to work and exhibit together internationally, despite the continuing US embargo against Cuba. (Gallery One)
There will also be a series of films presented by the International Latino Film Festival and Gallery One. Countries represented will be Cuba, Peru, Belize, Brazil and Mexico. Of special note is Muxes: Authentic, Fearless Seekers of Danger, a Mexican film that portrays the lives of a group of indigenous gays in Oaxaca, Mexico, who defend their right to be different through crossdressing.(Gallery One, Roxie Cinema and Galeria de la Raza)
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SF International Arts Festival, May 18-June 11. See www.sfiaf.org for schedules and locations. Tickets available at Brava Box Office, (415) 647-2822, prices vary.