PRESS RELEASE
Cascada de Flores
4/22/2017 – 7:30PM
Alaska Junior Theatre
Discovery Theatre, Alaska Center for Performing Arts
621 West 6th Avenue, Suite DT, Anchorage
Tickets: $12-$27
Alaska Junior Theater (AJT) presents Cascada de Flores, Saturday, April 22, 2017 at 7:30pm in the Discovery Theatre. Tickets range from $12-$27 and are available at CenterTix by calling 263-ARTS or online at www.akjt.org.
School Performance: The Tree and The Donkey Who Loved to Sing is a bilingual and participatory story exploding with the song, ancient musical instruments, poly-rhythms and sweet characters of Mexican music and dance. Through improvisation, the story explores Mexico’s diverse cultures and examines life and death in nature. In this lively performance, children and their families are invited to sing and play with the beautiful traditional songs and dances of Mexico.
Public Performance: Cascada de Flores specializes in achingly beautiful songs from Latin America’s golden age, including bolero to fill your heart to bursting, rancheras to break it and guarachas to make you want to dance. Your ears will be filled with the alluring voice of Arwen Lawerence, the delicate playing of guitar and vocals by Jorge Liceaga, accompanied by the strings of the bass and violin. Cascada de Flores offers an evening of song, zapateado (foot stomping) and nostalgia, spiced with a bit of creative Mexican humor.
For a video sample of the production, visit www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmWxN3M6Fqg.
About Cascada de Flores:
Arwen Lawrence and Jorge Liceaga founded Cascada de Flores in San Francisco, CA in 1999. They began by journeying into the hidden corners of Mexico, seeking the real stories of that hugely diverse country. Inspired by the fact that even as deep as its diversity goes, Mexico has a continuous love affair with foreign cultural phenomenon and incorporates them as if they were its own, the ensemble spends fourteen years swimming in a magical place somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean sea where rancheras, boleros, sones and guarachas from México, Cuba, Puerto Rico and Colombia meet.
Cascada de Flores has recorded now four albums, collaborated in numerous projects, including theater and cinema and toured to several areas of the United States. Cascada de Flores is now a phenomenon cherished by the Latinos that hear them, and opening the minds of its non-Latino fans. Opening minds and hearts to the real stories of Mexico and Latin America has become this group’s unofficial mission; Jorge feels pride at being able to arrive at a performance without a wide sombrero and still be received with open arms.
Close to home, members of Cascada de Flores present ongoing bilingual classes and special workshops for children and families focused on traditional Latin American folk songs, Mexican traditional music and dance.
For more information on tickets for this or any of Alaska Junior Theater’s performances and events, go to www.akjt.org or call (907) 272-7546.
About Alaska Junior Theater:
Alaska Junior Theater is a private, non-profit organization that has been bringing the best in professional theatre from around the world to Alaska’s young audiences for 35 years. Each year, more than 47,000 students attend a variety of live performances, which share the common educational goal of “bringing learning to life.” For many students, AJT’s school-time presentations are their only exposure to professional performing arts. For our school shows, Alaska Junior Theater remains committed to providing subsidized tickets and finding direct ties to Alaska Content Standards, creating study guides and providing bussing transportation in Anchorage to ensure all children receive the opportunity to experience the performing arts. It is a true symbol of our commitment to artistic quality, educational content and community outreach.
Media:
To make arrangements for interviews, contact Alexis Sheeder on or before April 17th at (319)899-7137 or (907)272-7546. School performances are a great opportunity for members of the press to review, photograph, get video of the performance or interview the artists. To schedule interviews or a viewing, please contact Alexis Sheeder at (319) 899-7137, (907) 272-7546 or marketing@akjt.org or Lainie Dreas at 382-7512. Interviews should be arranged before the week of the shows so that the interview can be worked into the artist’s schedule.
