Brava & La Mezcla present
Ghostly Labor
A Dance Theatre Performance
December 15 - 17, 2023
Friday & Saturday at 8pm
Sunday at 5pm
Ghostly Labor explores the history of labor in the US–Mexico borderlands through Tap Dance, Mexican Zapateado, Son Jarocho, Afro Caribbean movement, and live music. This work brings together polyrhythmic movement and an original score to look at the (ongoing) years of systemic exploitation of labor while highlighting the power and joy of collective resistance. The full-length dance theater production of Ghostly Labor will premiere at Brava Theater in December 2023.
The associated project, “Ghostly Labor: a Dance Film,” is an award winning film that has been screened at film festivals and events through the United States, Norway, Spain and Portugal.
For Press and Media inquiries contact Candi Martinez - spreadlovemedia@gmail.com
Related Upcoming Events
Tap Dance Workshops with Sandy Vázquez
Sunday, November 12, 2023
As part of La Mezcla’s Connecting Communities with Artists Initiative, join Sandy Vázquez as she leads Beginning Tap and Int/Adv Tap workshops in Brava’s Studio Theater.
For more information and to register, click here.
Open Rehearsal with Vanessa Sanchez y la Mezcla
Friday, December 1 | 10am - 1pm
Come watch La Mezcla’s open company rehearsal and pick up pre-ordered exclusive merch in preparation for the show! Registration is required due to limited capacity. Taking place in Brava’s Studio Theater.
Cervecitas in the Mission with Vanessa Sanchez
Friday, December 1 | 6pm - 7:30pm
Join La Mezcla's Executive Artistic Director, Vanessa Sanchez, for a cervecita and conversation at Limoncello for an informal meet and greet, you can come ask your questions about the development of Ghostly Labor and La Mezcla's upcoming projects.
Ghostly Labor: A Dance Film Trailer
Ghostly Labor: Behind The Scenes Video
TICKETS
$32 Orchestra plus fees
$22 Mezzanine plus fees
$65 Brava Supporter plus fees
press
“I have been amazed by the talent and skill we have in our communities and inspired by the power of collective resistance and joy. I have learned the importance of sharing our stories and experiences, especially when society tries to bury them. ”
“Ghostly Labor teaches us the rhythms of Labor.””
ARTICLES & INTERVIEWS:
Picture This Post: Dance Camera West Presents GHOSTLY LABOR: A DANCE FILM Review — Bracero Rhythms
National Endowment for the Arts: (English) Dancing Outside the Box (Español) Bailar de Forma Original
SF Dance Film Festival: Dancing Through the Lens Podcast with Vanessa Sanchez
Mellon Foundation: La Mezcla: The Choreography of Collaboration
ABOUT THE artists
Photo by Alexa Treviño.
Vanessa Sanchez is a Chicana dancer, choreographer, educator and producer who focuses on community arts and traditional dance forms to emphasize voices and experiences of Latina, Chicana, and Indigenous womxn and youth. Based in San Francisco, she is a 2019 Dance/USA Artist Fellow and the founding Artistic Director of La Mezcla. Sanchez’s work has been featured on local and international stages including Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (SF), The Lincoln Center (NY), Teatro Maria Matos (Portugal). Her work with La Mezcla has received the Isadora Duncan Award for Outstanding Production, Best Sound and Original Score Award for the WildSound Film Festival, and project funding from the New England Foundation for the Arts, National Performance Network and the Hewlett Foundation. She has been a featured guest artist with UC Berkeley, Arizona State University, and the Gulf Coast Center for Law and Policy, and a lecturer at UC Santa Cruz. Sanchez is currently an artist in residence at Brava! For Women in the Arts.
Photo by Anthony Thornton.
La Mezcla is a polyrhythmic, San Francisco-based dance and music ensemble rooted in Chicana, Latina and Indigenous traditions and social justice. Founded in 2015 by Dance/USA fellow Vanessa Sanchez, their work brings together Tap dance, Son Jarocho and Afro-Caribbean rhythms to bring the often unseen histories and experiences of communities of color to stages, streets and fields. Their production “Pachuquísmo,” an all-womxn Tap dance and Son Jarocho performance about Pachucas and the Zoot Suit Riots, received the Isadora Duncan Award for Outstanding Production, and has toured nationally to venues including Dance Place (DC), Jacob’s Pillow (MA) and the Lincoln Center (NY). La Mezcla will be making their international debut at Festival Cervantino in Guanajuato, Mexico in October 2023. Their new work “Ghostly Labor,” explores the legacy of labor in the US-Mexico borderlands and the joy of collective resistance. The associated film “Ghostly Labor: a Dance Film” has been screened internationally at film festivals, and was named Best Short Documentary at the Los Angeles Dance Camera West Festival. The full length premiere of “Ghostly Labor” will take place at Brava! For Women in the Arts in November 2023.
Committed to using dance and music for social change, La Mezcla offers paid internships, artist mentorships, and has partnered with organizations including Lincoln Center Education, KQED Arts, and Ayudando Latinos a Soñar Farmworker Fridays to provide educational opportunities and hands-on community engagement. La Mezcla’s program “Connecting Communities” provides free grant workshops and artistic training with master artists to local communities.
FUNDERS
Project Funders: The Hewlett Foundation, National Performance Network (NPN), CCI, The Rainin Foundation, Dancers’ Group
La Mezcla Funders: the Mellon Foundation, Ca Arts Council, Silicon Valley Community Fund