Dance student explores cultural duality in Spring Festival performance

As I put the finishing touches on my senior thesis, I can’t help but hear my father’s voice. “Échale ganas, Ximena. Put in the effort.” I’ve repeated this mantra to myself throughout my time at Santa Clara University, and it feels especially significant now as I choreograph, direct, and perform my final project: a 30-minute jazz and contemporary modern dance showcase for the Spring Dance Festival.

In my dance classes at Santa Clara, I’ve learned that art can be a powerful tool for change. With the support of my professors, I discovered how movement can shed light on complex topics in ways that words often cannot. This idea is at the heart of my final performance. I want to take the audience on a journey through dance that shares my experience as the first-born daughter of Latinx immigrants and honors the Mexican heritage that has shaped who I am.

I first came across the idea for this piece in my Sexuality and Spirituality class with Professor Pearl Barros. The course focused on Latinx and Chicanx literature and theology, and it was the first time I really saw myself reflected in what I was studying. We read Gloria Anzaldúa, a Latinx philosopher and poet, who talks about nepantla—the in-between space where different cultures, identities, and ways of life overlap. For me, it reflected the tension of living in the United States while trying to stay connected to my Latinx roots. Growing up in North Carolina, I traveled back and forth to Jalisco and Veracruz, Mexico—where my parents are from—and was constantly surrounded by Spanish music, food, and traditions. I’m grateful for those experiences, but it hasn’t always been easy to hold onto my culture while living so far away from it. 

After diving deeper into Anzaldúa’s work, I knew I wanted my final dance performance to explore my own experience of living in nepantla. I tell my story through six acts, using different dance styles and music genres to reflect a cycle of healing and transformation. The stage lighting and backdrop colors shift throughout the performance, beginning with dark grays that gradually become bright yellows and pinks by the final act. In many ways, this performance has been my way of reconciling my two cultures as I prepare for the next chapter of my life.

Throughout my four years at Santa Clara, I’ve realized that in order to succeed, I have to put effort into everything I do—just like my dad has always told me. Majoring in dance and Spanish has challenged me to explore how my heritage and my artistry intersect, and how embracing both can help me grow into the leader I hope to become.

Directing the Spring Dance Festival has given me the chance to put this into practice. There’s real privilege in being able to use movement to express something so personal that also connects with others. Santa Clara has given me the support to explore all the pieces of myself through the arts and academics, and I can’t wait to carry these lessons with me after graduation.