The 2008-09 arts season brings greater diversity in all the artistic disciplines that enrich our lifestyles in the Valley of the Sun.
Multicultural crosscurrents are propelling ripples of change in the mainstream of the Phoenix metro art scene. The Phoenix area is becoming increasing culturally diverse, driven by others moving here from throughout the United States and from other countries.
Arts, Culture and the Latino Audience, a ground-breaking study by the Maricopa Partnership for Arts & Culture, was released in June. (See the report online at www.latinopm.com) This unprecedented study provides a blueprint for arts groups to build their Latino audience, now and for the future. Any real change will have to involve shifts in the marketing and programming of mainstream arts groups. It also provides a standard from which to judge local Latino participation in the arts.
An attitude of change is reflected in the music category, where this season you’ll find the Phoenix Symphony has started a new World Music Festival. Peruvian singer Tania Libertad will be the Sept. 17 headliner, a test of Latino audience draw. Other venues that present music performances mirror these multicultural nuances in the coming season.
Theater has traditionally been a magnet for Valley art lovers. Arizona Theater Company has the powerful A Raisin in the Sun slated, and the Mesa Arts Center will present Latino themed plays. Teatro Bravo and New Carpa Teatro, two smaller, Latino-led Valley troupes, head bravely into another season with a mixed bag of original productions with local acting talent.
The art exhibition season springs in with the Heard Museum and Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Arts emphasizing local Latino artists, and edgy Latino culture such as tattoos, lowriders, and Dia de Los Muertos.
Film festivals abound this season, everything from the Sedona film festival to the Black filmmakers festival to the Latino film fest held at Phoenix College in March.
The remaining categories of dance, concerts, opera and festivals offer something for everyone, so ease back into your seat and begin applauding as the curtain rises, the music swells, and you enjoy the season’s bounty of riches from the world of arts and culture.
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