Raices Directors:
 Roxana
Reyes Borrego is one of the
founders of Grupo Folklorico Raices de Mi Tierra and has served as the
Artistic Director since its inception in 1995. Influenced by her mother,
a Folklorico instructor, and her father, a well-known mariachi member,
Roxana began her study at the age of five. Dedicated to learning from
reputable instructors, Roxana has studied under Maria Luisa Colmenarez,
Rafael Zamarripa, Armando Correa, Antonio Rubio Sagarnaga and Juan Arenas
Garcia from Aguascalientes Mexico. Roxana began teaching as a student
instructor at UC Davis at the age of 19, and was later featured as a guest
instructor at CSU Chico, CSU Sacramento and Ballet Folklorico Nube de Oro.
Roxana is a member and instructor for the Festival Danzantes Unidos here
in California, and was recently invited to the Oklahoma Panhandle State
University where she participated in the first regional Mexican Folklorico
Dance Workshop sponsored by the Oklahoma Arts Council and the National
Endowment for the Arts. Dedicated to the art of dance in education, she
founded the first Folklorico/PE Dance class in Sacramento at Sacramento
High School in 1997, and continues to teach at Sacramento High School
which now offers the only college preparatory Folklorico class in Northern
California.Roxana
completed her Masters Thesis titled “Ethnic Identity Development Through
Traditional Mexican Dance” and is currently a Marriage Family Therapist
Intern working towards licensure.
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Jose A. Borrego
received his JD from McGeorge School of
Law in 1996 and is the owner of Borrego and Associates. He has been an
art enthusiast an organizer for the past 13 years. As an undergraduate
student at UC davis, he learned to love Traditional Mexican Dance as a
member of the student based group, Danzantes del Alma. He danced as a
member of Alegria de San Jose and studied the Art in Mexico over many
years and as a Graduate student participated in many plays with Teatro
Espejo de CSUS. Mr. Borrego served as adjunct faculty in the CSUS Theater
& Dance department for many years teaching Latino Dance styles. Today he
dances as a principal dancer with Raices and the Yemaya Salsa Dance
teams. Together with his wife Roxana, Mr. Borrego helped to found RAICES
de Mi Tierra as a Graduate student at CSU Sacramento in 1995 with a
mission to preserve and present Mexican Dance in the Sacramento region.
He has served on the steering committees of
several Cultural organizations including: La Raza Galeria Posada,
Danzantes Unidos de California, and the National Association of Folklorico
Groups. In 2002, he Directed the largest gathering of Mexican dancers in
the state at CSU Sacramento -the Danzantes Unidos Festival and currently
serves as the Managing Director of RAICES de Mi Tierra.
Mr. Borrego holds a BA in Political Science
and a minor in Chicano Studies from UC Davis. He is the owner of a Law
office which serves a large Latino clientele in cases involving work and
auto accidents. He is a member of the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of
Commerce, the Ca. State Bar, the Ca. Applicants Attorneys Association and
the La Raza Lawyers Association. Together with his wife, he also owns and
operates the Sacramento Cultural Arts Center, which serves as a
cooperative of local dance groups. |
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Raices Frequently Asked Questions: |
Who are we?
RAICES is a Non Profit organization based out of Sacramento California with a
Mission to Preserve and Present Traditional and Contemporary Mexican Dance. As
of January 2003, the Organization will move into a private Studio dedicated to
Cultural Dance located at 128 J Street in Old Sacramento. At that time, RAICES
will offer Children's and Beginners classes as well as run the Performing
Company.
1. Who can Join?
RAICES welcomes all adults over 16 Years of age into our general Membership. All
that is needed is an interest in learning Folklorico and a dedication to attend
practices. Members are required to volunteer 5 hours of their time per year to
assist the company in some capacity, pay Annual dues, and commit themselves to
all practices.
2. What are the Benefits of Membership?
Simply put, RAICES offer the finest Folklorico instruction and performance and
travel opportunities in the Sacramento area. Our organization invites all to
visit other area dance organizations to compare. We promise guest Maestros and
brand new material every single year. A large and diverse repertoire of dances,
professional Management, and high level, well produced, and technically sound
shows. RAICES' Artistic Director, Roxana Borrego, is widely regarded for her
innovative choreography, work ethic and unique Instructional Methods.
3. Does the organization have paid staff?
Yes. The only way the company can maintain the level of Artistic Quality and
involvement in the Community it is known for is to have Staff coordinate its
activities. Staff are : The Artistic Director, The Coordinator, 2 Instructors,
Costume Coordinator, and Web Master. These staff members work together to ensure
that all areas of the organization maintain the High Artistic Quality which
RAICES is known for.
4. Are there opportunities for
professional Artists?
Definitely. These include Touring and Traveling opportunities, chances to
perform at high profile venues, professionally directed shows with the best
technical and Artistic support, and Contract Opportunities. Contract Dancers
must file a dance resume, apply and audition Annually, and must be a regular
member of the Performing Company for at least 2 years prior to Applying. At the
Discretion of the Artistic Director, Contract Dancing opportunities are
available to those dancers showing an exceptional level of skill and dance
ability.
5. How can members participate in RAICES’
activities?
All RAICES practices, Workshops, and events are open to Regular Members.
Performances in the Community are evaluated and given to the Managing Director
to determine whether they will be open to all members or by invitation only.
Open Performances are given to the group to determine who is available to
perform. By signing up for performance, you are saying that you would like to
participate in the event and will be attending the rehearsals to prepare for the
event. The Artistic Director will dertermine which dancers will perform at shows
based on skill, attendance at Practice, and overall ability.
6. How does the Company choose which shows
to attend?
Every year RAICES receives almost twice as many performance requests as our
members and resources allow us to handle. From schools to Fairs, RAICES has
built a reputation for excellence which means that people are constantly asking
us to perform. All performance requests are handled by the Managing Director who
balances the troupes schedule and the benefit of the show to the Community and
the Company.
We are an organization that is dedicated to our Community. Unfortunately, our
company has many costs including salaries, rent, and costumes. As much as we
would love to volunteer our time for the many worthy requests we receive, we
must limit Free shows to those with extraordinary Community Benefit.
7. What do I need to provide to
participate in shows?
Our aggressive performance and fundraising have allowed us to purchase one of
the largest costume inventories in Northern California. RAICES owns almost $30,
000 worth of Authentic Mexican Dance costumes and accessories. As a member you
will be issued a costume to use for each show. All members must provide their
own accessories such as shoes, jewelry etc. A detailed list will be issued
before each show.
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Major Performances |
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1996 California State
Fair, 1997 Bailes de Las Americas, 1997 CSUS 5 de Mayo
1998 Mis Raices, Festival de
La Familia, 5 de Mayo
1997-99 Sacramento Folklorico
Festival, Solano County Fair, Yolo County Fair, Fresno County Fair, Tour-Idaho
State, Tour Gold Country California, 2000, Sacramento RiverCats 2003-present,
2001 Espiritu de Mexico, 2002 Danzantes Unidos Festival Host Organization, 2002
Ritmo Y Orgullo, 2002 State Fair Carnaval
2003 Danzantes Unidos Festival Hosts
2003 CA State Fair
2004 Festival de la Famila
2004 San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festiva
2005 Danzantes Unidos Festival
2005 Festival De la Familia, San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival
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Affiliations |
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Danzantes Unidos de California, Danzantes Unidos de
Sacramento, National Association of Folklorico Groups, Associated Students of
CSUS, CSUS Theater & Dance, Sacramento Unified School District
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Annual Events |
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Children’s Dance Workshops, Sacramento Folklorico
Festival, Guest Maestros, Production of Dance Music & Song, Tour of Schools
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Major Sponsors |
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Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission, California
State University Sacramento, California Arts Council Multi-Cultural Entry &
Touring Artists Program, Sacramento Bee Foundation, Hornet Foundation,
Sacramento Visual & Performing Arts Center, CSUS Theater & Dance Dept, CSUS
Multicultural Center
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