At a church in West Eugene, a group of Hispanic preteens and teens from the dance group, Ballet Folklorico Colibri, are practicing their dance moves. Their dance shoes tap against the wooden floor of the dance studio as they stand in lines of three and each take turns twirling, swinging, and tapping in unison.
The dance the youth are practicing is Ballet Folklorico, a form of traditional Mexican folk dancing that combines local folk culture with standard ballet practices. In Eugene, this traditional Mexican folk dance is helping many Latine kids connect with their culture.
Mary Sollo founded Ballet Folklorico Colibri in 2017. For her, it started as a way for her to share her culture with her daughters.
“I have two girls, very young at that time, and I noticed that there [was no] place for them to dance,” she said.
It wasn’t that Eugene didn’t offer dance options, Sollo said. ”Classic ballet, modern, contemporaneous tap, jazz, all other disciplines, but not folklorico. “So I think it was one of the big things that helped me, or pushed me to start [the group], because our community needs a space for representation.”
In 2022, Sollo’s daughter, Dania Covarrubias Sollo, became a dance instructor for Ballet Folklorico Colibri. She echoes her mother’s sentiment about providing a space for Latine kids to be themselves and connect with their culture.
“I know that it's really valuable to me, because I didn't grow up with a space like this, which is very common in Eugene, there's not a lot,” said Covarrubias Sollo. “And me, growing up in a small town next to Eugene, it was even harder. So this is like a very special near and dear thing to my heart, because it's what I wish I had and I didn't. So why not create it?”
At the class, Covarrubias Sollo instructs the students after observing their dance practices. She reminds them to smile as they dance, to complete their twirls fully, and to have fun. The students listen to her as she commands the classroom, and they appear eager to learn and improve.
Henry Hernandez Mareno, an 18-year-old student who started with Folklorico a year ago, likes being a part of a Folklorico dance group.
“I've seen a few Folklorico dancers online, and I was once thinking, ‘Maybe I could do this one day,’ and now I'm here doing it, and it's really fun,” said Mareno.
For dancer Kayla Jean, Folklorico has helped her grow out of her shell.
”When I performed, especially when I started, I didn't smile at all. I was just stone cold faced, and I was shy. I kept to myself, the teacher's pet kind of child,” said Jean. “Now I'm very open. I can be quite loud in like in my presence, but I do, I take my part, and I make sure, like the newcomers, they feel welcomed as well, and so they can stay.”
Jean adds that sometimes her identity as a Afro-Latina can make her feel like a minority within a minority. But the friends she’s made from Folklorico have helped her feel welcome.
“I like the community. There's kind of like the sense of you belong here,” said Jean. “It's really nice, and you get to know everybody, and it's like, this giant family.”
Ballet Folklorico Colibri performs at venues throughout Oregon. The group will be performing at the Eugene Family YMCA’s Welcoming Festival on Sunday. The event runs from 2 p.m. until 5 p.m.
