BY KAREN BOSSICK
Sandra Cisneros, an award-winning poet, short story writer and novelist, will appear at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 18, at the Wood River High School Performing Arts Theatre.
She will get a unique introduction as members of the Los Angeles-based band Las Cafeteras will introduce her with a song.
Her appearance is sponsored by Sun Valley Museum of Art in partnership with The Community Library as part of The Museum’s program “Honoring Traditions: Dia de los Muertos.”
Cisneros, considered a key figure in the Chicano literary movement, is the author of “The House on Mango Street.” That book, a coming-of-age novel, has been translated into two dozen languages, is required reading in schools and is being adapted into an opera.
The novel tells the story of a young Latina girl growing up in Chicago who invents for herself who and what she will become. It’s told in a series of sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes joyous, vignettes that reflect the rich Latino heritage of its author.
“(Sandra Cisneros) is an artist, activist and extraordinary storyteller whose writings have enriched our American narrative,” said Jennifer Wells Green, executive director of Sun Valley Museum of Art.
“Over three decades, Sandra Cisneros has shaped contemporary literature with her spirited writing,” added Jenny Emery Davidson, executive director of The Community Library. “She encourages us to see the world with open, curious eyes, and to move nimbly between English and Spanish in an adventurous exploration of language.”
The Oct. 18 presentation will revolve around her new poetry book, “Woman Without Shame,” which came out in September. The poems are touted as honest, often humorous, meditations on memory, desire and the nature of love.
Cisneros is the recipient of numerous awards, including a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, Ford Foundation Art of Change fellowship, a MacArthur Genius Grant, and the American Book Award. President Barack Obama presented her with the National Medal of Arts.
Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for students, available at https://svmoa.org or by calling 208-726-9491.
The program will not be livestreamed or available for later viewing. A book signing with Chapter One Bookstore will follow.
LAS CAFETERAS
Denice Carlos and Hector Flores, who will introduce Sandra Cisneros with a song, are members of the East Los Angeles band Las Cafeteras.
That band, noted for its Afro-Mexican rhythms, roots and rock and hip hop, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21, at the WRHS Performing Arts Theater in Hailey. Expect traditional instrumentation, such as the eight-string jarana, four-string requinto and a donkey jawbone.
Tickets are $15 for students 18 and under and $30 and $40 for adults, available at https://svmoa.org/events/concerts-performances/2022-10-21/concert-las-cafeteras.
The band will also work with students from Alturas Elementary School and Wood River High School while here. And on Saturday, Oct. 22, they will perform a few songs at Dia de los Muertos celebration being held from 1 to 4:30 p.m. at The Hunger Coalition in Bellevue.