The time has come for Tucson to get a sneak peek of The Mariachi Miracle!
On August 14 a screening of the work in progress will take place at the Fox Tucson Theatre, along with performances of some of Tucson’s best youth mariachi and folklórico dance talent and a panel discussion with some of the pioneers of the youth mariachi movement.
The culmination of over ten years of filming by former Tucson Citizen music writer Daniel Buckley, the film draws upon some 350 interviews with current and former youth mariachi members, parents and family members, teachers and administrators, cand ommunity leaders plus countless performances, rehearsals and more. It is a story of how our city has become a more cohesive and prosperous place thanks to the youth mariachi and folklórico programs that first sprang up in the 1960s and were supercharged in the 1980s by the first inclusion of young women, the birth of the Tucson International Mariachi Conference and bilingual education, the explosive impact of singer Linda Ronstadt’s Canciones de Mi Padre and Mas Cancionesrecordings and shortly thereafter, the start of curriculum-based mariachi music programs I the schools.
Youth mariachis and folklórico dance companies have become the vibrant visuals and zesty soundtrack of change in our communities. As the film illustrates, skills learned in these programs connect young people with their cultural heritage and the needs of their community, their families and their future. They master skills that put them ahead of the pack in accomplishing their own life goals. Moreover because high academic standards are the norm in these groups and college scholarships have been part of the backbone of these programs since the 1960s, participants find themselves with the means to go to college and become doctors, lawyers, politicians, entrepreneurs, scientists, engineers, educators and administrators and much more. The ripple effect carries on with their families as experience on their boards make them important stewards of Tucson’s future with other organizations even after their kids have graduated.
With the assistance of producer Eva Romero, who came on board over the past year to help push the project past the goal posts, the Mariachi Miracle has several main goals. First, to acknowledge the place of Tucson in starting what is now a national mariachi education movement, and to acknowledge those whose efforts helped bring that about. Second to provide other youth mariachi and folklórico programs around the country a clear set of talking points about the effectiveness of these programs for promoting their own ensembles. And third, to share an untold and increasingly important chapter of American history.
Ticket prices are being capped to make this an afforable family and community experience, with the goal of seeking feedback from the community to refine the final product before sending it to the world of film festivals. https://foxtucson.com/event/mariachi-miracle/
What: A special sneak peek screening of the documentary The Mariachi Miracle
When: August 14, 12 p.m. (doors open at 11:30 a.m.)
Where: Fox Tucson Theatre, 17 West Congress St.
Tickets: Ages 12 and over, $15; ages 6-12, $5; ages 5 and under, free
Please contact Daniel Buckley at dbtucson@gmail.com or by phone at 520-260-4176 for interviews, print and web ready photos, etc.
SHOULD YOU REQUIRE 300 DPI “PRINT” VERSIONS OF ANY OF THE PHOTOS PLEASE CONTACT DANIEL BUCKLEY AT dbtucson@mail.com.
