| Pajarillo Pinta’o presents the “Bella Vista Project,” a week-long series of dance, music and discussion performances in memory of the 10th anniversary of the massacre in Bella Vista (Bojayá) on the Pacific Coast of Colombia Oct 3-7 2012 |
About Daniel Fetecua
Daniel Fetecua, originally from Colombia, is a dancer with Límon, a highly-respected modern dance company in New York founded by José Limón, a dancer from Mexico. Daniel is one of the best dancers from Colombia working in New York City. The Bella Vista Project is produced by Pajarillo Pinta’o, Daniel’s own dance company.
About the Bella Vista Massacre
Colombia is recovering from a civil war that most hope is nearing an end. Bella Vista is the center of Bojoyá, a small town in Chocó department (state), the department where Central America connects with South America. It is the wettest place on Earth and the only state in South America with shores on both the Atlantic and Pacific.
In 2002, guerrillas took over the town in an attempt to control the area. The townspeople complained to the government. Paramilitary forces responded. About 500 people took shelter in the town church. The paramilitary forces set up positions around it. In the battle that ensued, a guerrilla shell made a direct hit on the church, destroying it, killing over 100 people and wounding another hundred. Many were children.
The massacre was a marker event in the Colombian civil war. The UN investigated and blamed both sides. These types of incidents have led to the displacement of millions of people in Central and South America. But in spite of their losses, the people of Bella Vista pulled together and the town center of Bella Vista carries on today. Art and dance have been part of their own process of healing.
About the Bella Vista Project
Touched by a visit to Bella Vista, Daniel Fetecua become determined to do something to keep alive the memory of what happened and celebrate the spirit of healing of the townspeople.
The project includes live performances, with live music and an original score composed by Sebastian Cruz; but also workshops, conferences, talk backs and Q&A with Lubin Valencia, a direct victim and a survivor of Bojaya and with Camila Orjuela, a social worker of the Natonal University of Colombia.
Dance Performance (Premiere) | Flushing Town Hall 137-35 Northern Blvd Flushing, Queens (718) 463-7700 |
Lecture, Discussion, Video | Columbia University Dodge Hall Room 701C |
Concert and Discussion | Terraza 7 40-19 Gleane Street Elmhurst, Queens (718) 803-9602 |
Colombian Pacific Coast Dance Workshop | Cumbe 558 Fulton Street, Brooklyn (718) 935-9700 |
Dance Performance | Flushing Town Hall 137-35 Northern Blvd Flushing, Queens (718) 463-7700 |