The inaugural season of Virginia Beach Cultural Affairs Department’s Globally Inspired Gatherings (VB GIGs) kicks off at The Z with a Destination Date Night featuring Radio Jarocho. This acclaimed band recreates the communal and spirited atmosphere of the traditional Fandango celebrations of Veracruz, Mexico. Fandango festivities fuse music, dance, poetry, and social engagement in lively community gatherings. The program is presented in collaboration with the Celebrate Mexico Now! Festival.
Radio Jarocho has been enchanting audiences all over the U.S. since their debut in 2005. Formed in New York with members from Mexico City, California and even Columbia, their band is a representation of the global spread of Son Jarocho music and the art of Fandango. Acclaimed for reviving the Son Jarocho musical style in the US for a new generation (Son Jarocho was popularized by Ritchie Valens and Los Lobos), Radio Jarocho has been featured in New York City’s famed Winter JazzFest and Celebrate Mexico Now! Festival. As the foremost presenters of Son Jarocho and Fandango gatherings on the East Coast, Radio Jarocho recently completed an extended artistic partnership with Zenen Zeferino of Jaltipán, Veracruz resulting in a critically acclaimed new album: Rios De Norte Y Sur. Hailed by Paste Magazine, NPR, and AM New York, Radio Jarocho appearances include The Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Le Poisson Rouge, Celebrate Mexico Now Festival, and many more.
Ticket price includes tasting stations of Veracruz-inspired culinary delights by Yummy Goodness, cash bar and general admission to the performance. This is a participatory performance with audience space primarily for dancing, limited open seating will be available around the perimeter of the studio theater for periodic breaks.
Doors open 6:00pm, Tastings 6:30pm-7:30pm, Showtime 6:30pm-8:15pm with brief set break.
