Video: Grupo Folklórico de UCLA practices for Dia de Los Muertos

If you walk by the McClure Stage on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6-8 pm, you will see a group of students dancing their hearts away. This group of students is known as Grupo Folklórico de UCLA, a student club recognized for its celebrations honoring the Mexican culture through a Mexican traditional dance widely known as Ballet Folklorico.

Grupo Folklórico has been putting on performances both on campus and off since 1966. As their mission statement says, “Our goal is to create positive Chicana/o role models, promote cultural awareness throughout our surrounding communities, and encourage the youth of Los Angeles to celebrate their cultural roots and to continue on to institutions of higher learning.” With Grupo Folklórico, students are able to take a break from their studies, shake their bodies to some fun music, and meet some new people, while learning about the culture of Mexico.

Ballet folklorico incorporates its different styles of dance from different regions of Mexico, including Veracruz, Nayarit, and Guerrero. Over the course of the year, they learn the different steps and skirt works to prepare for their biggest and most important performance of the year, Fiesta Mexicana in UCLA’s historic Royce Hall. Any student can be a part of Grupo Folklorico, because as the group emphasizes when recruiting new members, “No experience necessary!”