Family Field Trips continue 12/5 With 'Fiesta Mexicana' 12/5 At The Polk Theater

Fiesta Mexicana, a musical adventure featuring the rich and lively sounds of traditional Mexican music and dance, continues TPAC's Family Field Trip series, Saturday, December 5, at 2:00 p.m. in Polk Theater.

Fiesta Mexicana is an interactive journey through Mexico's colorful history, with lively rhythms, powerful melodies and colorful dancing from Sones de México Ensemble. The two-time Grammy nominated premiere folk music ensemble specializes in son, a rich music tradition with regional styles, including huapango, gustos, chilenas, son jarocho and the roots of mariachi music. The talented group of six musicians takes the audience on a parade of over two dozen unique musical instruments and follows with songs about different animals that inhabit the various Mexican ecosystems: the acamaya, the crocodile, a cat, a cowboy mouse, a buzzard, a duck, and even the legendary mermaid. The audience may even learn something new about the origins of the song, La Bamba. The whole family can join by clapping out rhythms and playing games that teach valuable lessons about music, dance, and Mexican culture.

"It's a pleasure to welcome the talented members of Sones de México Ensemble back to Nashville," said Kathleen O'Brien, TPAC's president and CEO. "They first performed at TPAC in 2005 to a delighted audience, and their return visit will no doubt bring joy and entertainment to the audience once more. This is a very special group. Their members work hard to preserve the cultural and artistic integrity of their work, while at the same time making the music and dance accessible and fun. I recommend this performance to families and audience members of all ages and cultural backgrounds. It's a great way for any family to spend good quality time together."

TPAC's Polk Lobby will be transformed into a fun, interactive space prior to the performance, offering activities and giveaways. Patrons are encouraged to arrive at 1:00 p.m. for the festivities.

Unlike anything else presented in Nashville or Middle Tennessee, TPAC Family Field Trips are designed to give children and adults a fun, family-friendly experience with live performance. The lively, high-quality entertainment features artists with international reputations and a multi-cultural blend of art with broad appeal to people of different ages and backgrounds.

Following Fiesta Mexicana, the series wraps up with The Man Who Planted Trees, April 18 and 25 in TPAC's Johnson Theater. Performed by Puppet State Theater of Scotland, this unique blend of comedy, puppetry and storytelling, adapted from Jean Giono's classic environmental book for children, proves that one man - and his dog - can transform a barren wasteland into a lush forest, one tree at a time.
TPAC Family Field Trips are highlights of TPAC Education's 2009-2010 "Season for Young People," a weekday series of performances that serves up to 40,000 students and educators from across the state annually (more than 1.5 million since 1983). TPAC selected these performances for the series to provide variety in art forms and world culture, in addition to genuine public appeal to a broad age range.

Single tickets for TPAC Family Field Trips are $11 for children ages 2-12 and $14 for adults. For tickets, visit www.tpac.org/familyfieldtrip, the TPAC Box Office (Downtown or at Davis-Kidd Booksellers in The Mall at Green Hills), or call 615/782-4040. To reserve tickets for groups of 10 or more, please contact TPAC Group Sales at 615/782-4060 or groups@tpac.org.

For more information on TPAC Family Field Trip performances, visit www.tpac.org/familyfieldtrip or call 615/782-4000.
Children 23 months and younger may receive a free ticket to sit on a parent's lap, which are available at the box offIce The day of the Polk Theater performances.
A limited number of ‘pay what you can' seats will be available beginning 90 minutes prior to each performance at the TPAC Box Office. With a minimal contribution to TPAC Education, patrons may gain admission based on an honor system of what they can afford to pay.

The TPAC Family Field Trip series is sponsored by Allstate, and in part by the Metro Nashville Arts Commission, Tennessee Arts Commission and Publix Super Markets Charities. Nashville Parent is the media sponsor of TPAC Family Field Trips. The leading hotel sponsor for TPAC Education is Homewood Suites by Hilton - Nashville Downtown. Fiesta Mexicana is sponsored in part by a grant from the Southern Arts Federation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Tennessee Arts Commission.

The Tennessee Performing Arts Center is a private, non-profit corporation dedicated to providing and supporting the presentation of the performing arts to the citizens of Tennessee. Its four stages are home to Broadway in Nashville at TPAC, Nashville Ballet, Nashville Opera, Tennessee Repertory Theatre and a variety of special engagements. TPAC administers one of the largest and most comprehensive arts-in-education programs in the United States, offering learning opportunities for children and adults. The organization has served more than 1.5 million students from pre-school to high school over the past two decades. For more information, visit the web site, www.tpac.org.