DAAC bringing Grammy-nominated Perla Batalla as part of its 09/10 Cultural Series
Who: The Dona Ana Arts Council
What: Performance by Grammy-nominated Perla Batalla
When: October 21, 2009
Where: The Rio Grande Theatre
Contact: (575) 523-6403
DAAC bringing grammy-nominated Perla Batalla as part of its 09/10 Cultural Series
The Doña Ana Arts Council proudly continues its 2009/2010 Cultural Series with the highly-anticipated return of Grammy-nominated vocalist, composer and arranger, Perla Batalla. In May 2006, Perla wowed an appreciative Rio Grande Theatre audience, as part of the ASNMSU Cultural Series. Since that time, she has played the Border Book Festival in Mesilla and was the guest performer for the dedication of San Albino Basillica in 2008. This time around, Perla Batalla will perform as a guest of DAAC, back on the Rio Grande Theatre stage, Wednesday, October 21, 2009.
Perla Batalla was born in Los Angeles, CA to a father immersed in music–a radio personality who owned and operated a popular Spanish language record store. Growing up in that environment, she was exposed to an education of non-stop music that cut across genres and languages. Perla first gained international attention as a backup singer for Leonard Cohen who later encouraged her to embark on a solo career. Perla released her debut album, “Perla Batalla” on the Warner/Discovery label in 1994. The critics loved it, calling her singing “sublime” and her talent “stunning”.
Batalla’s mission of honoring her roots and exposing young audiences to the beauty of music and the Spanish language is ongoing in her outreach endeavors throughout many of the poorest communities in the United States. In 2008, Perla was the recipient of the U.N. commissioned Earth Charter Award for extraordinary devotion to social and economic justice. That same year, New Mexico’s Border Book Festival honored her with their special Premio Fronterizo Award for healing work in the world. The homage to her Latin background has opened up an entire world of music and has been an inspiration for some of her finest work.
The Rio Grande Theatre is located at 211 N. Downtown Mall, in Las Cruces. Doors open at 7pm and the performance begins at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased via the website at www.RioGrandeTheatre.com. For more information contact Rio Grande Theatre Manager, David Salcido, at (575) 523-6403.
