There’s an ugly movement afoot in America. It’s the old guard, newly empowered, suddenly appearing in even more grotesque forms. Propaganda floods the airwaves about non-existent dog-eating Haitians and the need to close our borders. Families are being torn apart. Innocent people, who have worked in the U.S. their entire lives are being thrown into Salvadoran death holes.
Into this environment, UCSC Ph.D student Stephanie F. Valadez is bringing to life a multicultural vision titled Tenanan that will be performed on Saturday as the second concert of the university’s April in Santa Cruz music festival.
In Tenanan, Valadez is constructing a narrative performed through mixed ensemble, spoken word and dance, which will also be accompanied by other works of Latin American popular music.
“These are my favorite kinds of shows to put on,” says the young, vibrant doctoral student. “I like telling stories through art. Some say that ‘art is for art’s sake,’ but I like to have it tell a story.”
The creative firebrand also holds distinguished degrees, including a diploma in performing arts from the Escuela de Ballet Folklórico de México de Amalia Hernández and multiple master’s degrees from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
Valadez is also the mother of a two-year-old and is raising her daughter alone, as her husband has been denied entry into the country (even though he had valid work permits and was in the middle of working as a journeyman).
Valadez holds both American and Mexican citizenship. “On my American side, my dad, he was always reading to me Dr. Seuss,” Valadez says. “As a kid, Dr. Seuss is wild. It’s a lot of made-up words. And it’s very colorful and bright. But it also just jumps around, where it’s a different story every two or three pages. But somehow it all ties together. And so our show is like that.”
Valadez understands that one of the hardest things about putting together a multicultural show is that it needs to be understood by everyone from the youngest to the oldest audience member. And while Tenanan is fun and engaging, it also addresses heavier topics.
One might expect that a performance that deals with adversity, immigrant life, absent parents, gender violence and economic crisis is going to be grim. But Valadez finds inspiration in surprising places. “Tenanan has three spoken-word pieces that are all, kind of, in the style of Dr. Seuss,” Valadez says.
Combined with some darker stories of old Europe, like the actual Grimm, Valadez tries to strike an equilibrium. “When you’re looking at European stories, they are very dark, and usually light at the same time. Being able to hold that balance between the two was definitely something that I wanted to bring to the table.”
With a country on edge, trying to figure out a way to heal the great divide, Valadez is poignant. “I think something that is lacking in our society is empathy,” Valadez says. “Being able to accept that you have privilege isn’t easy for some people. Privilege isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I think the issue is how privilege is used and what comes after it.”
Systematic oppression isn’t anything new to people with Mexican heritage. But 2025 is a bellwether moment for where we may be headed. Chaos or community. “Art gives you access to people that normally wouldn’t listen to you. Arguments and scholarly papers only get you so far.
“What’s happening is cyclical, unfortunately,” she continues. “Go back to the Repatriation Act, when all of the Mexicans were removed in California. Or look at 1933 Germany. You want to look at fascism? You want to look at what was happening in Italy? You know, you want to look at what ends up happening when the CIA gets involved in, like South America in the ’70s. I mean, these issues, unfortunately, aren’t anything new.
“But I believe art can transcend beyond conflict. The thing to remember is that it’s really important to speak up,” Valadez says.
And here is where it becomes paradoxical. What if somebody has privilege, but is also themselves a target?
“I have privilege. I have a space to speak up about it and to say something, then I need to. And if there are repercussions from it, then that’s also part of it. Because they’re repercussions that need to be exposed,” Valadez concludes wistfully.
Tenanan will be performed on Saturday, April 19 at the Music Center Recital Hall, 400 McHenry Road, Santa Cruz. Doors 5:30, show 6pm. Free. calendar.ucsc.edu
