Plena Dance Workshop with Ivelisse Diaz and Plena Libre

Plena Libre, the contemporary masters of the Puerto Rican music and dance styles of plena and bomba, provide the music for this free public dance workshop led by the “Bombera de Corazón,” Ivelisse Diaz. Influenced by the bomba style of music and dance, plena originated in the early 1900s as a way for the lower classes to share their news and messages.

Ivelisse “Bombera de Corazón” Diaz was born and raised in Humboldt Park, Chicago’s Puerto Rican barrio. Ivelisse’s journey into the compelling world of Bomba began in 1992, at the age of 5 at Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center. Mentored by her uncle Eli Samuel Rodriguez (co-founder of “Grupo Yuba”) and gaining her start as a member of “Yubitas” (Grupo Yuba’s Youth Bomba group), Ivelisse quickly developed a unique passion for the sounds of her history, as well as the history connected to those very sounds. It was as a member of Grupo Yuba that Ivelisse decided how important it was to keep the sounds of Bomba more than just alive in Chicago, but stronger than ever around the world. Today, Ivelisse runs her own bomba dance school, La Escuelita Bombera De Corazón.

This workshop is free and open to dancers of all abilities and experience levels ages 12 and up.