Workshop description
“In this Bomba Workshop, we will learn about the history of Bomba, as well as some movement vocabulary and explorations, such as Paseo, Coro y Piquetes. We will engage with the drums and explore different rhythms in Bomba and explore the ancestral Afro Boricua tradition of dance and drums. Bring a scarf or a long skirt! En este Taller de Bomba, aprenderemos sobre la historia de la Bomba, así como algunos vocabularios y exploraciones de movimiento, como Paseo, Coro y Piquetes. Nos involucraremos con los tambores y exploraremos diferentes ritmos en Bomba y exploraremos la tradición ancestral afro boricua de la danza y tambor. ¡Trae una bufanda o una falda larga!”
About Clara Díaz
Clara Isabel Díaz Maldonado is an Utuado raised Afro Boricua Dancer and Cultural Administrator. She began her journey in Utuado, a crucial place for her due to the importance in Taino Culture as well as the Nationalist Movement, where she was raised and lived in until 2012. She received her Bachelor’s Degree at Universidad de Puerto Rico, Río Piedras, where she explored Caribbean Art History and Legacies. Her Undergraduate Thesis, “The representation of Bomba Dance in Puerto Rico’s Visual Arts” gives her a chance to dive deeper into her passion for Bomba, as well as the historical background in Puerto Rico’s Art History.
After living through the devastation of Hurricane Maria in her hometown Utuado, she was accepted into Baruch College to pursue a Masters Degree in Arts Administration, graduating in 2021. Since then, she has been living between both worlds: East Coast and Puerto Rico. She has developed programs at El Museo del Barrio, The Public Theater, and worked with organizations like New York Latino Film Fest and Studio Museum in Harlem. Currently, she performs Bomba with groups like Segunda Quimbamba, Bomba Yo, Bombrxs de NYC, Pa Afincar and Taller Tambuyé. She continues her bomba journey with Segunda Quimbamba as a Dance Teaching Artist since 2020 and develops programs and workshops focused on Bomba Dance and Tradition.