Preserve, Promote, Create and Educate about Indigenous Dance and Culture, to Develope the Mind, Body and Spirit.

Ballet Folklorico en Aztlan Inc. is a registered 501 (c) 3 public benefit organization.

Our Business

Founded in 1967 serving the San Diego Border Region with dance and teatro.

BFA Board of Directors 

Chair and CEO - Nancy Rodriguez is grateful for the opportunity to work with such wonderful artists and offer inspiration and consejos. She has performed original works, both in Texas and in California. Her list of performance venues include: Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center, Jump Start Theatre, Centro Cultural de la Raza, Our Lady of the Lake University, Esperanza Peace and Justice Center, University of Texas Austin, SDSU and UCSD. She was in the performance group “Mujeres Grandes". She was Executive Producer for several productions including: Viviana Enrique Acosta’s The Night Sky and Fiesta Poblana, Sandra Ruiz’ Nice Girls Don’t Dance, Dulce Solis’ Chela, Cherrie Moraga’s Heroes and Saints and Elizabeth Ruiz’ Death by Survival, directed by Dori Salois. As an actor she played lead roles in Letty y Su Mama and La Guadalupe Que Camina, both written by Beva Sanchez Padilla. She is a volunteer on various local foundation and arts boards. She has more than 20 years of non-profit service in the area of the arts, and social justice. Nancy's love of indigenous cultural arts is her passion.  Her personal search for her Two-Spirit Mexican Indigenous roots gifted Nancy a lifetime of experience surrounded by dance, music, teatro, and ceremony. Nancy believes art is the most effective way to manifest social justice in the hearts of individuals.

Secretary - Elizabeth Pantoja was born and raised in Southern Califas. She’s a student of the healing arts, enjoys dancing barefoot on Mother Earth. She studies holistic nutrition, community health and environmental issues and is currently a Xican@ Studies tutor and part of an Urban-Milpa-Organic Gardening Evolution: 'Seeds at City/Teocentli Calli' of SDCC. She is Secretary on the BFA board and offers Danza with Danza Coyolxauhqui. Her mission in life is to transmit love’s light and joy into the hearts of all people.

Treasurer - MP Schildmeyer served on the BOD of SAME, the Southeast Arts and Media Organization, a GLBT theatre group.   MP was general counsel and organizer for the 1991 National Lesbian Conference held in Atlanta.  She practiced law for several years in Atlanta, focusing on Lesbian and Women's rights as well as employment discrimination and disability rights cases. Although still licensed to practice law, MP has chosen to participate in grass roots anti-racism work and currently manages an O'Reilly Auto Parts store located on the edge of the Navaho Nation.  She has been active in Two-Spirit Gatherings with her partner of 18 years, J Spotted Eagle.  MP is honored to be a member of the Board of the BFA and will work tirelessly to further the work of the Viviana Enrique Ballet Folklorico en Aztlan.

Board Member - Jose Francisco Gonzalez has 9 years of experience as the Executive Assistant to the President and CEO of St. Vincent de Paul. He enjoys studying and offering Mexican/Indigenous dance and music.

Board Member - Cassandra Laguna Castillo has a B.A in Communications and Minor in Theatre Arts from USD. She works for KPBS. She enjoys offering Mexican/Indigenous cultura and sharing the experiences and knowledge with her daughter.  She believes in the raw power of theatre, dance and song, to promote culture and share community. She values the storytellers, most especially her grandma Betsy, who has taught and helped her remember the rich inheritance of culture, faith, and hope.

Board Member - Spotted Eagle has been an ardent activist all her life, based on her personal philosophy of constantly seeking to restore the balance that has been so disturbed by colonialism and the concomitant oppression of indigenous peoples. Classically trained as a healer and peacemaker, this two-spirit Apache woman has set out to change her world in the spirit of the great warrior-woman Lozen.

Spotted Eagle has involved herself with diverse activities, including advocacy for the children of Hope House, a Missouri battered women’s shelter. She played major roles in organizing the National Lesbian Conference in Atlanta in 1991, while assisting in the internationally acclaimed Two-Spirit Women’s Dance Troop. Another of Spotted Eagle’s endeavors is her educational outreach to non-Native populations under the auspices of WARN. Additionally, she has participated in the organizing the International Two-Spirit Gathering, formerly Baskets and Bows, by serving on the advisory board.

Spotted Eagle is fond of saying that in order for her to participate in any activity, she has to believe in and support the organization at least 110%. It is with this spirit that she serves on the Board of Directors of the Viviana Enrique Acosta Ballet Folklorico en Aztlan.