{{short description|Peruvian composer}} {{Infobox person | name = Victoria Santa Cruz | image = Victoria Santa Cruz (compositora peruana).jpg | caption = Portrait of Victoria Santa Cruz | birth_name = Victoria Eugenia Santa Cruz Gamarra | birth_date = {{birth date|1922|10|27}} | birth_place = Lima, Peru | death_date = {{death date and age|2014|08|30|1922|10|27}} | death_place = Lima, Peru | occupation = Choreographer, composer, performer, professor | known_for = Afro-Peruvian dance and theatre, poem "Me gritaron negra" | education = Université du Théâtre des Nations (École Supérieure des Études Chorégraphiques) | years_active = 1950s–2010s | relatives = Nicomedes Santa Cruz (brother) | awards = Best Folklorist (1970), Director of National Folklore Ensemble (1973) }} '''Victoria Eugenia Santa Cruz Gamarra''' (27 October 1922 – August 30, 2014)<ref>[http://elcomercio.pe/luces/musica/murio-victoria-santa-cruz-difusora-cultura-negra-noticia-1753464 Obituary in El Comercio]</ref> was an Afro-Peruvian choreographer, composer and activist.
Victoria Santa Cruz would go on to be called "the mother of Afro Peruvian dance and theatre."<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.sfiaf.org/de_rompe_y_raja_cultural_association_tribute_to_victoria_santa_cruz |title=SFIAF |access-date=2015-06-07 |archive-date=2015-07-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150707150640/http://www.sfiaf.org/de_rompe_y_raja_cultural_association_tribute_to_victoria_santa_cruz |url-status=dead }}</ref> Along with her brother, Nicomedes Santa Cruz, she is credited as significant in a revival of Afro-Peruvian culture in the 1960s and 1970s. They both came from a long-line of artists and intellectuals. For her part she is said to have had "Afrocentrism" influences in her view of dance trying to discover "ancestral memory" of African forms. She helped to found the ''Cumanana'' company.<ref name="Feldman2006">{{cite book|author=Heidi Carolyn Feldman|title=Black Rhythms of Peru: Reviving African Musical Heritage in the Black Pacific|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IUeT3eoU7VUC&pg=PA49|year=2006|publisher=Wesleyan University Press|isbn=978-0-8195-6814-4|pages=49–62}}</ref>
== Early life == Santa Cruz was born eighth of ten children in Lima, Peru.<ref name=":5" /> Her father was Nicomedes Santa Cruz Aparicio and her mother was Victoria Gamarra. Her mother spoke only Spanish and loved to dance.<ref>[http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/cal/summary/v034/34.2.jones06.html "An Interview with Victoria Santa Cruz" From "Callaloo" Volume 34, Number 2, Spring 2011 via Project Muse]</ref> Her younger brother Nicomedes Santa Cruz became a famous poet who she often performed with.<ref name="Santa Cruz 2011 481–482">{{Cite journal|last=Santa Cruz|first=Nicomedes|s2cid=201794145|date=2011|title=Ritmos Negros del Peru|journal=Callaloo|volume=34|issue=2|pages=481–482|doi=10.1353/cal.2011.0120|issn=1080-6512}}</ref>
At an early age, Victoria Santa Cruz was introduced to the fine arts, having come from a household full of black artists and musicians. One of her earliest influences were her parents whom she first learned about Afro-Peruvian dance (marinera and other criollo dances) as well as poetry and music.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://hammer.ucla.edu/exhibitions/2017/radical-women-latin-american-art-1960-1985/|title=Radical Women: Latin American Art, 1960–1985 - Hammer Museum|website=The Hammer Museum|access-date=2019-02-04}}</ref> This early on exposure to the fine arts led Victoria Santa Cruz to create and participate in musicals like ''Malató'',<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dXijvOtR4WYC&q=malato+1961&pg=PA57|title=Black Rhythms of Peru: Reviving African Musical Heritage in the Black Pacific|last=Feldman|first=Heidi|date=2006|publisher=Wesleyan University Press|isbn=9780819568151}}</ref> which would later on embody one of her lifelong goals of "self-discovery and recuperation of culture based on internal rhythm and what she called ancestral memory."<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Santa Cruz|first=José|date=July 2011|title=El rostro cinematográfico|journal=Aisthesis|issue=49|pages=131–144|doi=10.4067/s0718-71812011000100008|issn=0718-7181|doi-access=free|url=http://www.scielo.cl/pdf/aisthesis/n49/art08.pdf}}</ref> Through this goal, Victoria sought to "awaken black consciousness and pride" in the Afro-Peruvian culture.<ref name=":0" /> Her passion for dance and musical composition would continue to influence her throughout her life as she went on to study in Paris.
In an interview with Marcus D. Jones, Santa Cruz describes this moment in her childhood where she first experiences "sufferance."<ref name=":1">Jones, Marcus D., et al. “AN INTERVIEW WITH VICTORIA SANTA CRUZ.” ''Callaloo'', vol. 34, no. 2, 2021, pp. 304–308. ''JSTOR'', www.jstor.org/stable/41243069.</ref> In this scene, she describes how her friends rejected her because of her African features. At the age of five when she was with her group of friends, a new blonde and white girl in her neighborhood told them: “If the black girl wants to play with us, I’ll go”. She makes a direct reference to this in her famous poem, ''Me gritaron negra''.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web|url=https://hammer.ucla.edu/radical-women/art/art/me-gritaron-negra-they-shouted-black-at-me|title=Me gritaron negra (They shouted black at me) {{!}} Hammer Museum|website=hammer.ucla.edu|language=en|access-date=2020-04-29}}</ref> Out of this experience, the artist begins her long-lived exploration of self and recuperation. In this same interview, the artist demonstrates some of the internal dialogue that prompts her desire for self-discovery from a very young age, asking "What am I doing? What is to be black? What is to be white?"<ref name=":1" /> In addition to this, Santa Cruz was quoted as saying "obstacles play an important role" in regards to the racism she experienced in her lifetime.<ref name="Santa Cruz 2011 481–482"/>
== Career == Santa Cruz founded Cumanana, a theater company, Nicomedes in 1958 and co-managed it until 1961.<ref name=":5" /> In 1966, Victoria Santa Cruz founded the group Teatro y Danzas del Perú,<ref>{{Citation|last=lalitocy|title=Formación de Teatro y Danzas Negras del Perú de Victoria Santa Cruz|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEL1_w-BYes|access-date=2019-02-04}}</ref> which were group performances led by Cruz and other prominent Afro-Peruvian dancers that played a role in reclaiming lost heritages. Traditional, cultural, music played in the background as the dancers performed their pieces individually and as a group. The importance of these performances highlights the "recovery, creation, and recreation" of dying rhythms such as "the zamacueca, the landau and the alcatraz".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://rocolaperuana.lamula.pe/2017/10/03/asi-fue-el-debut-de-teatro-y-danzas-negras-del-peru-de-victoria-santa-cruz/luchitopastor/|title=Así fue el debut de Teatro y Danzas Negras del Perú de Victoria Santa Cruz|website=rocolaperuana.lamula.pe|language=es|access-date=2019-02-04}}</ref> Her artistic career as a performer, choreographer, and composer took her to new heights like being televised on Peruvian Television and being visited on her international tours. But the biggest international milestone was perhaps the group's performance at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City.<ref name=":0" /> Recreations of such lost rhythms earned her a position amongst the Revolutionary Government of the Peruvian Military. Cruz was "appointed director of the newly established Escuela Nacional de Folklore" in 1969 and director of "the Conjunto Nacional de Folklore" in 1973.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://laprensa.peru.com/espectaculos/noticia-murio-victoria-santa-cruz-emblema-cultura-afroperuana-31030|title=Murió Victoria Santa Cruz, emblema de la cultura afroperuana|date=2014-08-30|website=laprensa.peru.com|language=es|access-date=2019-02-04}}</ref> She continued touring with the group through big nations like the United States, Canada, and Western Europe.<ref name=":0" />
Other accomplishments include her publication of the magazine Folklore, in which she describes the Conjunto's goal to "compile, preserve, research, and disseminate national folklore in the form of dance, music, songs, and musical instruments",<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IUeT3eoU7VUC&q=folklore+magazine+victoria+santa+cruz&pg=PA76|title=Black Rhythms of Peru: Reviving African Musical Heritage in the Black Pacific|last=Feldman|first=Heidi Carolyn|date=2006|publisher=Wesleyan University Press|isbn=9780819568144}}</ref> and her position as a professor at Carnegie Mellon University (1982-1999).<ref name=":0" />
== Education == Victoria Santa Cruz first attended the ''Université du Théâtre des Nations École Supérieur des Études Chorégraphiques'' at the age of 42 (1961-1965), where she studied theater and choreography "with such distinguished professors as the actor Jean-Louis Barrault, the playwright Eugène Ionesco, and the choreographer Maurice Béjart."<ref name=":0" /> While studying at the university in Paris, Cruz continued to demonstrate her interest to reclaim the loss of her cultural and ancestral memory by visiting Africa for the first time and creating the ballet ''La muñeca negra'' (The black doll, 1965)<ref name=":5">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IUeT3eoU7VUC&q=la+muneca+negra+victoria&pg=PA73|title=Black Rhythms of Peru: Reviving African Musical Heritage in the Black Pacific|last=Feldman|first=Heidi Carolyn|date=2006|publisher=Wesleyan University Press|isbn=9780819568144}}</ref>
== Artworks and performances == '''Malato (1961) - Musical/Play'''
Malato is a three act musical which showcased the relationship between the enslaved and their oppressor that was removed from the Peruvian history of slavery. The play was written, choreographed, and staged by Santa Cruz.<ref name="Feldman">{{Citation |last=Feldman |first=Heidi Carolyn |title=Santa Cruz Gamarra, Victoria |entry=Santa Cruz Gamarra, Victoria |date=2016-06-01 |encyclopedia=African American Studies Center |publisher=Oxford University Press |doi=10.1093/acref/9780195301731.013.75050 |isbn=978-0-19-530173-1}}</ref>
'''Cumanana (1970) - song'''
Cumanana (Kumanana) [1970] is the name of one of her more prominent songs because it evokes her past in the band with her brother Nicomedes. The term, as described by Victoria Santa Cruz, means "mix of Spanish and black things," which makes reference to her identity.
'''Me gritaron negra (1978) - poem'''/'''spoken word'''
She is known for her visual, lyrical poem ''Me gritaron negra (They Shouted Black At Me)'', show cased in the exhibition Radical Women: Latin American Art, 1960-1985 and at the Brooklyn Museum.<ref name=":6" /> This piece became prominent because of its social commentary on race, racism, and prejudice amongst the Latino community in regards to Afro-Peruvians.
The artist is also known for these lyrical and rhythmic performances/recreations:
'''La Magia del Ritmo (2004) - theater/play/musical performance'''
La Magia del Ritmo is a performance and rhythmic song presented by Victoria Santa Cruz in 2004, as part of the Peruvian Japanese theatric play. The artist's intent was to create a lively experience and connection amongst listeners/viewers by infusing theatrics with cultural and rhythmic music.
'''Ritmo, El Eternal Organizador (2004) - Book'''
The only book published by Santa Cruz and edited by Luis Rodriguez Pastor. This book reflected her personal views and gave a detailed understanding into her outlook on life.<ref>{{Cite book |section=Indicadores de la ayuda, el comercio y el desarrollo relativos a Perú |title=La ayuda para el comercio en síntesis 2015 |location=Paris |publisher= OECD Publishing |date=2017 |page=404 |doi=10.1787/ayuda_sintesis-2015-59-es}}</ref><ref name="Feldman"/>
'''Pa' Goza Con el Ritmo del Tambo (2014) - song'''
Pa' Goza Con el Ritmo del Tambo is another rhythmic, cultural song by the artist that highlights the pride of being Afro-Peruvian while showing appreciation towards el Tambo. This song is from her album Somos de Ébano y No de Marfíl published in 2014.
'''Las Lavanderas (2015) - song'''
Las Lavanderas is rhythmic and cultural song from her album Victoria Santa Cruz y Gente Morena released in 2015 as part of a collective. This song reveals some of the social commentaries around Afro-Peruvians that Victoria recognizes as struggles for many Afro-Latinos. In the song, dialogue includes an exchange between two individuals pointing out the neighborhood's Afro-Peruvian woman, calling her “Negra sucia” and “Negra idiota” which translates into dirty and idiot.
'''La Buñolera (2016) - song'''
La Buñolera is another example of the artist's taken pride for her identity as an Afro-Peruvian woman. This song is specifically geared towards "Afro Peruvanas," Afro-Peruvian women
== Exhibitions ==
* Radical Women: Latin American Art, 1960-1985<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://hammer.ucla.edu/blog/2017/11/defying-expectations-in-radical-women/|title=Defying Expectations in Radical Women - Hammer Museum|website=The Hammer Museum|access-date=2019-02-27}}</ref> * Brooklyn Museum: Radical Women: Latin American Art, 1960-1985<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url=https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/radical_women|title=Brooklyn Museum: Radical Women: Latin American Art, 1960–1985|website=www.brooklynmuseum.org|access-date=2019-02-27}}</ref> * Primer Festival y Seminario Latinoamericano de Televisión in 1970<ref name=":4">{{Cite web|url=https://elcomercio.pe/luces/musica/victoria-santa-cruz-heroina-arte-negro-peruano-176294|title=Victoria Santa Cruz, una heroína del arte negro peruano|last=Elcomercio.pe|first=Redacción|date=2014-08-30|website=El Comercio|language=es|access-date=2019-02-27}}</ref> * Cali Festival, 1971<ref name=":4" />
== Collections == Many of the artist's pieces were original or remade songs that now live as collections in CD's or online-accessible music. Access to her musical collections can be streamed through major platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon. Her collections include:
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKp9RK7X_80 Poemas y Pregones Afro Peruanos] (released) April 2, 2013) and includes her famous poem Me Gritaron Negra.
- [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_khT_Y_Cxvi-lZdWE2DjH3VgtEhvRxqAV4 Con Victoria Santa Cruz y Gente Morena] (released October 2, 2015), includes her song Las Lavanderas.
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNZZPtIMc6E Victoria Santa Cruz: Orgullosa Afro Peruana] (released May 11, 2016) and includes her biggest hits like Cumanana, La Buñolera, and Pa' Goza Con el Ritmo del Tambo.
== Awards and honors ==
* She received a scholarship by the French government and traveled to Paris to study choreography. Here, she succeeded as the creator and designer of the wardrobe for the play ''El Retablo de Don Cristóbal'' by Federico García Lorca. * Best Folklorist, 1970<ref name=":4" /> * Appointed Director of the National Folklore Ensemble of the National Institute of Culture in 1973<ref name=":4" />
== Death == In her last interview, Victoria Santa Cruz responds to the question "what has racism taught you?" by stating "in a little while, I will leave this life... and I want to leave in peace, with my conscience clean, and we'll see what happens here. But everything is weakened, dislocated in the entire world. And everyone is losing because really, this is not how you fight."<ref name=":2">Jones, M., Carrillo, M., & CRUZ, V. (2011). AN INTERVIEW WITH VICTORIA SANTA CRUZ. ''Callaloo,'' ''34''(2), 304-308. Retrieved from {{JSTOR|41243069}}</ref>
She died on August 30, 2014, in Lima, Peru.
== References == {{Reflist}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Santa Cruz, Victoria}} Category:Peruvian choreographers Category:Peruvian women choreographers Category:20th-century Peruvian women singers Category:20th-century Peruvian singers Category:1922 births Category:2014 deaths Category:People from Lima Category:20th-century Peruvian women Category:21st-century Peruvian women Category:Peruvian composers Category:Carnegie Mellon University faculty Category:Peruvian performance artists Category:Afro–Latin American culture Category:Peruvian people of African descent