Many people know Amalia Castro as the passionate singer from Frontera Bugalu.
But the UTEP student's also passionate about keeping kids in school, which is why she created "Arre! Let's Do This!" last year.
She's bringing it back for a second year this weekend, with art workshops for kids on Jan. 26 and music by local bands Riboflavin, her Brazilian jazz trio, Oussa Bossa and more at the El Paso Public Library, 501 N. Oregon.
It's all free.
There will be dance, painting and music workshops for kids between 2-4 p.m. Jan. 26.
Riboflavin, Oussa Bossa, Capoeira Quinto Sol and the Studio Metropolis flamenco dancers will perform between 2 and 5:30 p.m. Jan. 27.
"The event is intended to invite borderland youth to participate, learn fine arts from the region's leading artists, and will culminate with a performance from the youth," she writes on her Facebook page.
In other news:
• Step Afrika!, a Washington, D.C. troupe that specializes in a form of step dancing, will perform at 8 p.m. Feb. 28 at UTEP's Magoffin Auditorium.
Step dancing is rooted in African American college culture, and dates back almost 100 years. It's a form of expression that combines dance, making percussion sounds with the body (including clapping), and spoken word.
Tickets for their show are $7, plus service charges, on sale at the UTEP Ticket Center, Ticketmaster outlets, ticketmaster.com and 800.745.3000.
• Speaking of dance, the UTEP Golddiggers host their annual "Flashdance" showcase of local dance groups at 2 p.m. Feb. 10 at Magoffin.
Those tickets are $8.50, plus SC, at the UTEP Ticket Center, Ticketmaster and 800.745-3000.
• The winter-spring version of UTEP's Get Reel film series rolls out next week, and it's looking like there are a lot of recent box-office hits and Academy Award-nominated films on the slate.
The series, which runs Thursdays and Friday at the UTEP Union Cinema, opens at 7 p.m. Jan. 31 and Feb. 1 with Ben Affleck's Iran-hostage thriller "Argo."
It will be followed by the James Bond flick "Skyfall" (Feb. 7-8), "The Notebook" (Feb. 14-15), the documentary "When I Rise," about a racial incident in 1956 Austin involving black mezzosoprano Barbara Smith Conrad (Feb. 21-22); and "Madagascar 3" (Feb. 28-March 1).
The rest of March: "Les Miserables" (March 7-8) and "This Is 40" (March 14-15).
The post-spring break offerings are Kathryn Bigelow's Osama bin Laden drama "Zero Dark Thirty" (April 4-5), the excellent French film "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (April 11-12), "The Lorax" (April 18-19) and Quentin Tarantino's controversial "Django Unchained" (April 25-26).
All but "Django" are at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $1 for UTEP people, $2 for the rest of us. You can get them at the door, or, for a service charge, buy them from Ticketmaster beginning Jan. 30.
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