May 17, 1998
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A.E. Araiza,
The Arizona Daily Star
Gabriel Espino and Laura Gastello share love of dance with young pupils.

By Jennifer Levario
Special to The Arizona Daily Star

Girls twirl in long, full skirts and boys stomp their boots with precision to the beat of Mexican folklórico music.

The ballet folklórico dancers repeat the steps, making each one smoother and more defined.

Instructors Gabriel Espino and Laura Gastello are teaching Ochoa Elementary School pupils to be precise and to feel the music.

Espino and Gastello, seniors at Tucson High Magnet School, began teaching the children in December.

``I really love working with the kids and seeing how their different personalities come out in their dancing,'' said Gastello, 18.

``The true reward is watching them get a dance move right and seeing how proud they are of themselves,'' said Gastello, who, along with Espino, 18, performs with Ballet Folklérico del Sudoeste.

Gastello looked at her protégés and remembered when she was a girl. She said she was motivated by her mother.

``Since I was really little I liked watching movies like `Salsa' and `Dirty Dancing.'

``But it was my mother who kept me interested in dance,'' said Gastello. She said her mom taught her to believe in herself.

Now Gastello and Espino are teaching children the same. The two teach four days a week at Ochoa and earn minimum wage.

Gastello said teaching children can be frustrating on days when the youngsters don't want to listen.

Patience is the key, said Espino. ``It's natural. Sometimes events happen at school that excite the kids and it may take a while to get them under control. That happens with high school students, too,'' he said, laughing.

Gastello said her mom ``reminds me how worthwhile working with the kids can be. She doesn't let me give it up.''

For Espino, working at Ochoa is ideal for his future plans. ``I want to go into the teaching field and this gives me perfect experience.'' He said he began dancing at age 6.

He said his love for dance was inspired by the late Angel Hernandez, who founded Pima Community College's ballet folklórico program. Hernandez inspired dozens of children who are now performing.

Espino was dancing before local audiences at age 7. By 14, he joined the group Ballet Folklórico del Sudoeste and traveled to Milwaukee to perform in a festival. A year later, he traveled to Paris and danced before UNESCO.

``The stage was huge and the lights were so bright I couldn't even see the audience,'' recalled Espino.

``I was told by our director that this would be the most important performance of our lives. I was so nervous going out onto the stage, but once I got out there, it all went away.

``We put on one of the best performances ever,'' he said. Gastello and Espino said those are the type of performers they want to teach the children to become.

Jennifer Levario is a senior at Salpointe Catholic High School.