Columbia’s Mi Gente Latin Dance Club and Team is set to perform at the halftime show of the Chicago Bears home game on Monday, Sept. 28, bringing current student and alumni dancers together for primetime at Soldier Field.
Valentina Garcia, president of Mi Gente, heard of the opportunity after taking a salsa class with Denita Inez, director of Desueño Dance Company. Garcia initially was looking for a space to restage a parade choreography. Although that collaboration didn’t materialize, Inez later texted Garcia with a new opportunity to perform at Soldier Field.
“You never know who you are going to meet. If that day I would have said I’m not going to go to that salsa class, I would have never met Denita and the team wouldn’t be here right now,” said Garcia, a junior dance major, who coordinated and selected the team that will perform at the football game.
Mi Gente is a student dance club centered on uplifting Latino voices, traditions and heritage through a variety of dance styles. Fourteen current students and alumni are set to perform at the halftime show.
Senior dance major Areli Ramirez’s initial thought was that the invitation to perform did not feel real.
“I started questioning and asking ‘what if it’s for a performance outside of Soldier Field?’” she said. “It feels unreal because you pass by it every day coming onto campus.”
Mi Gente has been rehearsing the Soldier Field choreography for over a month, practicing once a week for one hour at Columbia and two times a week outside of club hours.
Emily Ortiz, junior acting major, is proud of what the club has done and what it means for her.
“It’s such a great and amazing opportunity for us,” Ortiz said. “Being Latinos, we are typically not seen very much and this performance is not just about dancing, but about unity and community.”
Liliana Napoles Carrera, vice president of Mi Gente, hopes that their performance leaves people feeling more empowered to go and perform at bigger spaces, leaving behind their fear of showing off their culture and love for dancing.
Columbia alum Elizabeth Moran, who graduated in 2026, said she’s proud of what the team has achieved thus far.
“The purpose of Mi Gente was to represent our Latinidad and to also express our love for dance and creativity,” said Moran, former vice president of Mi Gente. “This aligns with the show’s purpose in a way to represent different cultures, dances, styles and putting them all together in a celebratory sense.”
Mi Gente is set to perform at 8:45 p.m., alongside other dance groups at the halftime show.
“I’m so proud of all of our team and all of the work we’ve put in. It’s going to be a really great show,” Carrera said.
Copy edited by Isaac Russo
Resumen en español:
Mi Gente, el grupo estudiantil de baile, actuará en el espectáculo de medio tiempo durante el partido de los Chicago Bears como local el lunes 28 de septiembre, reuniendo a miembros actuales y pasados del grupo para bailar en el Soldier Field.
Valentina García, presidenta de Mi Gente, coordinó y seleccionó al equipo que participará en la actuación de medio tiempo.
García se enteró de esta oportunidad tras conocer a Denita Inez, directora de la compañía de danza llamada Desueño, al asistir a su clase de salsa mientras buscaba un espacio para volver a montar una coreografía de desfile. Aunque aquella colaboración inicial no llegó a concretarse, más tarde Inez contactó a García para ofrecerle una nueva oportunidad de actuar en el Soldier Field.
Mi Gente cuenta con 10 miembros activos, con un total de 14 miembros actuales y pasados listos para actuar en el espectáculo de medio tiempo.
La actuación de Mi Gente está programada para las 8:45 p.m., junto a otros grupos de baile, durante el espectáculo de medio tiempo.
Resumen en español por Anthony Hernandez
