More than 20 student organizations at Cornell University with interest in Latin American and Latino culture will present "Festival Grande" April 5 through 14, featuring concerts, dance performances, films, lectures, food tastings and more.

"Because of linguistic, cultural, ethnic and economic differences, members of the various Latino and Latin American communities at Cornell have maintained limited contact with each other. This needs to change," said graduate student Mercedes Franco, of the Colombian Students Association and Promocion de Actividades sobre Latinoamerica (PALA), a new group leading the festival effort.

"We are organizing a variety of social, cultural, academic, athletic and artistic events that will provide us with the unique opportunity to promote, in an amicable and festive manner, greater knowledge and understanding of our multiple backgrounds and perspectives, both among ourselves and with the community as a whole," she said.

Festival events are listed below. All are open to the public and are free unless indicated otherwise.

• Puppet workshop and show: For ages 6 to 14, this will include three workshops, taught in Spanish and Portuguese, in the Pleasant Grove Community Center. The workshops are on Saturday, April 5, 9 -- 11 a.m.; Sunday, April 6, 9 -- 11 a.m.; and Saturday, April 12, 9 -- 11 a.m. Registration is required. The group will present a puppet show on April 12 in Anabel Taylor Auditorium between 3 and 5 p.m.
• Food tastings: Traditional dishes from several Latin American countries and the southwestern United States will be served from 1 to 5 p.m. on Saturday, April 12, in the One World Room of Anabel Taylor Hall. A small donation is requested.
• Video festival: Films from Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia and other countries will be shown daily Monday, April 7, through Friday, April 11, in Room G08 Uris Hall at 4:30 p.m.
• Dance performances: The Ithaca Tanqueros and several other dance groups will perform typical dances from Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, the Dominican Republic and other countries, Saturday, April 12, Anabel Taylor Auditorium; 4 p.m.
• DJ dance party: Kelly's Dockside Cafe, Saturday, April 12, 10 p.m. -- 2 a.m.; $5 cover.
• Cuarteto Latinoamericano concert: Sunday, April 13, Barnes Hall Auditorium, 3 p.m.

Formed in Mexico in 1981, the quartet has performed throughout the world and in 1983 was honored by Mexico's Music Critics Association. The group's conductor is Mario Levasto, who teaches at the National Conservatory of Music in Mexico City and whose works have been performed by principal orchestras in Mexico and the United States. Comprising three brothers, the group has been described as "a gem of a string quartet" by the Pittsburgh Press and a "first rate ensemble of passionate temperament" by the San Francisco Chronicle.

• Argentine Tango workshops: Daniel and Maria, two leading Argentine Tango instructors from New York City, will present workshops on Saturday, April 12, and Sunday, April 13, in the Ithaca Montessori School, 120 E. King Road, as follows: Saturday, April 12: Tango I, 2 - 3:30 p.m., and Tango II, 4 - 5:30 p.m.; Sunday, April 13: Tango I, 1 - 2:30 p.m. and Tango II, 3 - 4:30 p.m.

The festival will include three guest lectures:

• Wednesday, April 9, playwright Luis Rafael Sanchez will give a talk "Porque escribe usted?" ("Why do you write?") in Spanish in the Guerlac Room of the A.D. White House at 4:30 p.m. One of Latin America's leading theatrical figures, Sanchez also teaches Hispanic literature and is the chair of the Department of Hispanic Literature at the City University of New York.
• Thursday, April 10, El’as R. GutiŽrrez, professor at the Graduate School of Planning at the University of Puerto Rico and president of a management consulting firm, will give a talk in English titled "The Golden Trap of Social and Economic Dependence: The Case of Puerto Rico," in Room G08 Uris Hall, 4:30 p.m.
• Monday, April 14, Maria Eugenia Choque Quispe, a leading Aymara intellectual who works on land rights and gender issues in Bolivia, will speak in Spanish with English translation in Room G08 Uris Hall, 4:30 p.m.

Latino Public Service Forum: A series of panels and programs will be presented Saturday, April 12, from 2 to 9 p.m. in the first floor lounge, multipurpose room of the Robert Purcell Community Center, as follows:

• 2 - 3 p.m., Latino Public Service Fair, with representatives at tables available to provide information and answer questions;
• 3 - 4 p.m., Panel I, "Education in our Community," with panelists including Latino teachers and alumni working with youths in New York City;
• 4 - 5:30 p.m., Panel II, "Tailored Needs of the Latino Community." Panelists will discuss the needs for such services as gay and lesbian support, health services, substance abuse treatment and HIV/AIDS counseling;
• 7 - 8 p.m., Panel III: "Community Development and Housing," with panelists who work on housing in the Bronx and other downstate Latino communities;
• 8 - 9 p.m.: Panel IV: "Public Service Through the Arts," with representatives from such groups as El Museo del Barrio and Nuyorican Poets Cafe discussing their work.

Sponsors of Festival Grande include PALA; the Latin American Studies Program; Dean of Students Office; Biometrics Unit; Latino Civic Association; and numerous student organizations. The Cuarteto Latinoamerican concert is sponsored by the Department of Music. For more information contact Latin American Studies at (607) 255-3345.