Part of DIALOGUE: Artists at the White House
Published: Issue 1, Summer 2009
Interview by JASMINE MAHMOUD

From Chicago’s south side, MAYDA DEL VALLE is an acclaimed poet and actress who won the Nuyorican Grand Slam Championship, and the Individual National Poetry Championship. She was an original cast member and writer of the Tony award winning production of Russell Simmons Def Jam Poetry on Broadway.

MAYDA DEL VALLE, photo credit: Daniella Renee

How did you prepare for the evening? As soon as I found out I was definitely going to be participating my first thought was, “I have to write something new just for this.” My second thought was, “What am I wearing?!” I spent most of the week leading up to the event just writing and thinking about the kind of performance I wanted to give. As for my attire I was able to find an amazing tailor in Los Angeles who was able to make me a white suit just in time, my cousin made a beautiful necklace for me to wear and it all came together pretty smoothly considering I only had two weeks to pull it all together. I had a lot of support from friends and loved ones who took care of some details so I could focus on the most important part, which was the writing!

What came out of the evening, an interaction between politicians and artists? Did the President or First Lady say anything about arts advocacy, arts education or arts policy? More than an anything, the evening was really a celebration of the arts and their transformative power. I was extremely impressed and deeply encouraged by the comments made by both the President and First Lady about the power of the arts to spark a dialogue in our society and how important it was to include voices of different backgrounds in that dialogue. The President said, “We’re here to celebrate the power of words and music to help us appreciate beauty but also to understand pain. To inspire us to action and to spur us on when we start to lose hope.” It is very encouraging to know that this new administration appreciates the role arts can play in our society, to heal, bridge differences and be a catalyst for understanding. And to know that they value the voices of artists that may not be considered “traditional.” I am hopeful that this will be reflected in arts policy, particularly investing in making the arts a priority in our education system.

Your words brought tears to Ayelet Waldman’s eyes, and moved so many in the room. What was the intent of your performance? My intention was very simple. To honor my ancestors in my performance and to come with words that everyone in the room could relate to. My grandmother has been on my mind a lot these days, I’m developing some new work that involves telling a bit of her story, and so this piece seemed to have come from that space. Oddly enough, several weeks prior to the performance I had started to write some of the lines. The idea was already “gestating” as I like to say. So when the invitation came, I thought to myself, “I have to finish the piece about ‘Abuela.’” It just felt right. It felt like something universally meaningful. Later as I kept writing it sunk in that we have a grandmother living in the White House, and that the President just recently lost his own. So in that moment the piece took on a deeper meaning.

Prior to the evening, what had been your interaction with politicians? Prior to the performance my interaction with politicians had been pretty limited. I don’t really know what politicians think about my work. I hope they enjoy it. If they don’t, well what can I do? It’s not really my agenda to impress anybody— politicians or otherwise with my work. I just want to tell a story in a way that moves people. My work is mostly personal. But you know what they say, “The personal is political.”

Was there a new sense of community that came out of the evening?  If so, does that community have any political potential? I think overall everyone walked away feeling inspired, motivated, and optimistic. What we do with that inspiration and spark is ultimately up to us. I would like to see a community of artists come together to try and affect policy change around the arts.

Whose performance most inspired you? I was really moved by Esperanza Spaulding. I had never seen her live and had heard so many wonderful things about her. She is simply gifted and her voice is just angelic. You can’t help but be amazed by the sight of this small woman taking an instrument that’s larger than her and mastering it to the point that it seems to shrink in her hands.

What are your upcoming projects? How have you been influenced by the evening? Right now I am wrapping up some work I’ve been doing with Youth Speaks as an artist in residence. I’m developing some new work and traveling to Puerto Rico over the summer for some research. After the evening at the White House I’m tremendously inspired to continue my work and try to take it to another level of excellence.

The Arts Politic is dedicated to solving problems at the intersection of arts and politics. What is the best way to bring artists and politicians together, and what, at best, can come out of their collaboration—what problems can be solved? I sincerely believe that artists set the vision for a society to evolve into. They express what no one else wants to say, and express those things about the human condition that we sometimes find too difficult to get in touch with. Above all the artist is brave, willing to speak truth even when it is unpopular to do so. This can make the relationship between artists and politicians one filled with hostility and confrontation, particularly when artists are challenging the status quo, or those in positions of power. But to me, this is when the relationship between the artist and politician is the most powerful. Out of that conflict comes dialogue, learning, and a new perspective. In turn the politician must be willing and open to seeing the world through the eyes of the artist in order to not lose touch with the humanity he is supposed to be serving.

I don’t know if there is an ideal relationship between artists and politicians. But I know I would like to see a dialogue between artists and policymakers that centers around the value of arts in our schools. I think we’ve pushed the arts so far to the margins that we don’t even value it in our society anymore. We are more concerned with raising Doctors, Lawyers, and Bankers, than Painters, Poets, and Musicians, not understanding that they are all equally valuable and necessary in a society.  TAP