Guillermo Gómez-Peña (US/Mexico) is a performance artist, writer, activist, radical pedagogue and director of the legendary performance troupe La Pocha Nostra. Born in Mexico City, he moved to the US in 1978. His performance work and 12 books have contributed to the debates on cultural & gender diversity, border culture and US/Mexico relations. His artwork has been presented at over a thousand venues across the US, Canada, Latin America, Europe, Russia, South Africa and Australia. A MacArthur Fellow, Bessie and American Book Award winner, he is a regular contributor for newspapers and magazines in the US, Mexico, and Europe, a contributing editor to The Drama Review (NYU/MIT) and the Live Art Almanac (Live Art Development Agency-UK). Gómez-Peña is also a Senior Fellow in the Hemispheric Institute of Performance and Politics and a Patron for the London-based Live Art Development Agency. He was named Samuel Hoi Fellow by USA Artists in 2012 and received a Eureka Fellowship from the Fleishhacker Foundation in 2013. Gómez-Peña received a 2019 Guggenheim Fellowship and is currently preparing two new books for Routledge (2019) and a documentary portrait of his beloved troupe.
I was so fortunate to meet Gil Scott Heron before he died. In 2009, we were both on the bill the same day at the WOMAD festival in the UK. I peeked into his backstage tent and there he was sitting on a beanbag. I had been writing in French and Spanish for a few years and felt an urge to write in English to communicate the urgency of my message. Earlier that year, I had pulled out the EPs of my favorite musicians who had influenced me as a child. John Lennon. Joe Strummer. Gil Scott Heron. . .So I peaked into his backstage tent, and there he was. He saw me and motioned for me to come in and to sit on the beanbag next to him. So I did. And we talked about the challenge of creating music to awaken a sleeping people in this day and age. We talked about not worrying about genre and letting music be a force of Liberation. We talked about many things and he gave me his phone number and told me to call him to continue our dialogue. Through our discussion, he asked me, "What is your contribution to the dialogue around race in America going to be?" It took me eight years to respond. Here it is, Gil. Thank you.
We sourced two amazing varieties of peppers one from Johnny’s Select seeds in maine - Red Rocket and the other Hidalgo is from Siskiyou seeds in Williams Oregon - Both are unique and spicy! Red Rocket is a tapered, thin-walled, 5-6" long, cayenne chile fruits. It dries quickly to a bright crimson red. The died fruits have a tender flesh which is nice and soft when cooked.
The Hidalgo is a type of Serrano from Mexico that grows abundant 2-3" long by 1/2" wide fruits on 24-36" plants that are unique in that they have fuzzy green leaves and stems with white flowers. Moderately spicy it is a versatile chili to use in a wide variety of dishes. Quite a bit hotter than a jalapeno. With their moderately thick flesh they are popular for pickling.
Sow seed in shallow flats, 4 seeds/in., 1/4" deep, in late March or about 8 weeks prior to transplanting. If possible, maintain soil temperatures 80-90°F (27-32°C). Pepper seeds germinate very slowly in cooler soil. When the first true leaves appear transplant seedlings into 2" cell-type containers or 4" pots.Transplant out after frost when the soil is warm and weather is settled. Ideal seedlings have buds, but no open flowers. Set plants 12-18" apart.