Quintessential Tradition
CRANBERRY TWP — Early last week, Kyli Burton of Cranberry Township looked every bit a teen in a T-shirt and denim, crowned with a soft “fro” as she spoke of her upcoming 15th birthday party.
But at that party on July 28, she seemed to morph into an elegant princess starring in a production staged, scored and scripted to reflect her and her Puerto Rican heritage: the title, “Kyli's Quintessential Quinceañera.”
Since time immemorial, the quinceañera has been a symbol of a Latina girl's transition to adulthood.
“I think it's a good way to transition,” said Kyli before her party. “It's a lot of fun. I've seen my friends more this summer than ever before.”
The “quinces” have evolved. In the Aztec and Toltec civilizations, girls at 15 were taught the skills necessary to ensure the culture would produce future warriors. This preparation culminated in a simple religious celebration.
By the 18th and 19th centuries, Spanish royals staged palace parties for teenage girls, dressed in their first formal wear, and presented them to society and potential suitors.
When Latins migrated to America in the '60s, they brought the tradition of the quinceañera with them.
Today, the price of a quinceañera averages about $4,000 while some parties cost $15,000. They feel modern but retain old traditions.
Those traditions are important to Yvonne Burton, Kyli's mother.
“I want her to remember it for the rest of her life. I want to make sure my kids know who they are and keep our traditions alive. If they can't look back, they can't look forward,” said Burton.
Getting today's teens just to look up from their cell phones is a challenge, but Burton thrives on the challenge of a huge event.
Luckily, she had the help of nearly 50 talented friends and relatives, including Kyli's father, Michael Burton, Yvonne's “second pair of hands.”
“Many of the vendors we contracted with had never heard of a quinceañera,” said Michael Burton. “We are happy to introduce this tradition to the people in this area.”
On the night before the party, he and his son, Daniel, a Philadelphia artist, put finishing touches on two 10-by-16-foot panels, Yvonne's flower walls, while Kyli and Lexi Walker, 16, of Mars (Yvonne Burton's quince assistant), ironed personalized transfers onto white T-shirts.Shonda Copeland of Philadelphia was the traditional madrina (godmother) for the quince. In the past, madrinas were responsible for guiding the young girl into womanhood. But Shonda is not Kyli's godmother, but she is like one.“Yvonne is the big sister I never had and when it comes to cooking, she knows I'm her man,” said Copeland, who was preparing beans and rice, spicy Spanish chicken and pernil (Puerto Rican pork shoulder) on July 27 for the party's authentic Puerto Rican dinner.Her daughter, Saniyah, was one of 14 girls (damas) and 11 boys (chambelans) who formed the Quinceañera Court of Honor as Kyli's attendants.Yvonne Burton said mothers of the other damas are not considered padrinas, but they had helped tremendously with the huge undertaking staged July 28 at Four Seasons Pavilion in Brady's Run Park in Beaver.“I plan to start my own event-planning business, so it's OK,” said Yvonne Burton, who produced, directed and choreographed what she called the “show.”It's success was due largely to the quinceañera court, 25 of Kyli's peers, mostly musical theater students at Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School in Midland.They set the mood at the real quinceañera event July 28 when cued by the irresistible rhythms of salsa — the youths crisscrossed and changed partners seamlessly, while performing lifts and turns that started 14 identical mint green dresses spinning like tops.
“They were always in the professional mind set. They love it,” said Burton, who minored in dance at Temple University and coached the group through at least eight dance rehearsals, one lasting eight hours.Seconds after the breezy salsa, a DJ blasted Drake's “In My Feelings” and the dancers threw aside black tuxedo jackets and four-inch, pink metallic heels for the dance challenge that blew up the Internet.Kyli, the celebrated quinceañera, made her grand entrance to the song, “Pure Imagination.” Her tiny frame emerged from a peachy pink cloud of nylon and chiffon. She wore perfectly coiffed curls and makeup.Her best friend, Clare Rectenwald of Cranberry Township, and her sister, Milo, managed the lengthy train and ushered Kyli to center stage for the first of several traditional ceremonies. Kyli wore three different custom-made dresses and special shoes for each.During the crowning ceremony, an emotional Burton placed a tiara of multicolored crystals on her daughter's head and talked about her “ray of sunshine.”The toast and roast was also emotional. Kyli, in pink high top sneakers bejeweled with Swarovski crystals, listened as her closest friends toasted her with fun facts about the year she was born, and personal stories.During the last shoe ceremony, Kyli, in palest pink, smiled broadly as her father bent over and replaced her glittery ballet flats with a pair of sophisticated spikes.“They are not her first high heels,” said her mother, but the ceremony symbolizes her father's acknowledgment of his daughter leaving childhood behind.He helped Kyli up for a slow rhumba, which Kyli said was the one she most enjoyed learning.At the center of the doll ceremony was a Barbie wearing a tiny replica of Kyli's dress, stitched by her mother.“It's supposed to be a rag doll to celebrate our Afro-Taino heritage, but Kyli liked to play with Barbies,” said Yvonne Burton.
After cutting her four-tiered cake, Kyli tossed the doll to a group of anxious girls younger than 15.“I'm giving up my childhood,” she said. “It's scary but it's fun.”After the ceremonies, the court traded formal wear for white T-shirts and shorts, becoming the “Q Crew,” back up dancers for Kyli's sister, Milo, 21, and chambelan Gionni Librizzi of New Castle who impressed with a polished salsa.The Q Crew also flanked Valentina Cherico, a sophomore at Lincoln Park, who wowed everyone with her vocal rendition of “This is Me” from the film “The Greatest Showman. “But the crowd cheered loudest when Kyli joined them.Meanwhile outside, blown up and ready for action, were the superheroes of party fun, “the inflatables” — a bounce house, an inflatable photo booth, lit-up chairs and a giant screen on which chambelan Luke Brahler of Grove City showed a comical video parody of quinceañeras.By around 8:30, teens and adults, fueled only by sparkling grape juice and '80s music, took to the floor with crazy gyrations in joyous celebration.The joy was infectious.By 9:30, Kyli, back in her comfort zone in denim and high tops, danced happily with her friends to “Dancing Queen” by Abba.She was still wearing the sparkling tiara, but she hadn't really transformed into that sophisticated princess. She was still the fresh-faced teen her family loved. But she had experienced the traditions they wanted her to carry on.More importantly, in her short lifetime she had already consciously changed people's lives for the better.
