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Russian Film Festival
Features “Las grullas pasan,” May 10, 7 p.m., at Sala Garbo, Av. 2, Ca. 28. Info: 2222-1034, 2223-1960.

Danzaméricas
Dance workshop for ages 6 and up, with professional dancers from abroad, through May 10, Layin Sing Academy, Desamparados. Info: www.danzamericas.com.

Theater Festival
Features “El arte a la vuelta de la esquina,” children's theater by Grupo ABC-O, May 10, 10 a.m., at José Figueres Ferrer Cultural Center.

Laura Chinchilla promised a government that will work closely with its citizens and ensure opportunity as she assumed her new position as president of Costa Rica on Saturday at 11:37 a.m.

She said her administration will strive to reach agreements and consensus and pledged the continuation of an “honest, humble, and firm” democracy.

“Democracy invites us to enjoy what belongs to us and what we have forged through our talent and our work, but it also propels us to open ourselves up in generosity to those who have little and those who lack everything,” Chinchilla said. “Democracy is respecting and accompanying those who encounter limits and those who haven't realized their hopes. Democracy is, in the end, the creation of opportunities.”

In terms of reaching political accord, Chinchilla said “now is the moment to construct a type of politics in which the leadership doesn't consist of dictating one style or articulating one position, but in finding shared ground and articulating agreements.”

While the former security minister campaigned largely on issues of citizen safety, public security received little mention in her inaugural address.

Rather, Chinchilla emphasized science and technology and said the two combined will help move Costa Rica into a competitive position in the future and open up doors for Costa Ricans.

”We will work for a more innovative, more intelligent, more enterprising Costa Rica with a new economy encouraged by biotechnology, organic agriculture, the audiovisual industry and the aerospace and aviation industries, among others,” Chinchilla said, flanked by an image of satellites on her right and wind turbines on her left. “We will create a Costa Rica where knowledge and technological development have dignity as their ultimate goal … a Costa Rica that seeks the talent, rigor and imagination of its population … a Costa Rica which, for these reasons, promotes the potential of its people.”

Chinchilla expressed interest in expanding the country's space exploration capacities and generating 100 percent of electricity via renewable energy sources.

On Saturday, Laura Chinchilla officially became the first female president of Costa Rica.

Click here for photos of the presidential inauguration.

Moments after assuming the presidency of Costa Rica, Laura Chinchilla signed an executive decree that places a moratorium on open-pit gold mining in the country.

The decree suspends “indefinitely” the “exploration, extraction and processing of the materials extracted through the use of cyanide and mercury.”

The new decree also repeals an executive order issued on March 18, 2008, by her predecessor, Oscar Arias, which established an “environmental safeguard” for mining in the country and laid out the basic environmental ground rules for the activity in Costa Rica.

Mining has been a cause for concern over the years, particularly after Arias gave the go-ahead to the Crucitas open-pit gold mine near the Nicaraguan border. The project is tied up in court after environmentalists filed a number of lawsuits. Chinchilla has said she will back whatever ruling the courts make regarding the Crucitas project.

Chinchilla had promised to declare the moratorium during a press conference in April.

On Saturday, Chinchilla also signed a decree creating a national anti-drug commission, which will be in charge of combating drug trafficking and reducing the consumption of illegal substances in Costa Rica.

During her first 100 days in office Chinchilla will conduct a public inquiry in hopes of helping administration officials develop integral security policies.

Chinchilla also created via decree a national care and infant development network on Saturday. The network will be coordinated by the Social Welfare Ministry and is designed to increase day care coverage and elderly assistance throughout the country.

Click here for photos of the presidential inauguration.

Musicians from all across Central America joined together Saturday night at Sabana Park. The concert represented the closing ceremony of Laura Chinchilla's inauguration day. And the bands -- which entertained with calypso, salsa, electronica, pop and rock music plus loads of violin -- indulged the tens of thousands fans in attendance on a chilly night in Sabana.

A night celebrating the start of a new presidency wouldn't be complete without politics. The never-bashful singer-songwriter Ramon Mejia (Perrozompopo) denounced gold-mining in Crucitas and asked for more help for Nicaraguan immigrants as chaos rages in Costa Rica's neighbors to the north. Rock group Malpa í s directed a message at Chinchilla about stopping illegal shark finning. Salsa star Rub é n Blades said the new government needs to do a better job protecting the environment.

The political messages all seemed well-received by a crowd of primarily-younger Ticos. The concert proved left-leaning music and Chinchilla's social conservative politics can co-exist, even if some concertgoers preferred one over the other.

"I don't have to support the president," said Juan Diego Castro, 17, of Desamparados. "But it seems to me the culture minister is very good because they promoted a truly great concert."

Rock band Malpai's pianist Manuel Obregón and violinist Iván Rodríguez serve as the minister and vice minister of culture, respectively, in Chinchilla's cabinet. They worked together to arrange the diverse concert. Perrozompopo and Malpaís, drew the bigger crowds. The two gave one of the most impressive performances of the night in a song that combined Perrozompopo's melodic vocals with the stellar violin of Malpa í s' Rodríguez.

Rising international star and Tico expat Debi Nova delighted in a shiny, skimpy silver dress, although technical difficulties made it near-impossible to hear or see the end of her set. Costa Rica's Editus demonstrated some fantastic violin playing. The group infused its music with techno beats and violin to create a catchy electronica groove.

The lineup

Artists performing included Panamanian Blades, Nicaraguan Mejia, Guillermo Anderson of Honduras, Pamela Robinson of El Salvador and Mr. Peters of Belize. Many of the bands played together on-stage. Mr. Peters kicked off the night with Costa Rica's Calypso Jazz Band. The salsa veteran – and former Panamanian tourism minister – Rubén Blades closed the show, backed by Editus and Son de Tikizia.

The Costa Rican group Gandhi - and impressive vocalists Iride Martinez and Humberto Vargas - also performed.

Click here for photos of the presidential inauguration.