We got our first look at the folkloric dance of the Altiplano at a dinner show in downtown Puno. Yes, it was touristy, but it was also a great opportunity to see at least a dozen different colorful dances, all accompanied by musicians playing traditional Andean music.
One of the most memorable dances we saw was called diablada. This dance recalls the time when the Jesuits settled in the area and forced the Indians to convert to Christianity. The dance portrays the victory of good (a female dancer dressed as an angel) over evil (a male dancer dressed as the devil). The diablada is a reminder of the punishment (burning at the stake) imposed by the Inquisition on those found guilty of heresy. It is one of many dances that exhibits religious syncretism, i.e. a blending of indigenous and Christian cultures, and it’s one of the most popular dances in the Altiplano regions of Peru and neighboring Bolivia, Chile, and Ecuador.
Caporales is another popuar dance, and one that looked familiar to me because students from the high school where I taught used to perform it at our multicultural festivals. The word caporales refers to the Spanish foremen of the gold and silver mines who carried clubs and whips to control the workers (actually, African and indigenous slaves). In this dance, the focus is on the male dancers, who perform dramatic acrobatic movements, with lots of jumping, stomping, and whip snapping. They usually wear tall boots and hold a hat in one hand. The jangling bells (cascabeles) sewn onto their costumes are a reminder of the chains that encircled the ankles of the slaves. Meanwhile, the female dancers, in their brightly colored sparkly costumes with bowler hats perched on their heads, have relatively little to do except swish their multi-layered mini-skirts around.
In the Morenada dance, men wear black or silver masks and barrel-shaped costumes. Once again, the women wear multi-layered short skirts and bowler hats. The dancers carry rattles and drums. The origin of this dance is unclear.
There were also dances that recalled indigenous culture before the arrival of the Spanish. In these, the performers wear traditional Andean clothing.
I really got into the spirit as I watched the performances. In fact, when the MC asked members of the audience to come up on stage to participate, I didn’t hesitate to volunteer. (I know this may shock those of you who knew me during my shy and self-conscious younger days.) It was great fun – although it would been even more fun if I’d been able to wear one of sequined costumes!
We had another chance to see traditional dances in downtown Puno during the annual parade featuring university students and faculty. Think of it as Homecoming on steroids. Since there are 17,000 students at the public university and they are all required to participate, the parade through the downtown area starts around 9 in the morning and doesn’t finish until around 12 hours later. Each group carries a banner to identify their area of study. As the groups pass through the city’s main plaza, they stop and perform for the crowds. The parade draws thousands of spectators. It’s quite a spectacle, with groups of brightly costumed dancers and accompanying bands filling the streets for hours.
By the time we got to the downtown area after a long day of adventures outside the city, it was mid-afternoon but the festivities were still going strong. The main plaza, where performances were taking place, was packed solid. Since we couldn’t see over the masses of people, we followed Walter through the nearby streets to a less crowded spot along the parade route. Even in that location, the music of the bands was deafening.
A few of us eventually sought refuge on the second floor terrace of a restaurant overlooking the parade route. From that vantage point, we could sit in comfort with tall frosty drinks and view the parade as it passed by in the street below. We noticed groups studying agronomy, the arts, business administration, and secondary education, to name just a few.
The most popular dances seemed to be caporales and diablada, but we also saw the morenada as well as some traditional Andean dances.
As for the dancers wearing yellow horns, they’re dressed to represent bulls for a dance that recalls the sport of bullfighting, introduced by the Spanish.
The procession was still going on when we took a break for dinner at a restaurant along the parade route. It was already dark when we finished our meal, but the bands were blasting their music at full volume. The dancers, however, were definitely showing signs of fatigue. Many were pausing to grab drinks or to chat with onlookers.
I can’t even imagine how they must have felt after marching for nearly 12 hours in their high heeled shoes. But instead of going home, most will continue celebrating, i.e. drinking, with friends well into the night, according to Walter. I suppose that’s fine for the young people, but I truly felt sorry for their teachers who also had to participate. I certainly hope no one had classes the following day.
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