Repertoire
PÉROU
Scène des « Vírgenes del sol », les vierges du soleil qui vénèrent Inca, le fils du dieu du soleil. Interprétation libre avec influence contemporaine.
Les Mochicas, ou la culture moche (1er siècle – 8ème siècle après J.-C.), est une haute culture du Nord du Pérou. Ils pratiquaient le sacrifice humain pour célébrer et apaiser les dieux. Ils croyaient en la réincarnation, raison pour laquelle ils ne craignaient pas autant la mort physique.
Ainsi le seigneur de Sipán revient à la vie, en toute sa splendeur, accompagné de ses prêtres et servantes.
CÔTE
Un rythme afro péruvien qui exprime de manière très sensuelle la concurrence entre femmes et hommes. On essaye mutuellement de brûler à l’aide d’une bougie un tissu en papier attaché dans le dos, ce qui ne peut être empêché uniquement par de mouvements des hanches très rapides.
Rythme et danse de la population noire du Pérou, dont la traduction signifie « fête ».
Initié par des esclaves, le Festejo est un exemple de mélange entre éléments africains, européens et créoles. Il est caractérisé par des mouvements libres, sensuels, issus tout simplement de la joie que procure la danse.
Comme pour beaucoup d’autres danses, le Festejo exprime la joie après une longue journée de travail dans les champs, accompagné dans le temps par le rythme des caisses des fruits et d’autres percussions improvisées.
De nos jours le « Cajón » (la caisse) reste le cœur des percussions afro péruviennes.
Le landó est le résultat d’une fusion entre éléments péruviens avec le lundú angolien. En ce cas, le samba malató reconstruit chorégraphiquement l’exécution des travaux ménagers de lavandières noires.
Ruperta (Landó)
La pièce « Ruperta » est la mise en scène chorégraphique de l’histoire d’une jeune femme dont l’indécision en amour lui fait perdre tous ses prétendants.
Cette danse vit le jour à Lima, pendant les festivités pour le Christ, mais est dansée principalement pendant le carnaval. Durant cette période règne la « liberté des fous », ainsi on peut même se moquer du diable : la danse représente également des petits diables, suivant leur chef au pas.
Une partie de la chorégraphie rappelle les claquettes. Elle est accompagnée de guitares et d’instruments à rythme, comme une boîte en bois et une denture d’âne.
La valse viennoise vint des salles de bal européennes jusqu’au salons de l’aristocratie liméenne, où elle fut accueillie avec joie. En l’espace de peu de temps elle fut aussi adaptée par le simple peuple, qui la modifia.
La marinera est le flirt dansé d’un couple, différant dans chaque région du Pérou. Ici celle de Lima : elle est calme et élégante, un mouchoir blanc utilisé pour le langage romantique.
La marinera du Nord du Pérou est la plus connue et la plus populaire. On y exprime le romantisme de l’homme qui fait la court à une femme, se terminant avec l’homme aux pieds de celle-ci. Ce message est vécu avec grande virtuosité durant toute la danse, avec l’aide des expressions du corps, des mouchoirs, des mouvements de jupe de la femme et du chapeau de l’homme. La marinera est la danse nationale du Pérou.
Une des danses les plus traditionnelles de la côte nord du Pérou qui a conservé sa forme originale jusqu’à nos jours. Les danseurs y imitent la danse nuptiale des oiseaux, la sensualité de la danse se laissant expliquer par ses origines afro péruviennes.
La zamacueca, autrefois connue également comme « mozamala », est un style de danse et de musique très ancient de la côte du Pérou et est le prédecesseur de la cueca du Chili, de la samba d’Argentine et de la marinera péruvienne. Beaucoup de théories associent la zamacueca avec une ancienne danse de fécondité africaine, le lundu angolien, qui arriva sur le continent américain avec les esclaves.
Certains pas et mouvements rappellent le « vacunao » de la rumba afrocubaine.
La danse est dansée en couples mixtes, où l’homme essaye de séduire la femme. Elle le provoque et le chasse immédiatement. L’utilisation de grands mouchoirs en tissus y joue un rôle principal.
Le toro mata (« le taureau tue ») est une pièce musicale et dansante d’origine afro-péruvienne, qui fait partie de l’art du landó, très répandue au Pérou.
Le message de cette pièce est très politique : grâce à la danse et aux costumes sont parodiés les conquérants européens et leurs danses, il s’agit d’une forme de protestation de la population noire.
ANDES
Il s’agit d’une danse très connue et répandue de la région des Andes du Pérou central. Elle est dansée aux fêtes et a un caractère rural. Ainsi sont dansés les mouvements de l’ensemencement et de la récolte, ce qui se laisse déceler grâce aux mouvements de martèlement des pieds typiques pour le huaylarsh. Le huaylarsh est dansé par de jeunes gens, où l’homme essaye d’impressionner sa partenaire.
Le mot « valicha » est le diminutif du nom Valeria. Valeria était une jeune femme magnifique de Cuzco, qui inspira un musicien. Il composa ce huayno en son honneur. Grâce à la chorégraphie type, la belle musique et les costumes impressionnant, la valicha est devenue un symbole dans le monde entier non seulement pour Cuzco, mais pour la culture péruvienne entière.
Une danse du district Arapa à Puno. Comme toutes les danses de carnaval de cette région s’exprime ici la joie de vivre des jeunes bergers, qui ornent leur danse avec des drapeaux blancs, un symbole pour la paix et l’amour.
Le witite est une expression très spéciale de la culture de la vallée du Colca près d’Arequipa.
Cette danse, où la figure du personnage principal masculin est nommée « Witite », est un rappel historique à la conquête de cette région par les Incas.
D’après la légende, le jeune seigneur de Cuzco voulait épouser la fille du chef de clan local.
Pour pouvoir approcher les nobles dames, lui et ses suivants durent ses déguiser en femmes et par ses moyen essayer de les conquérir.
Carnaval de Arequipa
Le premier carnaval qui a eu lieu dans la ville d’Arequipa a dû se dérouler en février, mars ou avril 1541. La société d’Arequipa a donc développé cette fête païenne, la transformant peu à peu en un carnaval populaire.
La danse Montonero Arequipeño est également connue sous le nom de Marinera Arequipeña, une danse qui remonte aux rébellions de 1867 et 1895, lorsque les paysans d’Arequipa ont échangé leurs outils agricoles contre des fusils pour aller se battre, Après la guerre, ils ont célébré leurs triomphes par des danses, dont la célèbre danse “El Montonero”.
Le thème principal de cette danse est l’histoire d’amour entre les jeunes de la communauté. Pendant les festivités du carnaval, les femmes et les hommes sortent sur les places avec leurs plus beaux costumes et, au milieu d’un grand tumulte, ils suivent le rythme de la musique des bandurrias et des charangos qui interprètent des chansons populaires. Les femmes utilisent leurs “warakas” pour “punir” leurs amants dans une déclaration d’amour tacite. Les hommes le font à travers leurs chansons.
AMAZONE
Il ne s’agit pas d’une danse « prescrite », mais plutôt d’une allégorie de la population indigène de l’Amazone dans son accoutrement traditionnel. Les femmes incarnent la sensualité et la joie, les hommes la force et l’habileté des tribus.
COLOMBIE
Cumbia
The word Cumbia is of African origin and literally means “to celebrate”. In terms of choreography, the Cumbia is a dance of seduction whereby the women use burning candles to drive out pushy men. Cumbia music and the corresponding dance represent the cultural identity of many Colombians.
San Juanero
This is a very traditional and romantic dance from the region around Tolima and Huila. The couple celebrates being in love. The San Juanero is a mix out of popular rhythms as Bambuco and Joropo and is mainly performed during ceremonies that take place in honour of saints such as San Juan and San Pedro. For this occasion, women usually wear costumes of the Reinas del San Juanero (the San Juanero Queens).
Garabato
This dance highlights the contrast between life and death in a theatrical way, which is characteristic for carnival dances. The dancers illustrate the people’s fight against death.
The word Garabato derives from a hooked wooden stick that is decorated with ribbons and carried by the dancers.
Mapalé
The Mapalé is an Afro-Caribbean dance, characterised by fast, sensual and strong movements. It is also said to be a dance of frenzy; some even say it is about some kind of witchcraft that, through the drum beats, leads the dancers to loose control and fall in trance, a trance of wild and uncontrollable passion.
Joropo
Le joropo est une forme traditionnelle de musique et de danse qui identifie pleinement le peuple des plaines.
Ses origines remontent au milieu des années 1700, lorsque les paysans llaneros préféraient utiliser le terme “joropo” au lieu de “fandango” pour désigner les fêtes et les réunions sociales et familiales. Le fandango est un terme d’origine espagnole qui désigne l’un des chants et l’une des danses les plus populaires du flamenco.
Le joropo semble avoir emprunté au fandango le sens de fête ou de danse… abandonnant la cour amoureuse du fandango et adoptant la tenue des mains et les tours de la valse…. C’est ainsi qu’il a été conservé jusqu’à aujourd’hui.
VENEZUELA
Joropo
The joropo is a traditional form of music and dance that fully identifies the llanero people.
Its origins date back to the mid 1700’s when the llanero peasants preferred to use the term “joropo” instead of “fandango” to refer to parties and social and family gatherings. Fandango is a term of Spanish origin, which identifies one of the most popular flamenco songs and dances. The joropo seems to have taken from the fandango the sense of the party or dance… abandoning the amorous courtship typical of the fandango and adopting the hand-holding and the turns of the waltz… This way it is conserved until now.
Tambores Urbanos
The recognized dance has an origin that goes back many years ago. The Venezuelan drum is an artistic expression that African slaves established along the coasts of the country celebrated. All of them were brought by the Spanish colonizers.
Certainly, the Venezuelan drum is part of its identity. It is an artistic language that is connected to a historical past that to this day is widely practiced by Venezuelans.
ÉQUATEUR
Sanjuanito (region Otavalo)
This is a very traditional Ecuadorian music style and has its roots in the indigenous and Mestizo culture of the province Imbabura. One of many stories about the dance’s name, assures that it was performed mainly during the ceremony in honour of San Juan Bautista (John the Baptist), which the Spanish celebrated on June 24. This happens to be the same date of the Inti Raymi celebrations that had been taking place long before the Europeans arrived. The Sanjuanito represents solidarity, identity and the relationship to mother earth for the indigenous population, whereas it is rather an expression of joy and national identity for the Mestizos.
Sanjuanito (region Zuleta)
This is a very traditional Ecuadorian music style and has its roots in the indigenous and Mestizo culture of the province Imbabura.
One of many stories about the dance’s name, assures that it was performed mainly during the ceremony in honour of San Juan Bautista (John the Baptist), which the Spanish celebrated on June 24. This happens to be the same date of the Inti Raymi celebrations that had been taking place long before the Europeans arrived.
The Sanjuanito represents solidarity, identity and the relationship to mother earth for the indigenous population, whereas it is rather an expression of joy and national identity for the Mestizos.
La Caderona
La Caderona (“the one with the big hips”) is an Afro-Ecuadorian rhythm and dance from the Esmeraldas region and was most likely inspired by African fertility rites.
The dance portrays a passionate love story about a beautiful black woman with big hips who drives the men crazy with her sensuality so that they would be even willing to leave their wives.
CHILi
Cueca
The Cueca is the Chilean national dance and therefore is the most important one in every traditional Creole celebration. The man’s posture and enthusiasm remind one of the rooster’s courtship dance. The woman, however, acts in a rather elegant and restrained way.
Destreza huasa
Destreza huasa, which is one of the choreographic variants of the cueca, where the man and the woman demonstrate all their skills and abilities of this Chilean dance.
Vals Chilote
This Chilean waltz, originating from the Chiloé island, clearly shows the European influence. The dance tells the romantic story of a young man who wanted to build a boat to get to the other side of the river, where his beloved girlfriend lived. A tornado had destroyed the bridge so they weren’t able to visit each other anymore.
Rapa Nui (Easter Island)
We have a wide repertoire of different Rapa Nui themes and dances, both ancient and traditional as well as contemporary.
MEXIQUE
Jalisco: Jarabe Tapatío
The Jarabe Tapatío is the most representative song from the Jalisco region. This is also the place of origin of the charros, the chinas and the mariachi that have become symbols of Mexican culture throughout the world.
Jalisco: La Negra
The Jalisco region is known for its jarabes and sones, which are popular and spontaneous melodies that people sing and dance to. Those melodies are the result of a fusion of Spanish and Indigenous music styles.
El Son de la Negra is a traditional song from south Jalisco and has become one of Mexico’s most popular melodies. What many people don’t know is that the lyrics are about a locomotive.
Jalisco: Danza de los Machetes
Another typical dance from the Jalisco region is the dance with the machetes. The men demonstrate their abilities with those big knives, which serve as weapons and as practical tools for their daily work too.
Having its origins in the Mestizo culture, this dance shows the contrast between the men’s strength and wildness and the women’s elegance and grace.
Veracruz: La Bamba
The Son Jarocho developed from a fusion of the Spanish seguidillas and fandangos and the Cuban zapateos (tap steps) and guajiros.
The melody is played by a harp that enhances the piece with harmony and a touch of son music. The most known version is La Bamba, also known as the hymn of Veracruz. It is just as representative for Mexican culture and music as the Jarabe Tapatío.
The dance represents a couple who, using their feet, tie a ribbon into a bow while they dance.
Veracruz: La Bruja
“La Bruja” is a Son Jarocho, one of the best known of Veracruz.
It is one of many legends, which is perhaps the Mexican equivalent of the Dracula of Romania. It is a sinister creature, in the form of a woman, who needs to suck blood. La Bruja is frightening, but at the same time plays with a masochistic erotic fantasy, the lines between these two aspects become blurred, which reflects well the double standard so typical of that region.
So La Bruja comes to represent a spinster woman who goes out in search of men, to trap them and make them hers.
Chihuahua: Polka
The roots of this Polka from north Mexico clearly lead back to the European Polka. Nevertheless, it is obvious that this is a highly “mexicanised” interpretation of Polka.
BOLIVIE
Caporales
The roots of the Caporales dance go back to the Saya, an Afro-Bolivian rhythm from the region of the Yungas and in the Tundiques, where the indigenous Aymaras imitated the Saya. In the course of this, the so-called Caporales, who were colonial foremen, appeared and became the basic element for this popular dance. Due to the dance’s young age, it is open to changes and different interpretations. As en example, the costumes are continuously modernized and tend to follow fashion trends.
Tobas
This dance has developed from war dances of the indigenous population from the region called Gran Chaco, which is the homeland of the ethnic community Tobas. They were known for their fearlessness in war. The dance appeared for the first time in the 20th century at the carnival of Oruro and rapidly became very popular.
Caporales-Machas
The well-known dance of Los Caporales, performed by women who have appropriated the costumes, movements and name of the male character (Macho Caporal). Given the gender structure established in the Caporales – represented by the couple Macho Caporal and Cholita (female character) – the appearance of the new role of the Macha Caporal in the dance has led to a social questioning of the identity of the women who dance as Machas Caporales. This questioning triggered a whole movement of female empowerment and solidarity, as well as that of the LGBTQ community.
Cueca Tarijeña
While it is true that the Cueca is the national dance of Chile, it is danced in other regions of South America as well, acquiring the characteristics of each place. The main message is still the love of a couple, the courtship through dance. The Cueca Tarijeña has been consolidating between the years 1930 – 1938, also known as Cueca Chapaca, is cheerful, fast and the first to use the violin, giving it a peculiar and unique sound.
La Chovena
The Chovena is a typical dance of the departments of Santa Cruz, Beni and Pando, a region with tropical climate, which shines in the carnival festivities. It is a native musical genre belonging to the Guarani culture, with a long history dating back to pre-Columbian times. It had no lyrics, and violins were included to achieve a greater cadence and sonority.
Saya
The Saya is an Afro-Bolivian dance, born in Los Yungas of Bolivia, one of the places where African communities settled after the enslavement process. The music and dance as part of their life also traveled with them to these territories, maintaining a certain independence that promoted their distancing from the Aimaras and other populations. The music and dance of the Saya is not the same as that of the Caporales, although there is often confusion between these two dances, as the latter is a mestizo and urban dance inspired by the original Saya.
BRÉSIL
Samba
Originally, Samba was the collective name for several dance styles, introduced by slaves from the Congo, western Sudan and Angola into their new homeland, Brazil, in the 19th century.
Being one of the most significant expressions of Brazilian folk culture, Samba has turned into a symbol of national identity. The Samba de Roda from Bahia, declared heritage of humanity by UNESCO in 2005, formed the basis for the development of the Samba Carioca (from Rio de Janeiro).
Capoeira
Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian cultural practice that combines fighting and dancing . It is assumed that it was an invention of the African settlers enslaved in Brazil in the 16th century, coming from Angola, Congo and Mozambique.
ARGENTINE
Chacarera
The Chacarera is a traditional rhythm and dance of Argentina, mainly from the province of Santiago del Estero, but danced throughout Argentina, and in southern Bolivia. It is a picaresque dance, with an agile rhythm and a very cheerful and festive character. It is a lively dance that, like most Argentine folk dances, is danced in couples. It is loose as the dancers do not touch each other.
Tango
Tango is a manifestation that emerged in the 19th century from the fusion of Afro-American, Creole and European immigration. The Argentine and Uruguayan tradition of tango, today known throughout the world, was born in the basin of the Rio de la Plata, among the popular classes of the cities of Buenos Aires and Montevideo.
AMÉRIQUE CENTRALE
Costa Rica “Tambito”
Tambito is a musical, folkloric rhythm of Costa Rica. It is, along with the punto guanacasteco, one of the most recognizable musical genres of the folklore of this Central American country. Its name derives from the tambo, a type of ranch that was built on cattle ranches for the workers to sleep in. Its origin is unknown, although it is believed to be derived from the Spanish dance. Many of Costa Rica’s folk songs and dances are Tambitos.
Honduras “La Punta”
On the Caribbean coast of Honduras, there is a culture called “Garífuna”, descendants of Africans of Africans and Caribbean natives from the Arahaucos tribe. At their festivals, they dance to a rhythm typical of the region, called PUNTA, because everything is danced on tiptoe. Originally an expression to celebrate fertility, this dance is an dance is an integral part of Honduran folklore.
This rhythm gave rise to a piece of music that became a huge hit throughout Latin America at the end of the 80s, the “Sopa de Caracol”. The lyrics are a mixture of Spanish, English and the Garífuna language.
Panamá “El Gallo y la Gallina”
A kind of courtship dance in which the couple pretends to be the hen and the rooster by imitating the movements of these birds. This dance is characteristic of the Herrera province.
Nicaragua “Tululu”
It is a dance that is performed to close the Fiestas de Mayo. The celebration and dance of the Palo de Mayo in the South Atlantic Coast of Nicaragua, specifically in the city of Bluefields, has its origins from the time of the English colonization and the arrival of black slaves to the Caribbean Coast.
It is a rite in homage to the sowing to achieve a rich and abundant production, as well as to the fertility of the women of the community.
Cuba
Conga
The Conga is a popular Cuban dance of African origin that has a syncopated rhythm and is accompanied by drums. It serves as accompaniment for the carnival troupes and originated in the festivities carried out by the black slaves.
It is a danceable and singable genre, which highlights the joy, rhythm and flavor of Cuban music.
Salsa
Salsa is a musical genre that arises from the mixture of Latin rhythms as well known as chachachá, mambo and son, among others, with the use of American instruments and styles.
Although its roots are mainly from Cuba, salsa as a dance originated in the Spanish neighborhood of New York, the “Spanish Harlem”, where the main colony of Latin Americans settled in the city. From there it began to expand and make its way to other cities in and out of the United States.
RÉPUBLIQUE DOMINICAINE
Merengue
Merengue is a Caribbean musical genre that originated in the mid-nineteenth century in the Dominican Republic and has transcended borders because although it is danced throughout the Americas, it is also popular in different parts of Europe. The cradle of Merengue is located in the north of the Dominican Republic and is considered an integral part of the national identity of the Dominican community.
Palo Dominicano
The palos or atabales are the most important folkloric and cultural manifestation of the Dominican Republic, because it is the only one that is celebrated in all the national geography. The palos or atabales are played and danced in all kinds of festive, religious and ceremonial manifestations. They are associated with Afro-Dominican brotherhoods, with roots in the Congo region of Central Africa, which were initially composed of men, but over time women began to enter them.
Bachata
Bachata is a dance music genre that was born in the Dominican Republic in the early 60’s, immediately after the end of the Trujillo dictatorship, who for more than 30 years maintained a strong censorship regime in the Dominican Republic.
The term Bachata referred to any party or gathering where popular music was played. In its beginnings it was socially considered rather marginal.