Saturday, October 20, 2007.
Weather: 63°F 17°C) and cloudy in Xalapa

A leisurely morning: I slept past 8, made myself some coffee, and sat down to get caught up on my blogging.

Last Sunday, October 14, I went with Margarita and Miriam to the Teatro del Estado (state theatre) to see a show of folkloric dance by the Ballet Folklórico de la Universidad Veracruzana in celebration of its 43 anniversary. The show, “Homenaje a Veracruz” (homage to Veracruz), featured folk and modern dances from several regions of Veracruz, a state that stretches north and south along the Gulf of Mexico.

The range of dances spanned eons as well as geographical regions, depicting dances and costumes from prehispanic, colonial, and modern times. The production was so well done—directed, staged, costumed, and danced—that it reminded me of Broadway productions I’ve seen.

One of the dancers, Elsa Malpica Muñoz, is an English teacher at the Centro de Idiomas. In fact, she was the one who told me about this event, and I’m so glad she did. As I watched, I felt like I was getting a Mexican history-and-culture lesson in the most enjoyable way--through dance and music.

One of the dances that most fascinated me was the “Danza de los moros y españoles”—dance of the Moors and the Spanish. As near as I could tell, the dance reenacts fighting between the Moors and the Christians in Spain. The “Moors” and the “Spanish” dancers clacked long sticks together in ritual sword-fighting—art imitating life and transforming it into beauty.

The dance of “la bruja” (witch) was particularly beautiful and--well...bewitching--to watch: the lights were turned down, and the women in long white jarocha dresses danced gracefully by the ghostly light of candles balanced on their heads and held in their hands.