El Gallo y La Gallina

The 18th of September was Chile´s 200th anniversary.  This year was an extended celbration that impacted Chile in many ways.  To help boost patriotic sentiment, Chile´s national legislature ruled that no business other than hotels and bars could be open between the 17th and 20th of September.  This, indeed, boost nationalistic pride in the form of celebration, but it also led to a short-lived panick as the national population made a run on all grocery stores.  We were unaffected, and were able to celebrate in style over the weekend.

A favorite way to celebrate in Chile is through the national dance, Cueca.  Cueca is interesting in that it mixes latin american culture with African zoomorphic influences.  The structure of the dance is made to resemble a rooster who is trying to court a lady hen.  The dancers use handkerchiefs (panuelos) to resemble the red wattle on a rooster´s chin which is used to attract the female.  There are three different cueca dances, each representing a different stage in the mating process.  Males dance aggressively, while the women are supposed to be more passive and reserved.  Interestingly enough, touching is strictly prohibited in the Cueca until the last step in which the male offers the female his arm whereby she accepts, signifying the end of the dance.

I danced with this folkloric group after they performed, but struggled a bit to feel the rhythm.  These videos are good examples of how cueca should be danced.  The little boy in the first video is only 7 years old.   The second group has two national champions from the Chilean Cueca festival last year.  Impressive, no?