Baile Folklorico

Chiapas

The dance of the Parachicos is the “Great Feast” in January each year in Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas. For several weeks, these dances take to the streets each day to honor a number of Catholic saints, especially Saint Sebastian. The dancers wear carved wooden masks, with a headdress made of ixtle, a serape, embroidered shawl and multicolored ribbons, carrying maracas. They are led by a “patron) who carries a guitar and a whip, and plays the flute; while the drummers provide rhythm. The dance has been named an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Cochino (pig) is named after a pig's head which is decorated and carried as part of the event. The head is decorated with flowers and rolls of colored paper, paper birds, rag dolls, and candies. The mouth holds a roll with the name of the person who well receive the head. The head is carried on a large, decorated platter by women who dance and smack their lips to indicate how delicious the animal is.

Veracruz

Danza de los Voladores, Dance of the Flyers, is a dance/ceremony/ritual still performed in Mexico today, best known in the Totonicapán area of northern Veracruz and northern Puebla states. It is believed to have originated with the Nahua, Huastec and Otomi peoples in central Mexico, and then spread throughout most of Mesoamerica. The ritual consists of dance and the climbing of a 30-meter pole from which four of the five participants then launch themselves tied with ropes to descend to the ground. The fifth remains on top of the pole, dancing and playing a flute and drum. The ceremony was named an Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO in order to help the ritual survive in the modern world. Veracruz region has influenced their folkloric dance by instilling the musical instruments that originated from the region into the performances like cunjunto jaracho (jarocho ensemble), requito (a guitar-like instrument), pandero (tambourine), and quijada (jawbone of donkey for percussion). As well as having the choreography be influenced by Veracruz animals in the region imitating the moves of iguanas. The costumes reflect the environment of Veracruz illustrated by the performers wearing lacy skirts and blouse to represent the state's humid tropical weather.