FOLKLORIC DANCE EXPRESSION IN NAYARIT
By Juan Rios
When one views the mestizo bailes regionales of the states of Jalisco and Nayarit, one can-not help but notice the similarities. Geographical, historical, and political factors help to explain these similarities. Yet, one also notices the changes and growing differences between the forms. This article addresses some of the causal factors related to the differences.
Historical Information
In 1535, after the conquest of Central Mexico by Hernan Cortez, the brutal conquistador Nuno de Guzman entered the area of Nueva Galicia (Jalisco/Nayarit) and established his capitol in what today is Tepic, Nayarit. For various reasons, in 1560 he moved the location to Guadalajara, Jalisco and became the first master of the Primera Audencia de la Nueva Galicia (first ruling government of the area). As Guadalajara became the center for political, economic, and religious growth, Nayarit soon became isolated and remained in its rural life style, not yet a state but rather as the seventh county of the state of Jalisco. The Rio Ameca was a natural barrier separating the province of Nayarit from the fast-paced development of Jalisco.
Some ethnomusicologists feel that the Ameca region was one of the birth sites of the son mariachi. On the northern banks of the river are the Nayarit townships of Compostela, San Pedro Lagunilla, Ahuacatlbn, Ixtlan and Amatlan de Canas which maestro Ramon Tobias (Escuela de la Danza Mexicana in Tepic) accredits as the source area of the baile mestizo of Nayarit/Jalisco.
The political state of Nayarit, previous to 1917 did not exist to claim its folklore, Jalisco, on the other hand with its booming commercial capitol city of Guadalajara became the center of the region's growth and activity, The political capitol also became .the cultural center of the area, Mariachi musical groups, such as the famous Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan moved to Guadalajara and from there to Mexico City to seek fame and fortune. Also, the bailes mestizos of this area became known as sones Jalisciences but in actuality, the credit for the initial development of these dancers must be equally shared between Jalisco and Nayarit.
Influences Shaping Contemporary Dance Expression of Nayarit
As in most urban centers of Mexico, there are a number of opportunities for one to study folkloric dance. In addition, many of these centers will promote performance groups which perform in the city as well as tour the republic representing their state, Tepic is no exception and houses two major groups: Bellas Artes and Seguro Social. The Director of the Ballet Folklorico of the Seguro Social is Jaime Buentello.
Originally from the state of Nuevo Leon, he has worked in Tepic for more than a decade teaching, building a performance group, creating a Sumner school for dance, and consciously exerting an effort to reclaim and even create a new and unique folk dance form which will rival the splendor of Jalisco. After working with Maestro Buentello for a summer, I have tried to analyze his work and explore the contributing elements.
Maestro Buentello's company presents danzas indigenas, bailes mestizos and bailes de la Costa which correspond to the state's three geographical areas: La Costa (coast) , El Altiplanicia (high central plateau) and La Sierra (mountain). Prior to the first Spanish contact in 1524, La Costa and Altiplanicia had been areas of the highly civilized Nahuatl-speaking cultures. In contrast, the Sierra was inhabitated by ethnic groups of a diverse nature and later became an area of refuge for Indians escaping the Spanish dominance. 1
Today, La Costa and Altiplanicia are totally integrated into a sociedad national, a modern mestizo society of the towns and cities of Spanish-Indian ancestry, and consequently have no purely indigenous groups.
La Sierra region is considered a marginal zone and is inhabitated by the Huichol and Cora Indians. In the area, there also exists groups of mestizos (mixtures of Huichol-Cora-Spanish) who live and develop their lives around the indigenous cultures at the sametime maintaining a separatism. Those mestizos who live in the mountain villages of San Pablo, Huajimic, Comotla'n, Amatla'n de Cora, and La Yesca are not the same as those of soliedad moderna.
Not only does the Buentello company perform indigenous danzas of the Huichol and Cora, but he consciously works to present the mestizo element as well. Buentello has tried to capture the flavor of the Sierra mestizo through the manta (cotton) dress of his male dancers and their use of the huarache (sandals) and the style of foot-work which it pro-duces. Albert Pill's description helps to give a feeling for the indio-campesino appearance which Buentello hopes to achieve:
"The restraint and quietness of the Indian prefades the Mexican regional dance. The feet are kept close to the ground. Most of the steps of the regional dance are done f flat-footed, again showing a distinct Indian inf luence . The rural campesino lives close to nature; his steps are rooted to the earth on which he toils from sunrise to sunset. The Indian and the rural mestizo always wear huaraches or go barefooted, making their normal walking step flat and close to the ground;. Even the zapateados common to all Mexican regional dances are done flat-footed with the feet hugging the tarima or wooden floor. (2)
For the woman, Buentello has selected the "look" of the mestizo of the Altiplanicia. The costume seems to be an exaggeration of the turn-of-the-century ranchera dress of the area; even more so than the performing groups of Jalisco as the Nayarit skirt uses approximately twice the material and has four overlapping ruffles. The richness of the costume is in its cut and construction, rather than expensive adornment or elaborate embroidery. The woman dancer portrays the tradition coquettish body postures reflective of Jalisco sones, with the additions of Buentello's creative styling. His dancers hold their skirts by the edge of the bottom ruffle, pulling them above their heads which creates a dramatic drape effect. Buentello says he is trying to create a "Spanish" effect of arms held high, arched upper back, low side bends and twists, coy shoulder shrugs, and saucy head tilts. Perhaps the one article of indigenous identity which the women are allowed is the Huichol fan which they carry while dancing, replacing the rebozo used by the women of Jalisco.
The musical ensemble accompanying the bailes mestizo has the same elements (violins and guitars) as the original musical groups of the Ameca region. The compas (measure) has a 12/8 rhythmic structure and usually consists of three themes that are repeated in order until the musicians decide to end the son. The sones and potorricos which are played to accompany Buentello's dancers do not include verses, another marked contrast to the sones jalisciences.
In addition to the Sierra danzas of the Huicholes and Coras, and the mestizo bailes of the Altiplanicia, Buentello has choreographed a series of dances representinq La Costa. The music is a development of the band sound of Nayarit's northern neighbor, the state of Sinaloa. The musical arrangements are reflective of contemporary tropical rhythms of Mexico. The dance is a mixture of tropical swaying Mestizo zapateado and partner work reminiscent of the Northern polkas. Although the women wear ankle-length skirts, the remainder of the costume Buentello has chosen reflects contemporary dress of an urban coastal center such as Mazatlan. It is not clear from my discussion with Buentello and his company members, but I would suspect that the choreographies of La Costa are Buentello's personal creations and contribution to the folkloric dance forms from the state of Nayarit. I do not mean this as a criticism. I am in full agreement with Luis Echeverria, past President of Mexico, when he wrote:
"Folk ark is the immutable and changing root of all true art. Each human nucleus, each civilization, and each period, establishthrough forms their special view of the world. In time styles change but not the substance of a tradition. The manner in which each artist interprets reality is different although his expression d6es not deny but affirms the essential unity of a euIture."(3)
FOOTNOTES: ~
1 Fernandez, Marina. Nayarit: Costa y Altiplanicia en el Momento de1 Contacto.
2 Pill, Albert. Mexican Regional Dance and the Elementary School. p. 55.
3 The Ephemeral and the Eternal of Mexican Folk Art. Vol. I.
