Cora: Seredipitously, we stumbled upon two presentations by the Voladores. First, while searching for dinner in Cuetzalan. An old woman directed us away from her restaurant (we thought maybe she was tired of cooking for the day) and toward another restaurant. There, in addition to a delicious meal of empanadas y mole, we watched our first performance.
The next time, when we had the good fortune of being there for a local town's saint's day (every town has their patron saint and it is a big holiday for the people). This town was even more authentically indigenous than Cuetzalan and in the middle of nowhere. I felt a little ridiculous as we made our way down the narrow roads in our fancy red SUV toward the festival, while families, children, and old men and women were patiently walking in thin sandals. So, we arrived to find a simple iglesia and a grander pyramid, directly beside one another. Troupe after troupe of young people danced through the street and into the church, some with instruments ( a violin too!, but my teacher would have been horrified by his technique), some with crazy masks and wigs, costumes, and giant headresses. In one of their dances, they had a large pole with fabric attached, sort of like a may pole.
Then came the Voladores performance. This time on a large tree that leaned slightly with wooden slats for clmbing, not the sturdy concrete pole we saw the night before.
The poles are at least 60 feet high. The men (and sometimes women) are clad in costumes with shoes that make a nice tapping sound. They dance around the pole in unison while the elder member of the group plays an instrument that is like a small flute attached to a little drum. Their rhythm reminded me of step performances done by the cheerleaders in my high school.
Then they ascend. Rapidly and smoothly. Just one miss-grab of the rope or slats they are climbing and they are in trouble, but they climb quickly and confidently. At the top, they sit around a wooden square that swivels and the elder member stands directly on top and continues the song and dance (at 60 ft. in the air!). Finally, they all wrap the ropes around their waists (that's it for safety precautions) and descend in unison by falling backward. The ropes are wrapped around the pole, so they gradually unwind as the Voladores "fly" down to earth. The ropes and wood square squeak with the weight. It is hard to watch at times. For this performance, an added danger--two additional men climb down with only their hands, hold the rope between their knees and hang backward. As they near the ground, it becomes clear that there is not enough room. Two men hit low hung electrical wires and one hits the tents that are shading street stalls. He gets dragged a bit on the ground, but jumps up, smiling. The audience claps and this time the men do not ask for donations. This was for their community, not for the tourists.
Where did they get the idea for this crazy stunt?, you are probably asking. It is actually an ancient Aztecan ritual that was performed only once a year. Some say to the fertility god/goddess. In fact, these people still speak the Aztecan language, Nahuatl. The key is the number 52. Four men rotate around the pole 13 times (4 x 13). The Aztecs had two calendars, one for ceremonies that was 200 some days long and the 365 day solar calendar (I don't know if they had leap year yet). These two calendars would coincide once every 52 years. Some trivia to impress your friends!
The interesting thing for me was that this ceremony was supposed to be for their town saint and it is in front of and inside the church.....right beside the pyramid, with traditional costumes and dances, culminating in an ancient Aztec ritual. I just love the way the indigenous values and customs survive, even after all these years since the Conquistadors.
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