'Important to connect with where we come from': Folklòrico competition comes to CSU Pueblo

James Bartolo, The Pueblo Chieftain
·3 min read
Colorado State University Pueblo's Ballet Folklorico dancers used their skirts to highlight Mexican dance moves during the Colorado State Fair's Fiesta Day Parade held Sept. 5, 2021, in Pueblo, Colo.
Colorado State University Pueblo's Ballet Folklorico dancers used their skirts to highlight Mexican dance moves during the Colorado State Fair's Fiesta Day Parade held Sept. 5, 2021, in Pueblo, Colo.

From bright colors to beautiful costumes and breathtaking choreography, every aspect of a traditional folklòrico dance performance has a connection to history.

Colorado State University Pueblo will host the Seventh Rocky Mountain Mexican Folkloric Dance Competition from 2-6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23, and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 24 at the CSU Pueblo Hoag Recital Hall. At 7 p.m. on Saturday, a "showcase performance" by nationally recognized Grupo Folklorico Teocalli from Fresno, California, and an awards ceremony will follow the competition.

Contestants include more than 150 performers from nine groups across four states. CSU Pueblo Ballet Folklorico and Omawari are the two Pueblo-based groups participating. Other participants include Ballet Folklòrico Al Son del Folklore, Guzman Ballet Folklorico, El Fandango, Idaman, Basaseachi Ballet Folklorico, Grupo Folklorico Teocalli and Ballet Folklorico 'De Colores.'

"Folklòrico dance is not just dancing," said Iskra Merino, coordinator of CSU Pueblo Ballet Folklorico. "It has a history behind it from Los Pueblos, the cities of Mexico, and you have to be very knowledgeable to do it, to teach it because you have to know about the costumes, about the traditions and about the culture of the specific pueblo that you're studying."

As part of the competition, CSU Pueblo Ballet Folklorico will present three dances originating from the Purèpecha peoples from the state of Michoacàn, Mexico. Purèpecha dances being performed will include the "Danza de los Viejitos" or the "Dance of the Old Men," "Aguadoras" and "Tierra Caliente."

"'Aguadoras' is a traditional dance in order to ask the God of the Rain into the city or town or to have a better harvest," Merino said.

Basaseachi Ballet Folklorico of Denver will be performing traditional dances from the Tarahumara peoples of Chihuahua, Mexico. Grupo Folklorico Teocalli will perform "La Danza del Venado," or the "Deer Dance," from the Yaqui and Mayo peoples of Sonora, Mexico.

"(Folklòrico) is full of culture in history and in the roots of a lot people that live in the United States," Merino said. "For Pueblo, 51% of our population is Hispanic and Latino ... It's important for us to connect with where we come from, with our roots so we know who we are and where we want to go."

CSU Pueblo has hosted Rocky Mountain Mexican Folkloric Dance Competition for the past five years. Folklòrico dancing has not only been welcomed, but "embraced" by CSU Pueblo President Timothy Mottet, Chief of Staff Niki Toussaint-Whitaker and Vice President of Operations and Advancement Donna Souder-Hodge, Merino said.

Admission for the Rocky Mountain Mexican Folkloric Dance Competition is $15. Admission for the showcase performance by Grupo Folklorico Teocalli after the competition is $20. In conjunction with the competition, folklòrico performances will be held outside El Pueblo History Museum on Saturday, Sept. 24, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Admission to performances outside El Pueblo History Museum are free with admission to the Pueblo Chile and Frijoles Festival.

More:Pueblo Chile & Frijoles Festival returns to downtown Pueblo for 28th year

Pueblo Chieftain reporter James Bartolo can be reached by email at JBartolo@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: CSU Pueblo to host national Mexican folkloric dance competition