Danza de la Pluma, 2019
Teotitlán del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico is one of the first Zapotec settlements (1500 BC) where its original Zapotec mother tongue is still maintained and its customs and traditions are carried out with great pride and respect. “La Danza de la Pluma” -- The Dance of the Feather -- is a traditional dance performance that depicts the colonization of this territory by the Spanish. It is a promise and sacrifice the nine dancers make with each other and God that binds them to a three year commitment to dance in all the traditional festivities celebrated in their town and requires the participation of all members of the community to bear witness. This dance occurs in the beginning of July. They dance from morning till sunset for 10 hours three days in a row. This project focuses on the community's source of pride through the dance, their traditional Zapotec hand-dyed rugs, their communal meals, and the traditions that hold them together.
Project in collaboration with Natalia Berenice de Alba Vázquez, psychologist
Análisis del discurso: Las mujeres y la danza de la pluma en Teotitlán del Valle, Oaxaca. Identidad zapoteca, organización y participación social.