It’s Saturday morning, and the sun lifts its golden face to welcome a flood of activity bursting down along the Prado. Locals are filling up the streets at a rapid rate, the tourists are out in their forces armed with cameras and copious amounts of sun protection whilst long-limbed women parade up and down the street in outfits worthy of a parental guidance warning. The ignoramuses amongst us may be led to believe that we are bearing witness to the alleged greatest fiesta on earth, the Rio Carnavale. But this is not Brazil, this is Bolivia. The hop, skip and a jump of the dances is more folk than Salsa and more likely to get you bopping along than hot under the collar.

In England, as in Bolivia, bells attached to a man’s leg is a clear sign of a folk dancer. But, unlike in England, folk dancing is cool here. 72 faculties, with over 200 people involved in each, massively outshines folk activity in Britain. Sidmouth Folk Festival, the largest of its kind in the UK boasts a mere 1000 participants, whilst here there are well over 14 000.

As each 30-man-strong-band nears the crowds, we are assaulted by the lead melody from the big brass section. Although the music contains melodic, embellished tunes from the pan pipes and wooden flutes, these are drowned out by the shrieking trumpets and their brothers. The lack of accordian or fiddle clearly highlights the difference between the folk music of Bolivia and the Celtic influenced folk music of Britain.

Although the costume designs, like the music, have been around for many years, no group looks the same. Faculties performing the same dances distinguish themselves with their differing takes on the traditional dress. The general ethos: the more glitter and sparkle, the better the costume, especially for the Morenada and the Caporales. The dresses worn by young women, although very very short, hold certain similarities with the current trends within the competitive Irish Dancing community. Some dances, such as the Jalqa, stay very true to traditional dress, with women carrying flowers in baskets and on their backs, while wearing long black dresses with bright, ornately stitched aprons, strikingly similar to traditional Dutch dress. The accompanying men, meanwhile, wear white trousers and shirts with decorated belts, a reminder to us English gringos of Cotswald Morris dancing.

From dance to dance, the type of costumes varies from cholita-esque skirts to sequined loin-clothed hunters, and from incredibly decorated warriors to the cowboy boots and harem trousers of the men in the Chacarera. Each and every costume is breathtaking to look at and collectively the big, bright colours make the procession a visual treat. The Tinku warriors jump from side to side, touching the floor, then the sky, in a dance inspired by battle. Between routines, the dancers gather together in large circles chanting to each other, keeping group morale high. The Chacarera proves to be one of the more complex dances, with the women dancing around the men, swinging their skirts in a style reminiscent of flamenco, while the men clap, tap and stamp their feet while jumping around, with a never ending abundance of energy, similar to the ceilidh dancing of the Celts. Although the Morenada and Caporales are the more sedate of the dances, with the dancers only seeming to swish their hips while moving backwards and forwards, frequent echoes of “BESOS, BESOS” (“kisses, kisses”) everytime the girls walk past demonstrate that these were the most popular dances amongst both the performers and the crowd. (I wonder why.) As the day progresses, the readily available Paceña further enhances the happiness of all involved, though causing the parade to descend into chaos! By evening people have left their seats and are dancing amongst the procession, slowing an already protracted parade to an almost standstill. Although the dancers have lost their coordination and the music is out of tune, the sheer enthusiasm of both the performers and crowd keep the euphoric spirit of the Entrada alive and beating long after the sun decides to turn in for a well-deserved descanso.

Dances:

Morenada: 

a vibrant dance from the Bolivian Andes, appropriately performed by the Facultad de Agronomía. Feathers, googly eyes and very short skirts.

Diablada: 

a highly energetic dance with an enormous dance troupe from the Facultad de Medicina. Stethoscopes included. A dance of combat that originates from Oruro and climaxes in a duel between St Michael and the Devil. The seven deadly sins and ornately dressed angels with very high hemlines also feature

Caporal: 

KNICKERS KNICKERS KNICKERS. Colour co-ordinated underwear are a major feature of this dance. Despite the focus on female lingerie, Caporales has it’s roots in religion- the dance is intended to honour the Virgin of Socavón.

Tinku: 

Very physical war dance from Potosí. Male and female dancers are separated whilst Chinese dragon-esque characters thrust between them.

Chacarera:

A partner dance from the Bolivian Highlands that is reminiscent of Flamenco. Lots of dress swishing. One unlucky lady got her skirts stuck to her head which seems to be an occupational hazard of this flamboyant dance style.