"There they go, with those grotesque masks"—Chilpancingo's Dance of the Tlacololeros

"There they go, with grotesque masks, multicolored ribbons, and various ornate sombreros—this is grandeur reflected in the dance!"

—Francis Pino

Chilpancingo, Guerrero is ablaze with imagery from the Danza of the Tlacololeros. The “grotesque” masks worn for the dance adorn the booths of market vendors; vibrant paintings of menacing devil-figures can be found lurking around various corners of the city; a bronze statue of a dancer in a jaguar costume stands in a maniacal pose in the heart of Chilpancingo's commercial center. The dark imagery of the Dance of the Tlacololeros gives one the sense that the history and symbolism behind the tradition are both very deep. 

And they are.

The whip-cracking Tlacololero

The Danza of the Tlacololeros is actually an amalgamation of several different dances and ceremonies from all over  Southern Mexico that, in some cases, predate the Spanish Conquest. For example, the dance’s eponymous character, the Tlacololero—a mustachioed, whip-cracking agriculturalist—has supposedly been traced back to rituals of Olmec societies. Today, the culturally-patchworked Danza is largely reserved for special occasions and festivals such as the August 13^th Paseo del Pendón in Chilpancingo, Guerrero.  


The Dance features a tremendous cast of characters: humanoid bulls, a variety of fiendish-looking farmers, wrestling jaguars, animal hunters, and devils of all sizes. So, what does it all mean? I'm still not quite sure. In downtown Chilpancingo I located a book about the Danza, hoping to unearth some answers. I’ve read about half of the book and I’m more confused than ever. This stuff is deep. Like real deep. The esoteric dances and their specific regional histories; the cast of complex, intermingling characters; the profound symbolism...it’s actually enough to give you anxious fits. 


I’ve been learning about the Danza in a piecemeal manner, character-by-character. Since I’ve only seen the dance performed once (about three years ago) and I am clearly no expert on the topic, I’m just going to provide you with what I consider to be the most-interesting morsels of what I’ve read, so far, about the Danza of the Tlacololeros in the book Danzas by Francis Pino. 

The Tejorones

According to Pino, the dance performed by the characters called the “Tejorones…reflects a struggle against power and the evil at its core…The attacks against power manifest in different ways such as: ridicule, insults, or pantomime that are made directly against local personalities.”

The Devils of Teloloapan

"The Devils of Teloloapan" can be seen in the center of the painting

In 1857, the indigenous people of Teloloapan were engaged in a battle with French colonizers when they ran out of water and ammunition. They were forced to improvise, so they “met to form a plan" and ultimately decided to try to scare the French away using devil masks. With the masks, the natives of Teloloapan looked "truly horrifying," writes Pino. They "...dressed in the costumes, and snuck into the enemy camp. After a sign from the group's captain, they attacked with terrifying screams, while cracking their whips. The French, pale with fear at the sight, left running into the night.”

The Tigre

The Tigre statue in downtown Chilpancingo

The Tigre character, which is really more a of a jaguar, is often depicted in combat with other Tigres. This character “represents evil," it’s “the character that causes damage to the farmers' crops” within the narratives of the Danza. The Tigre is hunted by several other characters  as part of the Danza rituals. 

An artist's rendering of the Danza from the book Danzas by Francis Pino