El Palacio de Bellas Artes after leaving the Ballet Folklórico performance
On Sunday night, I checked off an item from my bucket list: watching the Ballet Folkórico de México de Amalia Hernández. I have procrastinated countless hours watching dances online, including performances by the Amalia Hernández dance group. Ballet Folkórico is traditional Mexican dance. Much of it is characterized by the beautiful music our ladies and gentlemen make with their shoes, ranging from delicate taps to strong stomps, but it is not your standard ballet, and it is not tap dancing. Rather, it is comprised by a large variety of styles based on region and time period. Following the trend of variation, we use shoes varying in style and color for the different styles of folklórico, and the outfits and props, are chosen very carefully to coordinate with the chosen dance.
Watching Ballet de Amalia Hernández in Mexico City was such a unique experience. The six of us that went dressed up. We got dinner at Café de Tacuba, an old and famous restaurant. I had a large bowl of delicious pozole while other girls had chiles rellenos, tamales, mole, and chilaquiles. After dinner, we walked five minutes to El Palacio de Bellas Artes, an incredibly beautiful and old building that hosts art and performances. We sat up in the Galería, the balcony, where we could see the gorgeous mosaic glass ceiling with all its careful details and the vibrant glass curtain at the stage. The energy was high and only increased through the hour and a half show. The dances ranged from before México was colonized, to the revolution, to what is commonly seen today, and they performed a handful of dances with outfits from different regions. Everything from the night felt like a dream come true, and only reinforced my love for our beautiful México and its culture.