Mexico's 'voladores' seek to keep ancestors' flying spirit alive [View all]

[Judi Lynn]

Mexico's 'voladores' seek to keep ancestors' flying spirit alive
By Natalia CANO (AFP) Mar 22, 2019


Four teenagers climb to the top of a towering pole, fasten themselves to ropes and throw themselves, headfirst and backwards, into the air.

No, it's not the latest social media challenge. It's the "danza de los voladores," the dance of the flyers, a more than 2,500-year-old ritual practiced by the Totonac people of central Mexico, who are fighting to keep the tradition alive by giving it some modern tweaks.

Spinning in widening circles around the pole as they fly upside-down through the air, the four dancers slowly descend to the ground, dressed in white tunics, red pants and conical hats with rainbow-colored streamers that trail across the sky.

A fifth dancer balances atop the pole -- a 30-meter (nearly 100-foot) tree trunk -- playing a festive tune on a reed flute while beating a small drum.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/world/mexico-s-voladores-seek-to-keep-ancestors-flying-spirit-alive/article/545970#ixzz5j5aNNLyK