El Día de San Judas Tadeo
St Jude's Day  --  28 October

Here in Lerdo the celebration of St Jude begins a week before the official day, 28 October.  Several neighborhoods erect large altars which will block the street.  The street in front of an altar becomes a stage where dance teams (danzas) will perform.  The number and location of altars are limited by the city to avoid complete traffic disruption.  Each neighborhood with an altar will also have a danza.  Other neighborhoods without an altar may have a danza that visits various altars as guest dancers.  
 
This story is about a visiting team called Danza Espíritu Santo (Holy Ghost Dancers).  It is from the Valdepeñas' neighborhood,  'my' team.  Chico and his uncle Gonzalo are among the dancers.  Coco is part of the repair squad -- more about that later.  Espíritu Santo will perform twice during the St Jude week.
 
There are about 50 neighborhood danzas in Lerdo.  Some have been in existence for many generations.  Chico is the first of his generation of the Valdepeñas family to join. His father, four of his uncles, and several cousins have been members.  Some danzas, like Espíritu Santo, have members ranging in age from first graders to early 30's.  Others limit membership to youth only or adults only.

While this story focuses on the St Jude's Day activities, the major purpose of the danzas is to perform for the celebration of the Virgin of Guadalupe each year for two weeks preceding the 12th of December.  For the Virgin, the groups will be larger and the dance much more elaborate than for St Jude.
 
Practice begins the first week in October for an hour and a half five nights per week and continues  until December.
 
Each dancer is responsible for his/her own costume -- either to make it or to buy/inherit it from a retired dancer.  Each group has it's own costume style, although they are all somewhat similar.  Red is the most common color.
 
The skirts are a heavy felt that is decorated with sequins and plastic tubes which rattle as the dancer moves.  Much work goes into making a costume, and it is treated as a family treasure.
 
Each dancer carries two noise makers:  a rattle called a huaje and a bow and arrow called an arco.  The string in the arco is a rubber band.  When the arrow is pulled back and released, the rubber band drives the arrow against the bow making a loud snap.
 
The huaje is a hollowed out gourd with a handful of hard corn kernels inside. 
 
The dancers move to the beat of a bass drum.  With the arco, huaje, and foot stomping with wooden sandals, it's a loud show.

Front

Back

13-year old Chico Valdepeñas

The home danza completes it's hour-long performance before the altar as the visiting danza gathers down the street.

Note the matching colors of the costumes of the danza, the altar and the banners.

The Espíritu Santo arrives, and the two teams dance their way through a carefully choreographed stage exchange.

Now the guest team begins their hour of dance before the altar and an audience of neighbors lining the sidewalks.

A major feature of the dance is a rhythmic foot-stomping which puts a lot of stress on the leather straps of the home-made wooden sandals.   So they often need repairs in mid-performance.  Some of the older guys move to the sidewalk to repair their own.  Others keep on dancing sans sandals while the support crew makes quick repairs.

It's 28 October, the final day of the week of celebration of San Judas Tadeo.  In Doña Martha's living room, the TV has been moved out of the entrainment cabinet to make room for an altar which will the focal point for the final night.

Andrea is helping her mother and grandmother prepare sweet tamales for tonight's neighborhood meeting.

In the evening, a group of neighbors gathered in Doña Martha's house for a misa para San Judas Tadeo followed by tamales and fruit punch.
 

Now there are only three days to get ready for El Día de Muertos  -- the Day of the Dead.  There are so many holidays and celebrations in Mexico!