Dance is a fundamental part of Peruvian cultural expression and identity, taking pre-Columbian traditions and combining them with later Hispanic and African influences.
If you are lucky enough to witness one of Peru’s many festivals, you are sure to see locals expressing themselves and their region through dance, just as they have for centuries.
Below are four of the most emblematic of these dances, which are associated with different areas of Peru, although not exclusively so.
1. Scissors Dance (Ayacucho):
With spectacularly agile and acrobatic moves, the dancers pay homage to the apus - the Andean gods that live at the top of mountains. This dance is to be found throughout Peru’s Andean region, but it is strongly associated with the province of Ayacucho.
The ‘scissors’ carried by dancers.
The name derives from the oversized metal scissors that the dancers carry. During the dance, they are used to produce a noise, which is accompanied by a violin and a harp.
La Danza de las Tijeras can be seen at religious and local festivals.
2. Marinera (Trujillo):
This dance is synonymous with Peruvian identity, and is performed throughout the country … but its birthplace is Trujillo, the ‘City of Eternal Spring’.
It is an artistic representation of the courtship between a man and a woman to the rhythm of a snare drum or a cajon (box-shaped percussion instrument).
Marinera dancer with Paso horse, Trujillo.
There are marinera competitions all over Peru, to choose the couple with the most grace and elegance while dancing, but undoubtedly the best-known of these is Trujillo’s Northern Marinera Festival.
NB. An exhibition of Peruvian Paso horsemanship and marinera dancing is included in PeruNorth’s Northern Coast 13D itinerary … and can be included in any customised Trujillo visit.
3. Tondero (Piura):
This beautiful dance is well-known in the north of Peru, and bears a number of similarities to the marinera.
Accompanied by a guitar and cajon (box-shaped percussion instrument), the tondero also tells the story of a couple’s romance and falling-in-love.
Tonderazo on streets of Piura.
Morropon, a small town in the interior of Piura province, is considered the birthplace of the tondero.
In the city of Piura, a tonderazo - with over 500 couples performing in the street - was part of their 2022 annual anniversary celebrations, which took place in August.
4. Diablada (Puno):
A variety of legends surround the origin of the diablada, a dance which personifies the Devil and demons.
In Puno, the diablada outfits represent a fusion of indigenous, Iberian and African traditions, all of which have left their mark on modern Peru.
Festival of the Virgin of Candelaria, Puno.
The diablada can be seen at various religious festivals and folklore competitions around Peru, but has its greatest manifestation at Puno’s celebrated Festival of the Virgin of Candelaria which starts on February 1st each year … and continues for two weeks.
If you are interested in seeing these dances for yourself - and perhaps even learning a few of the moves! - during your Peru trip, please ask us how to make this happen.