SAN ANTONIO – Nereida Burgess knows she’s not far from her native island of Puerto Rico when she starts dancing.
“It’s a very joyful moment for me. It’s like I’m feeling that come back home,” she said.
Burgess met up with KSAT reporter Patty Santos to demonstrate two of the main dances from Puerto Rico, which are gaining attention around the world.
“It’s a joyful way to express ourselves and our bodies,” she said.
First, there’s the Plena, a form of communication and storytelling. Burgess compares it to the Mexican corridos.
“The Plena is more for the countryside. ... They would call it before, like, ‘the singing newspaper.’ It’s like telling what was happening and the events that were happening in the island,” she said.
There’s also the Bomba, a more complex dance. Burgess said it has its roots in slavery and was used by enslaved people to communicate with other tribes. In this type of dance, the dancer leads, and the drummers follow the movements.
“It’s like a conversation, a musical conversation,” she said.
The Puerto Rican Heritage Society is hosting a Plena & Bomba Workshop during the International Latin Jazz and Arts Festival on Oct. 5 at the UTSA Downtown Campus. The event is free for families to attend.
You can click here to see the full list of events and times for the festival.
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