Parachicos are traditional Mexican dancers who dance in the streets during the annual Grand Fiesta celebrations from January 4 to 23 in Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas.
The festival honors their patron saints, The Black Christ of Esquipulas, St. Anthony Abbot, and St. Sebastian. According to local sources, it has its roots in indigenous culture, just like many of the Catholic festivals in Latin America. As a result, it has developed into a hybrid of older indigenous cultures and newer Catholic and Spanish cultures. In the church where the festival concludes, there is an old tree, which is said to date back to the beginnings of the church. It is believed that this tree represents the "tree of life" (drawing on Maya and other pre-Hispanic American cultures), leading to the conclusion that this was a site for religious ceremonies before the arrival of Catholicism. The festival consists of Roman Catholic religious ceremonies, music, dancing, local food, handicrafts, and gastronomy.
An oral tradition says that in the middle of the 18th century a woman from Guatemala arrived in Chiapa de Corzo. She was accompanied by a sick son that her doctors had not been able to cure. She arrived with her son and a large number of servants so that she could consult a renowned Indian healer. While visiting him, she shouted, "make way for my lady Maria de Angulo!" The healer advised that he soak in the Cumbujuyu waters for nine days. The boy healed, and the woman returned to Guatemala happy.
A Parachico dance is a communal offering to these saints - the word refers both to the dancers and to the dance. In addition to taking statues throughout the city, the dancers visit some of the city's places of worship as they make their way through the city in the morning and at night. Dancers wear wood-carved masks with embroidered shawls, multicolored ribbons, and play chinchines (maracas). The dancers are led by a severely-masked Patron, who plays the flute and carries a guitar accompanied by one or two drummers and carries a whip. The Parachicos respond with cheers as they sing along with the dance.
As of today, dancers are still transmitted and learned simultaneously with its performance, with young children taking part, and imitating the adults. Mask-making involves cutting and drying the wood, carving, and decorating it, which is passed from generation to generation. The Parachico dance embraces all spheres of community life during the Great Feast, promoting mutual respect between groups, communities, and individuals.
References
(https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/parachicos-in-the-traditional-january-feast-of-chiapa-de-corzo-00399) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parachico)