Baile de los Diablitos 2023

AUTHOR: Marie Kasseroler

22.02.2023

The Borucan are an indigenous tribe that ruled the South Pacific of Costa Rica for centuries. These tribes were buzzing with life, creativity, and traditions and still are today.

Every year, the community of Boruca  celebrates the annual “Baile de los Diablitos”- the little devils´ dance from the 30th of December to the 2nd of January yearly, when they honor the victory over the Spanish colonists.

And that is where we went.

The whole time we could hear drum rolls in the distance, but now they were getting louder, and we knew it was time to go to the fairground, where residents and amazed tourists were waiting patiently. A train of men arrived decorated with skirts of banana leaves, painted bodies, and chilling scary masks on their heads. Once they all stopped at the square, they began to dance around the bull and represented the Spanish intruder.

They pricked him with decorated spears and tried to scare him away. At times, the ambiance got hot when men from their ranks were knocked down, but that was part of the game. When the bull got tired, another man took over. So, it went on for hours (four days in a row).