"The Yaqui Lenten ceremony of dancers -- Fariseos, Chapayekas, Matachinis -- is nearly 400 years old. Melding centuries-old Spanish Christian teachings and ancient Yaqui traditions, the tribe has re-enacted the Passion of Christ in song and dance for about 100 years in Tucson.
Rarely has the ceremony been captured on film or video. The Yaquis, who consider the Easter dance ceremony highly spiritual and significant, have not allowed the ceremony's reverence to be interfered with by outsiders.
The first known film was made in 1941-1942, by noted University of Arizona anthropologist Edward H. 'Ned' Spicer, his wife, Rosamond 'Roz' Spicer, and cinematographer E. Tad Nichols.
That film was lost in the university's archives, discovered and shown briefly in the late 1980s, only to disappear again. But the celebrated film, 'Yaqui Easter,' will be shown tonight at Pascua Neighborhood Center.
The Easter film is a welcomed piece of her history -- and of Tucson, said Rebecca Tapia, a Yaqui who was born next to Pascua and is the center's director.
It offers a window to a part of Tucson that has often been misunderstood and ignored. And just as important, the film gives the Yaquis a proud glimpse of their culture, said Tapia, who was born in Barrio Belen, immediately south of Pascua northwest of Downtown."
Get the Story:
Ernesto Portillo Jr.: 'Lost' film of Yaqui ceremony to be shown
(The Arizona Daily Star 1/31)
Relevant Links:
Pascua Yaqui Tribe -
http://www.pascuayaqui-nsn.gov
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