Kissing the Cactus: Dancing Gender and Politics in Spain

Abstract

In Bésame el Cactus (2004), Sol Picó, modern dancer and choreographer, simultaneously performs flamenco music and dance. Using her body, her shoes, castanets, and hands, she is integrating flamenco—as a cultural symbol of Spain—into a contemporary performance. In a Spain impacted by Franco's dictatorship (1939–1975), the peculiar ambiguous choice of using flamenco in a modern performance raises questions about the construction of national and gender identity, both during the dictatorship and now. Franco's regime promoted a centralized nationalism, and imposed it on the other cultures that were part of the Spanish state. These were cultural regionalisms linked to the historic communities of Catalonia, Galicia, and the Basque Country. During Francoism, popular and folk music and dances were employed as an effort to construct a unified Spanish culture. This paper will address the problems of gender and national construction in contemporary Spain through a close reading of this choreographic piece. A methodological analysis of Bésame el Cactus will be presented using applied performing arts theories. I will also draw upon interview material with the choreographer/performer, Sol Picó. In conclusion, this paper will illustrate the ways in which the heritage of Francoism still informs choreographers' choices, and thereby creates an artificial national music and dance in Spain.