In this book, Rodriguez explores the colorful, complex, and often enigmatic Matachines dance as it is performed today. In the Upper Rio Grande Valley of New Mexico, the Matachines is the only ritual dance performed in both Indian Pueblos and Hispano communities.
The danza de matachines is a tradition with roots in the Spanish colonization of Mexico that summons history for Mexican, Chicano, and indigenous communities. The elaborate ritual, regalia, and practices associated with the tradition tell of the repeated appearances of Our Lady of Guadalupe to the Aztec Indian Juan Diego as she provided instructions for the building of a church. Matachines have been dancing in Mexico and portions of the southwestern United States for as long as 300 years, and various troupes in San Antonio date their beginnings to the late 1800s, as immigrants from Mexico brought the tradition to the southern reaches of Texas. In We Dance for the Virgen, Robert R. Botello, who participated in a family-based troupe from 2006 to 2019, reviews the history of the tradition while contrasting the troupe's internal changes in traditions with those originating from the larger social and political context of San Antonio. In Botello's words, this book "is as much about the dance and its history as it is about my transformation as a matachines dancer." Botello ultimately examines issues of cultural appropriation arising from the association of the troupe with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio, revealing the resilience in a tradition that has remained true to its origins across many generations of dancers.
Whereas other White Americans may be socially in just one culture, Mexican-Americans are often influenced by at least two separate and quite different cultures. The transmission of culture pertaining to life factors such as expectations of gender roles, religion, and ethnicities all become intertwined. This study focuses on a group of Matachines. Matachines are religious dancers who dance in predominantly Mexican and Mexican-American Roman Catholic ceremonies. The participants in this case study are of particular interest because of their participation in a traditional Matachines dance group in the Midwestern United States. Living in relative isolation from their homeland, many of the dancers look to the dance group as a vehicle to demonstrate their ethnic pride. This research has found that through participation in this traditional dance group, these Mexican-Americans are able to do just that; maintain what they believe to be a very important part of their culture.