In this excerpt, Chavarría discusses the ways in which the Major Devil character has changed over his lifetime. He focuses particularly on his choice to follow his mentor’s example by wearing a smaller mask and discusses the value of smaller masks in relationship to the value of larger ones, which many younger devils choose to wear.
In this excerpt, Solís discusses studying the dance of the devil in 1994 under the tutelage of Celedonio Molinar, legionary Major Devil of Portobelo, Panama and receiving permission from the Congo King and Queen to dress and dance as a devil in 1995.
In this excerpt, Chavarría discusses how he imagines retiring as Major Devil.
In this excerpt, Chavarría discusses his mentor Celedonio Molinar’s lasting legacy to the town and to the Congo tradition, including a charge to embrace the tradition with pride and joy.
In this excerpt, Chavarría talks about the importance of the Congo tradition and Congo dance to the community’s sense of pride and self. He urges young people to maintain the power of their traditions and to stay anchored to their sense of “place” and home.
In this excerpt, Chavarría shares a story about what happened when the Major Devil played the starring role in the Passion of Christ.
In this excerpt, Jiménez talks about the participation of other family members in the Congo tradition, including an older brother who has performed the role of Pajarito and a younger brother who has performed the role of devil. His father, Andrés, also performed in the role of priest in the Congo tradition and, like him, was trained in his role by Celedonio Molinar.
In this excerpt, Jiménez discuses the ways in which the 20th century notion of the devil character in the Congo tradition of Panama was “born” in Portobelo and discusses the ways in which his mentor in the tradition, Celedonio Molinar, brought back the practice of “Blessing the Devils.”
In this excerpt, Jiménez discusses how he began to play the role of the Major Devil character in the Congo tradition of Portobelo, Panama when Carlos Chavarria took a sabbatical from the role to study abroad in Russia.
In this excerpt, Jiménez discusses the significance of the devil character to the Congo tradition of Panama and his perspective on playing the Major Devil character.