It is an interesting fact that flamenco and bullfighting are closely related and gypsies were leading performers in both professions. Bullfighting and flamenco share may similarities.
Outwardly they are both spectacularly visual in terms of color and movement; swirling shirt and matador’s cape. In dance, the male is strong and aggressive, moving towards and around the female whose graceful and quick movements keep him at bay. In bullfighting, the male is strong and aggressive, moving towards and around the bull using graceful and quick movements to wear him down for the kill. A bullfighter can’t simply be brave to achieve true artistry and beauty; like the cantor, he must be driven by the “force that climbs up inside, taking control of his very being”. He plays to his audience’s mood much lie the cantor who embodies the life struggle of his audience. The matador represents man alone against the bull, man alone confronted by fate.
We saw our first bullfight at The Palza Toros Las Ventas Bullring, one of the largest in the world, which was built in 1931. It’s 196’ in diameter and holds 23,798 fans; it is one of the most important arenas in the world. The complex was constructed using hand-painted tiles in the Neo-mudejar style of 12th century Arabic Moors.
Bullfighting isn’t for everyone. We weren’t sure we’d make it through the first bull! As I noted before, bullfighting has close ties to flamenco, ancient history and religious iconography and is a big part of Spanish culture. Some of the best matadors are/were of gypsy decent so I had to go!
The matador doesn’t always win! Some bulls just aren’t into the fight and others are too resilient. When the bull wins, a herd of brown and white cows, wearing loud bells entered the ring. I thought they were clowns like in a rodeo but they had a serious job to do. Their job is to incorporate the bull into their herd and lead him out of the ring. The bull wins – once a bull has been in the ring, he can never fight again because he is smart and knows what will happen. He gets to spend his life in the pasture, smelling the flowers just like Ferdinand!
