People covered their faces with devil masks, pranced about the cement floor of Charros Unidos and snapped their whips as they danced to the beats of traditional chilenas from Oaxaca.
Los Diablos de Atenango, as the dancing troupe from Madera dubs itself, performed the Danza de los Rubios, a traditional dance that originated in Santiago Juxtlahuaca, Oaxaca, centuries ago.
The Saturday performance honored the men of the northwest region, known as Mixteca baja, who would herd cattle to market for sale or trade and celebrate the end of their work journey by lighting a fire, drinking aguardiente — a sugarcane-based alcohol — and dancing to the sounds of violin and other instruments.
In Madera, Oaxaca-born people and their U.S.-born children keep the tradition alive by practicing the dance weekly and dressing up during weekends to perform...