FILM SYNOPSIS

BACKGROUND: THE PUEBLO PEOPLE

Among Native peoples in the United States, the culture of the Pueblo people of New Mexico is generally considered to have changed least, because the Pueblos still live in traditional adobe villages, with the dance plazas and other features to which their ceremonies are connected. The people who have been termed “Anasazi,” who were once erroneously thought to have “disappeared,” were in fact the ancestors of the current-day Puebloans. They have simply moved to new homes from time to time while maintaining their long traditions.

The documentary “Dancing from the Heart” shows how one group works to keep up those traditions, pass them from generation to generation, and reconcile their heritage with contemporary life.

For historical reasons, the Pueblos are ordinarily distrustful of discussing their culture with outsiders. But Andrew Garcia of Ohkay Owingeh/San Juan Pueblo, an experienced teacher and speaker and the unscripted narrator of the film, understands exactly what he can share with outsiders.

OVERVIEW

At the heart of the film are the dances, explained by Mr. Garcia. The performances of these harmonious communal dances become especially meaningful in the context of Garcia’s story and his nurturing relationship with his family. His grandchildren discuss their feeling about the dances. They want to pass them on to further generations, and they speak of Garcia as a role model, “For the way he turned his life around” after overcoming alcoholism. They pray to the seven sacred directions as he has taught them to do. The family takes part in a Feast Day lunch and lighthearted backstage moments. Mr. Garcia shows with pride the handsome regalia he has made for his dance group, and leads a class of young people in making and understanding the regalia for themselves.

At the pueblo, Garcia points out the house on the central plaza where he was raised. At his home, he shows photos of his late father and plays a tape of him singing, while he comments on their difficult relationship, and in the process comes to recognize his father’s contribution to his own achievements.

THE DANCES

The dances–Eagle, Deer, Buffalo, Butterfly, Pueblo-Comanche and Women’s Pueblo–performed by Mr. Garcia’s family dance group, Tewa Dancers from the North, and other members of the community, take place in the ancient dance plazas of Ohkay Owingeh/San Juan Pueblo; at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico; in the huge annual Gathering of Nations Powwow in Albuquerque; and in an ancient stone kiva (religious structure) at Chimney Rock, Colorado, where Puebloan ancestors once lived. The camera also takes the viewer into Garcia’s course in Pueblo Social Dances at the University of New Mexico, where a spectrum of students, from France and Alaska, New York City and San Juan Pueblo itself, share in learning.

The film brings out Garcia’s belief in the importance of the dances for participants and viewers alike as a form of prayer and sacrifice to seek well-being for the natural world and all the earth’s peoples, along with individual happiness and health. As the viewer’s understanding of the dances deepens, we see Garcia’s young granddaughter dance for her mother to recover from cancer, while the family watches with emotion. As grandson Curt dances an intense and focused Deer Dance, we hear him tell of his desire to keep the traditions alive and pass them on. We see him working with young students performing the dances.

SUMMING UP

Andrew Garcia sums up, “I admire our ancestors, who gave us so many beautiful things where we can sing whatever we feel from the heart.” Finally, we see his three-year-old great-grandson become fascinated by dancing, and begin to learn, thus rounding out four generations of one family deeply engaged in their culture.

© Mother Earth Productions, LLC, USA, 2007