Shows and Popular Performances in Andalusia

Festivals and folklore express the shared culture of a community, encompassing its historic and sociocultural traditions and the ways these are expressed publicly.

This exhibition includes visual and documentary materials from our archives, showing some of Andalusia's most important cultural and sporting events such as football matches; and film and music festivals.

Cinema

Cinema quickly became one of Spain's most popular leisure pursuits.

From the 1930s onward, several cinemas opened across the country, both indoor and outdoor.

This document shows a list of all cinemas in the province of Huelva in 1960.

Films were also subject to censorship; Spanish films were censored, while foreign films were cut and tampered with. After 1943, all film showings had to start with the "NO-DO" (News and Documentaries), a documentary which broadcast the activities of the political regime in Spain at that time.

Ibero-American Film Festival

The Ibero-American Film Festival in Huelva is one of the biggest cultural events in Andalusia. It attracts an international audience and is extremely successful in promoting Ibero-American film in Europe.

This poster, from 1975, is for the first Ibero-American Film Festival.

The Ibero-American Film Festival is the longest-standing film festival in Andalusia, and the second oldest in Spain.

Its main award is known as the "Colón de Oro" (Golden Columbus).

Theater

Spanish 20th-century theater was characterized by its wide variety of theatrical styles, approaches, and movements.

The Company and Theater School of the Corral de Comedias ARA, whose name is derived from the initials of its founder, Ángeles Rubio Argüelles, was a leading light in the city of Málaga thanks to its efforts to promote and publicize the theater.

It was at the ARA Theater, which was established in 1962, that actors such as Antonio Banderas, María Barranco, Raúl Sender, and Fiorella Faltoyano began their careers.

This is a program from 1971 showing a planned schedule of performances on the Málaga-Cádiz theater scene.

The "copla"

The "copla" is a genre of Spanish music originating in the early 1920s. Heavily promoted by the Franco regime, it was during this period that it reached its peak, becoming a symbol of national identity.

Popular coplas such as "Ojos Verdes" (Green Eyes), sung by Estrellita Castro in the 1930s, had their lyrics censored by the Franco regime from the very first word right to the end of the song. Song lyrics had to be given prior authorization before they could be performed.

Photograph of Estrellita Castro, dedicated to Rafael Romero de Torres.

Flamenco

Designated as Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO in 2010, this musical genre has its origins in southern Spain; principally Andalusia.

Flamenco grew out of the "cafés cantantes" or music cafés, reaching its peak between the mid-19th century and the 1920s. Later, during the years following the Civil War and the early years of the Franco regime, the world of flamenco began to be viewed with suspicion.

However, in the end Franco's dictatorship adopted flamenco as the image of Spanish identity, although in a version that was closer in style to the "copla" and detached from flamenco's popular roots and radical message.

The document shows the application for a singing exam by Fernanda de Utrera in 1963.

Guitar

The flamenco guitar has traditionally been less visible than flamenco singing or dancing.

But it was flamenco guitarists—some of whom were women, although in smaller numbers—who were responsible for encouraging the singers and the dancers to join them in the "cafés cantantes" of the 19th century.

Today, flamenco guitarists (both men and women) fuse their music with other musical styles; predominantly jazz and other types of roots music. This is, to a large extent, the legacy of Paco de Lucía, who is shown in this image from 1963.

Dance

Flamenco dance could be considered the earthiest expression of the art of flamenco. Originating in Spanish folk dances, now considered by certain scholars to be proto-flamenco dances, dancers strike the ground with their feet, as though trying to raise their roots skyward using the strength of their arms.

There are different schools of flamenco dance which also contain influences of bolero and classical Spanish dance, depending on the artist.

This image shows the artist Matilde Coral's identity card. Coral is a key figure from the Seville School of Dance, and the only person to have been awarded the "Golden Key" award for flamenco dance.

Football (soccer)

This sport, introduced to Spain in the 19th century by Scottish mine workers, is extremely popular today.

The football (soccer) club "Club Recreativo de Huelva," founded in 1889 by businessmen from Huelva and Scotland working in the mining industry, is Spain's oldest football club. In its early days, the team mainly consisted of British sailors and employees of the Rio Tinto Limited company.

The image shows the team of "El Recre," as the team was known, who played in the first cup game organized by the Seamen's Institute in 1904.