Tuck, Bill. "From Rigaudon to Reggaeton: The Perception and Reception of European Dance Cultures in the Caribbean."

Tuck, Bill. "From Rigaudon to Reggaeton: The Perception and Reception of European Dance Cultures in the Caribbean." In Perception and Reception of Early Dance [Proceedings of the Early Dance Circle Conference held on 18-20 May 2018], edited by Barbara Segal and Sharon Butler, 119-132. Cambridge: Early Dance Circle, 2020.

URL: https://www.earlydancecircle.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/11-Bill-Rigaudon-26-10-2020.pdf


Abstract:
From the Spanish ‘invasion’ of South America and the Caribbean in the 16th century through to modern influences of Western cultural forms (from ‘classical’ ballet to hip-hop) the area has been subject to a continual stream of ‘alien’ dance forms landing on their shores. Once adopted these are usually transformed by the local culture into a form that is quite distinct from the original version. Quite frequently this is then re-exported back to Europe, branded as an exotic novelty. Examples abound, from ‘Argentine’ tango to ‘Paraguayan’ polka or ‘Caribbean’ quadrille.

This paper will focus on the specific area of St Domingue (now Haiti) and its neighbour, Cuba, in the late 18th and early 19th century. Both were subject to extreme social change during this period, while at the same time developing their own ‘dance identities’ based on the amalgamation of European and African dance styles. Contredanses, Quadrilles and other forms emerging in Europe at that time are rapidly adopted in the Caribbean colonies, but soon become infused with local traditions to become something very distinct from the original. The process of forging new social identities by means of dance, along with the impact of migration following the revolutions in St Domingue will be a central topic of this study.

By way of a coda, the contemporary world of Caribbean culture shows many developments of a similar kind and these will be touched upon to demonstrate the universality of this theme of cultural adoption and transformation.