Dancing practices and challenges of the modern Dance Group of the Mexican Institute of Social Security

Abstract

The article presents a study on dance practices and the challenges experienced by the representative group of modern dance of the Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS) during the period 1977-1990, when it was directed by Socorro Bastida, who served as National Classic and Modern Dance Coordinator of the mentioned Institute. The work consisted in first, to analyze the historical, political, social and artistic conditions and processes that allowed classical and modern dance to take off at the IMSS in the seventies and eighties of the twentieth century, resulting in forming of a group with amateurs; second, to identify not only the protagonist subjects that integrated it, but also the practices they generated, the challenges they faced and their main contributions. On the other hand, the study was approached from two methodological approaches: the historical one, which, according to Fernand Braudel (1970), proposes the analysis of the different durations and temporalities of social facts is presented as a problem that concerns the social and human sciences; and the educational one, focused on non-formal dance education. The IMSS historical file and Socorro Bastida's individual one were consulted, and interviews were held with its director and members. The process of the representative group of modern dance of the IMSS during the aforementioned period was important because it took up and studied some characteristics that imply service to the community, such as: free workshops, collaborative work, scenic practices directed to the population in general, the corporate creation and the establishment of a link between interpreters and the public.