The Andean Acrobatic Dance Performed with Two Loose Metal Blades
In the south-central Andes of Peru, dancers perform the Danza de las Tijeras (Scissors Dance), engaging in grueling competitive duels that can last for hours. Clad in embroidered costumes, performers strike two separate iron blades together like scissors in one hand, keeping exact rhythm with violin and harp music while executing backflips and leaps.
The Unique Mechanics of the Scissors
Despite the name Danza de las Tijeras, or the Scissors Dance, the instruments wielded by performers are not household shears. Instead, each dancer holds two separate, unhinged blades of forged iron or steel in their right hand. One blade is slightly larger and traditionally designated as male (macho), while the other is smaller and considered female (hembra). When clapped together using a specialized finger grip and wrist flick, these independent metal pieces produce a crisp, metallic clatter that mimics the sound of snipping shears.
Maintaining this percussive rhythm requires immense manual dexterity, particularly because the blades must never stop sounding during the performance. As the dancer—known as a danzaq or tusuq—spins, leaps, and drops to the ground, the clicking must align precisely with the tempo set by the accompanying musicians. The blades are not merely theatrical props; they function as a vital percussion instrument that dictates the pacing and complexity of the entire choreography.
The Competitive Arena of the Atipanakuy
The Scissors Dance is fundamentally built around competitive confrontation, known in Quechua as the atipanakuy. In towns and rural communities across the regions of Ayacucho, Huancavelica, and Apurímac, dancers represent rival villages or quarters in prolonged artistic duels. Each dancer is backed by a musical duo composed of a harpist and a violinist, whose intricate melodies guide the sequences of the contest. The duels are organized into distinct phases that systematically test every facet of the performer's skill, stamina, and psychological endurance.
An atipanakuy often extends over several hours or even multiple days. The competition progresses through escalating stages, starting with rhythmic walking steps (pasacalle) and intricate footwork before moving into breathtaking acrobatic routines, backflips, and aerial maneuvers executed without dropping the blades. In some traditional settings, the duel culminates in trials of physical resilience, where competitors demonstrate their pain tolerance and determination to outlast their opponent and claim victory for their community.
Roots in Indigenous Resistance and Taki Unquy
The historical foundations of the Scissors Dance are deeply tied to the socio-religious turmoil of the 16th-century Andes. Scholars trace its lineage to the Taki Unquy (literally 'dancing sickness') movement, an indigenous resistance campaign that arose in response to Spanish colonization and Christian evangelization. During this period, native spiritual leaders and dancers claimed to be possessed by pre-Hispanic deities (huacas), dancing intensely to reassert ancestral cosmology and reject foreign rule.
As colonial authorities and Catholic clergy suppressed the movement, labeling the dancers as heretics who made pacts with the devil, the practice adapted to survive. Rather than disappearing, the performers integrated their dance into Catholic patron saint festivals and municipal celebrations. This accommodation allowed the ritual to persist beneath a veneer of Christian devotion, while preserving Andean concepts of sacred landscape, ritual combat, and indigenous identity through generations.
Spiritual Kinship with the Wamanis
Within Andean cosmology, the danzaq is not viewed as a simple entertainer, but as a ritual specialist who maintains a direct spiritual relationship with nature and the mountain deities, known as Wamanis or Apus. Performers traditionally prepare for major contests through secluded rituals in the highlands, seeking strength, agility, and protection from the spirits of waterfalls, caves, and mountain peaks. This sacred connection is thought to grant the dancer the supernatural stamina required to endure hours of acrobatic exertion.
The visual presentation of the danzaq reflects this blend of physical prowess and spiritual distinction. Performers wear ornate, heavy costumes that can weigh several kilograms, decorated with intricate golden embroidery, sequins, small mirrors, and vibrant fringes. They wear stiff, decorated hats and vests bearing symbols of nature and regional identity. Dancing with agility while burdened by such substantial attire emphasizes the performer's mastery over physical limitation.
Apprenticeship, Urban Migration, and Global Heritage
Becoming a danzaq requires years of rigorous physical and musical training, typically beginning in early childhood. The tradition is passed down orally from master to apprentice, with students learning not only the physical acrobatics and rhythm, but also the cultural codes, regional choreographies, and spiritual respect associated with the art form. This lineage system ensures that each regional style—such as the distinct traditions of Ayacucho and Huancavelica—preserves its unique identity.
During the 20th century, extensive migration from rural Andean highlands to the coastal capital of Lima created new urban performance spaces for the Scissors Dance. In urban settings, cultural associations and festivals helped sustain the tradition among diaspora communities. In 2010, the cultural significance and complexity of the dance were recognized globally when UNESCO inscribed the Scissors Dance of Peru on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
Key takeaways
•The 'scissors' are actually two loose, unhinged iron or steel blades held in one hand and rhythmically struck together throughout the performance.
•Performances center on the atipanakuy, an intense competitive duel between dancers backed by a violinist and a harpist that can last for hours.
•The dance originated as an expression of indigenous resistance linked to the 16th-century Taki Unquy movement before adapting into Catholic patron saint festivals.
•Inscribed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2010, the tradition is transmitted through rigorous master-apprentice lineages in the south-central Andes.