And
The Smithsonian Latino Center
present
Celebremos Argentina
A REPRODUCIBLE LEARNING GUIDE FOR TEACHERS
This guide is designed to help you and your students prepare for, enjoy, and
discuss Celebremos Argentina. It contains background information,
questions and activities. Appropriate for all ages.
Discovery Theater Artistic Director: Roberta Gasbarre
Discovery Theater programs are made
possible, in part, by gifts from
Learning Guide Layout: Genevieve Williams
Learning Guide Content: Emily Key,
Smithsonian Latino Center
Smithsonian Institution Women’s Committee
The Nora Roberts Foundation
Siewchin Yong
The Grace Richardson Trust
(202) 633-8700 • [email protected] • DiscoveryTheater.org
See our website for tickets, location, directions, resources for teachers, and much more!
Before Argentina Was Argentina…
In 1516, Spanish explorers, including the navigator Juan Díaz de Solís, came to explore
the New World and journeyed through the Río de la Plata. In 1580, the Spanish permanently
settled the area and established the colony of Puerto de Santa Maria de los Buenos Aires, where
one third of the colonists eventually came to live. In 1776, the Spanish established the
viceroyalty of Río de la Plata and made its capital the city of Buenos Aires. On July 9, 1816,
Buenos Aires formally declared independence from Spain and created the country of Argentina.
To this day, Buenos Aires remains the capital city of Argentina.
Activity: Can you locate Buenos Aires, Argentina on a map?
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The People of Argentina
With the European colonization of the Americas, many colonies came to have large
populations of Europeans and their descendants. The descendants born in the Americas were
called criollos. Also, because of the great number of male European settlers, there came to be a
population called the mestizos, a people who were a combination of Indigenous American and
European ancestry. Furthermore, the Spanish economy in the Americans depended on the
descendants of Africans as slaves for mining and agricultural work, so there came to be a
population of Africans and their descendants in South American colonies. After declaring their
independence, Argentina enjoyed years of prosperity. In the 20 th century, there were several
key figures including Hipólito Irigoyen, Juan Perón and Isabel Perón.
Hipólito Irigoyen
Juan Perón
Isabel Perón
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Argentina has a range of environments that are reflected in the arts
and in dances. In the south, Argentina is a part of the arctic. It even
includes a section of the freezing continent of Antarctica. In the north,
Argentina is mainly forested jungle regions where tropical and colorful
textiles and arts are found. On the eastern side sits the vast Atlantic
Ocean where regions like the pampas (plain, fertile lowlands, from the
native Quechua language) and beaches are located. Rugged and
towering mountains cover regions in the west. Argentina is also
bordered by five other countries, Chile, Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil and
Uruguay, giving the region greater diversity. El Río de Paraná in the
north has beautiful cascading waterfalls, while Río de la Plata is known
as a busy area, filled with ports and cities like Buenos Aires.
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Lets Dance!
The Zamba
Known as the national dance of Argentina, the zamba has its origins in
Peru. There, the zamacuecas, the mestizo people of Peru, created a majestic,
staccato, quick and lively music and dance. Argentina kept the dance even
after General Jose de San Martín won Peru’s independence from Argentina in
1824. It is still played in the northwest regions of Argentina like Tarija and
Santa Cruz.
Embracing couples wave white handkerchiefs elegantly as they dance
to songs about the beauty of their country, their history and their women. The male costumes include
bombachas (loose fitting trousers), a poncho over a white shirt, a wide straw hat and leather riding
boots. Women dress in colorful baiana (from the region of Bahia, Brazil) dresses with beautiful bordado
(embroidery). The skirt is round and long, reaching down to their ankles. Some women also wear a white
turban on their heads, beaded necklaces and a long colored shawl. The music is characterized by 6 beats
to the bar and usually is played with guitar and bombo legueros (drum of Argentina). Sometimes, there
will even be a bandoneón (.Spanish accordion of German descent)
The Chacarera
The Chacarera is a dance of the late 1800s from the Tulumba region of Argentina. Provinces well
known for the dance form are Santiago del Estero, Catamarca, Jujuy, Salta and
Tucuman. The dance involves foot stomping and waving a handkerchief as the
guitar and bombo leguero plays quick and vivacious music.
Litoral Traditional Dances (Chamame)
The Litoral is a northern region of Argentina. It includes the provinces of
Misiones, Chaco, Formosa, Corrientes and Entre Rios. The arts of Litoral are
strongly influenced by those of Santa Fe, Argentina, the Guarani culture and
Brazil.
The Chamame is a dance of the pueblito Yapeyu in the Corrientes region of Northeast Argentina.
It is believed to have come about in the 1800s with distinct influences of the European, Aboriginal and
African cultures of the colonization era. The sound and beats have a taste of dances like the European
polka and waltz which is why the Chamame is also known as the Polka of Corrientes. The specific polka
that the chamame is believed to have come from is the schottische, a country folk dance of the Volgan
German immigrants. The Guarani, people of a region now known as Paraguay, also gave some of their
own flavor to the dance, providing the chamame with a more smooth and flowing sound. The music and
song praise love and the beauty of the land.
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Activities
Now that you have learned all about the
Argentina and its traditional music and dance,
fill in the crossword puzzle or complete the
word search on the following pages. (In the
digital edition, the puzzles are in pdf format
and follow the guide.)
Try it out! (Appropriate for all ages)
Activity: Get to know the flag of Argentina. Look up the
flag of Argentina in an Encyclopedia or online (CIA
World Fact Book
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-worldfactbook/geos/ar.html).
Color in the flag of Argentina on the
following page. (Appropriate for all ages)
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About the partners
Smithsonian Latino Center
The Smithsonian Latino Center ensures Latino contributions to arts,
sciences and the humanities are highlighted, understood and advanced
through the development and support of public programs, scholarly
research, museum collections and educational opportunities at the
Smithsonian Institution and its affiliated organizations across the
United States. “Argentina at the Smithsonian 2010” is organized by the
Smithsonian Latino Center and the Secretariat of Culture of Argentina,
with the support of participating Smithsonian museums, the Embassy
of Argentina in the United States, and other cultural organizations in
the United States and Argentina. For more information, visit
www.latino.si.edu.
DISCOVERY THEATER (www.DiscoveryTheater.org), the
Smithsonian Institution’s theater for children, is
dedicated to offering the best in live educational
performing arts for young people. Each year, more than
50,000 children and their adults visit Discovery Theater
on the National Mall to explore American history and
cultures, folk tales from around the world, and exciting, accessible science
and math programs. Discovery Theater performances unite ideologies,
enact themes that reflect the diversity of its audiences, open avenues of
self-reflection, and offer an enjoyable means for parents and teachers to
demonstrate life's lessons.
Coming up next at Discovery Theater:
Seasons of Light
This seasonal favorite calls in the warmth of many holidays filled with light in our fun-filled
interactive celebration. Explore the history and customs of Devali, Ramadan, Sankta
Lucia, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, Las Posadas, Christmas,
and a First Nations tradition of the Winter Solstice.
November 30 – December 22
Call 202-633-8700 or visit www.DiscoveryTheater.org for tickets or more
information.
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