This hands-on, Aztec dance workshop is led by Ensemble member Lorena Iñiguez. It can be taught in a large open space (like a school gym or a yard) for groups of 10 to 75 children or adults or both mixed together. An Aztec drum is placed in the center representing the sun, and the dancers form a circle around the drum. This ritual, circle dance has been performed by the Aztecs in Mexico since pre- Columbian times. It represents their view of the cosmos. The cumulative “theme and variation” form of this dance allows students to quickly learn this dance while they are challenged both physically and mentally. Students will learn the names of the four sacred elements of nature for the Aztecs: earth, wind, fire and water, and some names in the Nahuatl language.