Tenerife Chirigota Makes Cádiz Carnival History
For the first time ever, a chirigota group from Santa Cruz de Tenerife, 'Los legía con G', performed at the Cádiz Carnival's official competition, bringing a unique style that initially confused but ultimately charmed the audience.
Last night, something new happened at the Cádiz Carnival's official competition. For the very first time, a group from the Santa Cruz de Tenerife carnival took part. They were called 'Los legía con G' and performed as a "chirigota" – a type of carnival group – dressed as Roman soldiers ready for battle in Cádiz.
The group, led by Francisco José Trillo and Ricardo Ignacio Hernández, is very experienced in Tenerife's "murgas" competition (another type of carnival group). They admitted during their performance that they were "nervous" about performing at this historic carnival. They felt a lot of pressure being the first group from Tenerife to sing at the famous Falla Theater.
The singing styles and rules for the Tenerife and Cádiz carnivals are quite different. Because of this, 'Los legía con G' didn't quite fit the usual style of groups performing in Cádiz. This initially confused the audience, who started with hesitant applause. However, they soon began shouting "champions, champions" with a mix of laughter and playful teasing.
For their "pasodobles" (a type of song), the group sang about the DANA storm in Valencia and also shared a toast among their soldier characters. Their "cuplés" (another song type), which they performed as several short "cupletinas," featured stories about celebrities such as Lamine Yamal and Jordi Hurtado.
After their performance, the group members said they were very happy with how they did at the Falla Theater. They were the only group that had to fly to get to the competition.
"We are very happy and grateful," they told reporters after their show. Their performance was the fifth of 17 preliminary rounds in the competition.
Even though the audience's reaction was mostly playful teasing, the Tenerife group said they were very "touched" by the welcome. They were proud to have completed this adventure, bringing a group from the Canary Islands to the Cádiz competition for the first time. In past years, groups from places like Burgos or Uruguay had added a similar "exotic" touch.