France welcomes banned Spanish troupe of dwarf bullfighters – with 650-seat arena in 850-person town SOLD
- The artists rejected Spain’s reasoning and said it was a harmless ‘parody’.
A Spanish troupe of dwarf bullfighters brought their performance to France after their home country banned such shows on the grounds that they encouraged mockery of disabled people.
The company’s Thursday night show, ‘Diversiones en el Ruedo’ (‘Bullfighting Fun’), sold out at the 650-seat arena in Tethieu, a town of 850 near the Spanish border.
Unlike regular bullfights, the performance did not result in injury or death to the participating animals.
Instead, the artists presented sketches and skits in various costumes, and sometimes with little cows, drawing laughter and applause.
The Spanish parliament banned such shows from April on the grounds that dwarfs disguised as bullfighters or firefighters, to the amusement of the crowd, were being “used to provoke ridicule, ridicule, and derision.”
A member of the “comic bullfighters” of the Spanish company “Diversiones en el ruedo” performs during the Thethieu festival in Tethieu, southwestern France, on August 3, 2023.
Artists presented sketches and skits in various costumes, and sometimes with little cows, drawing laughter and applause.
Spain based its ruling on the European Union directives on discrimination against people with disabilities.
But the artists themselves dismissed the reasoning.
“It’s a comedy show, there’s no blood or murder, just a parody,” said Daniel Calderón, leader of the 11-person troupe.
He said dwarfism had been used “as a pretext by people who just don’t like bullfighting” to justify the Spanish ban.
Another cast member known as the ‘comic bullfighters’, Paul Munoz, 31, wearing a sequined suit, called Spain’s stance ‘unfair’ and said the performers had never been consulted about the ban.
“We love what we do, it’s our job,” he said.
Mika Romero, the company’s French representative, added: “The real discrimination is depriving them of their livelihood.”
But Violette Viannay, president of the ‘French Association of Little People’, said such spectacles were ‘counterproductive’ in the fight for better integration of people with dwarfism into the rest of society.
“It’s not just a matter of size,” he said. “Dwarfism is a condition created by rare diseases,” she said.
The French government’s minister in charge of disability, Fadila Khattabi, told AFP that it was “problematic to consider dwarfism as a source of entertainment.”
Discrimination against dwarves was “centuries old” and had to end, he said.
“We must, together and urgently, change this type of representation,” he said.
Mika Romero, the company’s French representative, added: “The real discrimination is depriving them of their livelihood.”
“It’s a comedy show, there’s no blood or murder, just a parody,” said Daniel Calderón, leader of the 11-person troupe.
The minister said she preferred to focus on what she called an “excellent performance” by French athletes at the World Dwarf Games in Germany, the biggest international sporting event for athletes with dwarfism that ends on Saturday.
