Young light dresses travel lightly in the streets of Madrid in a relay race in which the witness is a montera as an Olympic flame that goes to the great stadium of the Plaza de Las Ventas. It is already closed night when it arrives at the esplanade of the big door, where the last reliever, the bullfighter Marco Pérez, of White and Silver. By magic, the bullfighter appears in the ring dressed in the street and heads towards the center of the ring, converted for the occasion in an auditorium under the crystals of a tent that prevent the vision of the lying and an artificial floor that It does not allow contact with the sand.
Slowly, parsimonious and solemn, Marco, Montera in hand, take the stage, greet those present with an imaginary toast and deposit the montera in a monolith. At that time a singular pebetero is lit, ten flashes illuminate the night and on the big screen the motto ‘Madrid by Montera’ appears.
The music band of the square is then appears and makes the walk to the sounds of the Chotis ‘Madrid’, while six couples of chulapas and chulapos dance it on stage. Castiza music and four kids, two guitars, drums and vocalist, the group La Fama, premiere a song that copy the name of the well -known creation of Agustín Lara, and the bullfighter enclosure is wrapped in noisy sounds of modernity.
Thus began the gala in which the posters of the next San Isidro Fair, held last Thursday, day 6, were presented in the same windy. A breath of new airs, the staging of innovative ideas, the proof that it is possible to do something different to surprise without losing the essence.
Rafael García Garrido: “We have reached the generational relief; Plaza 1 has managed to approach young people, talk to them in their same language and design products at their height. ”
But joy lasted little. Suddenly, someone disappeared the montera and magic vanished.
The mayor of Madrid welcomed a message of support to the bulls (“in the face of the sectarianism of those who ignore or despise this party is freedom,” he said) and the presenters then announced the awards organized every year organized by the company Plaza 1 . But as the entrepreneurs of the square grant them, there they with their commitments and tastes:
-Premio Ambassador of Bullfighting, to the journalist Roberto Gómez.
-Premio the world of bullfighting, to the film director Albert Serra, for his film Soledad afternoons. (This award was granted by the aforementioned newspaper and not Plaza 1).
-Premio Youth and Bulls, to the Young Group of the Union of Bulls of Lidia.
-Premio livestock of the 2024 season, to that of Santiago Domecq (curiously, this iron does not appear in the posters of this year).
-Premio Woman and Bullfighting, for the bullfight Olga Casado (it seems a bit soon to reward a bullfighter who has only been seen at the festival held in Vistalegre, on December 1).
-Premio to last year’s winner in Madrid, Roca Rey. (But had not Borja Jiménez was the most outstanding right -handed of 2024 in sales?). As if that were not enough, Roca was not present, and the reason is that, according to the presenters, he had lost the plane in Mexico, which is not strange, given the usual unpunctuality of this bullfighter in his appearances in the squares.
And the transcendental moment of the night came: the discovery of the San Isidro poster, whose protagonist was Victoria Federica de Marichalar. The presenter, Ramón García, aware of what was going to happen, tried Liturgy of always and, at the same time, give entry to young people, that we miss. ”
Together with the well -known Ramontxu, they occupied the Victoria Federica stage, his predecessor, Cayetana Rivera, and the presenter Berenice Lobatón. On the screen, the making off of the poster, and the final result of an original idea of the Communication Department of Plaza 1, a collage with photos of Valero Rioja and the final design of Jesús Alejandro Muñoz.
Nice is, aesthetic, attractive, suggestive … the result of the work of a very professional team. What is not clear is that it is adequate to announce the Bullfighting Fair of reference in the world; But that is not the responsibility of communication, but of those who send in the company, with the approval, of course, of the Community of Madrid.
Rafael García Garrido, one of the businessmen, stressed him in his subsequent speech: “We can proudly say that we have reached generational relief; Plaza 1 has managed to approach young people, talk to them in their same language and design products at their height. ”
Would it refer, perhaps, to the poster presented, in which, by the way, neither a bull nor a bullfighter, or the drink bar that is mounted during San Isidro?
Isabel Díaz Ayuso: “Plaza 1 exceeds year after year, and see that it is difficult, because it always goes more, it always surprises us, and merges with tradition and avant -garde style.”
Just at that time, with the bullfighter image of Victoria on the screen and the closed applause of all present -more than 500 guests among bullfighters, ranchers, bullfighters, media, politicians of the community government and municipalities of the Popular Party, popular faces and workers from Plaza 1 and Nautalia (García Garrido’s company)-seemed to be enthroned a new bullfighting, more festive, lightsuperficial, away from integrity and purity, magnanimous, indulgent and decaffeinated; Modern bullfighting and accepted by the majority for a few years by imposition of the figures, with the necessary collaboration of farmers and entrepreneurs, already cause of the gradual disappearance of real fans.
And the president of the Community of Madrid corroborated him in his final speech. Neither at the gala, nor her Minister of Environment, Agriculture and Interior, Carlos Novillo, the day that the Center for Bullfighting Affairs approved the posters, made the slightest criticism of the Isidril Fair or the management of Plaza 1. For the Otherwise, Isabel Díaz Ayuso publicly congratulated the two businessmen and the entire team of the company “because, year after year, they overcome, and see that it is difficult,” he emphasized, “because they always go more, they always surprise us, and always They fuse with so much tradition and avant -garde style. ”
Well, very good. This is the bullfighting of the 21st century, for better and worse. The times change and, in those of now, bullfights and politicians exalt a faded bullfighting.
The Montera Olympic It is already in sales, as a symbol that the Madrid season is falling. The Pebetero, igniting for the bullfighting. A surprising and innovative image in a time of skinny cows in which the bull and bullfighting give their prominence to a fun and uncultured audience. I hope the times keep changing … for the better.