Mexico City Travel Guide (Mexico City, Mexico)

The Ballet Folklórico ( www.balletamalia.com.mx/eng.html ) is a total contrast: a long-running, internationally famed compilation of traditional dances from all over the country, elaborately choreographed and designed, and interspersed with Mexican music and singing. That said - and despite the billing - there's nothing very traditional about the Ballet. Although it does include several of the more famous native dances, they are very jazzed up and incorporated into what is, in effect, a regular musical that wouldn't be out of place on Broadway.

The best place to see the Ballet Folklórico is in the original setting of the Palacio de Belles Artes , where the theatre is an attraction in itself. There are usually performances on Sunday at 9.30am and 8.30pm, and Wednesday at 8.30pm. Tickets, however, can be hard to come by, and pressure of other events occasionally forces a move to the Auditorio Nacional in Chapultepec Park. You should try to book at least a couple of days in advance - tickets (US$20 for the cheap seats, US$35 for something really good) are available either from the Bellas Artes box office direct (tel 5529-9320) and through Ticketmaster (tel 5325-9000), or arrange to go with an organized tour, for which you'll pay a considerable premium. Rival troupes, often every bit as good, perform at the Teatro de la Danza, behind the Auditorio Nacional (Metro Auditorio; tel 5280-8771).