In this excerpt, Solís discusses studying the dance of the devil in 1994 under the tutelage of Celedonio Molinar, legionary Major Devil of Portobelo, Panama and receiving permission from the Congo King and Queen to dress and dance as a devil in 1995.
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![](https://portobelodigital.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2014/09/Screen-Shot-2014-09-24-at-8.41.11-PM-1024x554.png)
![](https://portobelodigital.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2014/09/Celedonio-Retires-During-Festival-of-the-Devils-1024x768.jpg)
In this excerpt, Solís discusses the one-person performance that she created through her theater company to celebrate Celedonio and the Major Devil tradition of Portobelo, Panama.
![](https://portobelodigital.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2013/10/Iliana-Solis-Artist-and-Scholar-who-Danced-Devil-with-Celedonio-1024x683.jpg)
In this excerpt, Ileana discusses her participation with “Los Trashumantes,” the only theater group in Panama that was paid to do community theater and the Omjar Torrijos’ support for artistic culture.
![](https://portobelodigital.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2014/09/Panama-City-Calidonia-Curundu-area-capitals-district-of-poverty-©-Peter2222-All-Rights-Reserved--1024x749.jpg)
In this excerpt, Ileana discusses being raised by a hardworking middle-class mother within the economically impoverished neighborhood of Calidonia and the centrality of art to her personal development.
![](https://portobelodigital.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2013/10/Higher-Quality-Scan-of-Celedonio_Page_2.jpg)
In this excerpt, Solís discusses what she believes is the legacy of Celedonio Molinar, renowned Major Devil in the Congo tradition of Portobelo, Panama.
![](https://portobelodigital.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2014/09/ileana-solis.jpg)
In this excerpt, Solís discusses her philosophy of art and the power of community theater as a communicative tool. She is committed to theater that energizes, surprises, engages, and maintains the ability to engender change.
![](https://portobelodigital.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2014/09/Celedonio-as-Major-Devil-Photo-by-Arturo-Lindsay-1024x668.jpg)
In this excerpt, Solís discusses the enchantment she felt the first time that she witnessed Celedonio Molinar performing the role of Major Devil, the baptism of the devils, and how she learned about the performance traditions of Portobelo, Panama.
![](https://portobelodigital.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2014/09/DSC00503-e1411607471836.jpg)
In this excerpt, Solís discusses the ritual process that Celedonio used to prepared to “transform” into the Major Devil character.
![](https://portobelodigital.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2014/09/Jumping-Devil-1024x768.jpg)
In this excerpt, Solís discusses the relationship between the economy and the increasingly violent ways in which younger generations of devils within Congo traditions of Panama embody the character.
![](https://portobelodigital.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2014/09/Celedonio-Performing-as-Major-Devil-During-Carnival-Photo-by-Ileana-Solis-Palma-1024x669.jpg)
In this excerpt, Ileana discusses the unique energy and magnetism that made Celedonio Molinar’s embodiment of the devil character within the Congo tradition of Portobelo, Panama so special.