In their place, the Utes are using social media to display videos and photos of past Bear Dances. The dances and the attendant gambling and feasting festivities have been canceled. The Ute reservations have opted to remain even more buttoned up than the rest of Colorado. In a rite of spring for Ute Indians since at least the 1500s, hundreds of tribal members would gather for days of celebrations around the dances.īut, like so many other public gatherings, the dances won’t happen this spring. Groups of dancers would sway back and forth, shoulder-to-shoulder, with the lines of men and women closely facing each other before they split off into pairs.

VACCINE HOTLINE: Get up-to-date information.The state is now encouraging anyone with symptoms to get tested. TESTING : Here’s where to find a community testing site.The latest from the coronavirus outbreak in Colorado: Meet Colorado’s Congressional delegation.Ute tribes reimagine Bear Dances, a key ceremony of renewal, as coronavirus locks down Colorado reservations - The Colorado Sun Close

Ute mountain casino director