An intriguing element of the Pueblo and Hispanic villages of New Mexico is the Matachines Dance. It is performed on different, mostly religious occasions and requires a great personal and financial commitment on the part of the participants. Where the dance tradition disappeared in the past, it is being revived in the present, and where it continues to be danced in an uninterrupted tradition, it is becoming ever more costly and exuberant. The dance draws on European Middle-Age dance dramas, but it is heavy with indigenous layers of meaning. On face value, its key protagonists - Montezuma, Malinche, Abuelos, Montezuma’s entourage and the Bull - reenact the victory of Christianity in the New World. That is the meaning the dance has for the Hispanic villages, in addition to a number of place- and time-specific meanings. While seemingly identical, the dance often carries a different set of meanings in the Pueblos, symbolizing the banishment of foreign elements and the restoration of indigenous rule. In both the Pueblo and Hispanic villages, aside from the religious and mythical significance, the dance serves to delineate and reinforce ethnic boundaries while promoting a sense of community and solidarity. The Matachines Dance thus serves as a fascinating and paradoxical example of a shared cultural praxis which reinforces perceived cultural difference.