Ronda Festivals - Feria de Pedro Romero
The best known Ronda festival is the 'Feria Goyesca de Pedro Romero' which
takes place during the first week of September every year. The main attraction
of this fiesta is the bullfight which takes place on the first Saturday of the
month in the Real Maestranza bullring. Before the bullfight there is a
procession of horse drawn carriages through the streets of Ronda with everyone
dressed in 18th century Goyesque costumes. The matadors themselves also wear
this traditional attire.
The tradition of dressing in these 18th century costumes from the times of
the celebrated Spanish painter Francisco de Goya dates back to just 1954 when
local bullfighting hero Antonio Ordóñez arranged the first Goyesque festival in
honour of the 200th anniversary of Pedro Romero who is generally considered the
founder of modern bullfighting. Goya painted a famous portrait of Pedro Romero
which is currently on display at the Kimbell Art Foundation in Texas. You'll see
old black and white photos of Antonio Ordóñez for sale in some shops in Ronda in
which he's standing at the bullring with his great friend Ernest Hemingway.
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This Ronda tradition of dressing for the Goyesque bullfight continues to this
day and is now arranged by Francisco Rivera Ordoñez who is the grandson of
Antonio Ordoñez. Thousands of people from all over the world head to Ronda for
these days so accommodation in Ronda hotels is scarce as are tickets for the
bullfights.
For confirmation of dates of the bullfights and matadors take a look at this
Ronda
festival website and for tickets try calling the ticket office in Ronda on
(+34) 952 876967. Ticket sales normally begin at the beginning of July.
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