Seeing him without makeup, perhaps because of the dark color of his skin, you imagine that his name comes from there; but in reality it was just a word play, because when he created his character together with the clown Vanilla, the most attractive contrast for children was with chocolate.
About 20 years ago, cultural promoters thought of responding to a need in the territory: to bring joy to the communities farthest from the center. Those clowns that were “born” spontaneously, filled La Belén community with colors and teachings for the little ones.
After more than two decades, we talked with Reinier Elizalde Valier in the café of the Antonio Suárez bookstore. Between bubbles and fantasies, we get to the heart of the actor Chocolatiqui.
The actor
His diverse background has given him many experiences to come with the stories that he creates together with the public, to play and educate, both the children and their parents.
Reinier is a veterinarian, a graduate in Communication, a cultural promoter and an actor. Although he speaks little about it, he was part of the renowned Korimacao theater group, directed by the recently deceased actor Manuel Porto, with a commendable job in Ciénaga de Zapata.
Chocolatiqui’s first meeting with the public occurred on April 10th, during a celebration for the anniversary of the kindergartens. First, he performed accompanied by Vanillita; and a short time later -when he was left alone- he had to reinvent himself and solidify his show.
With a lot of love and desire to make people laugh, this clown puts energy into each one of his presentations; which are never the same and make Chocolatiqui a very loved and special character for his audience.
However, he confesses that without his costume and makeup he cannot act; that’s why even for a radio program, he wears his cheerful colors.
Who is Chocolatiqui?
Reinier defines him as an animation character. He does not do magic or juggling, he remains active and absent-minded, forgets the names of his contestants and leaves the games in the middle -an effect that greatly attracts the participants-. At the end of each presentation, he creates a story that can be useful to anyone, because he always educate.
When asked how much a child he was, in his shows, he says almost nothing: he was shy and didn’t like to watch cartoons. It seems strange to him to see an adult in front of the television watching children’s films. His work techniques do not come from those well-worn sources. He looks at current issues how to inform the boys.
The clown and the city
The city is an inexhaustible source of inspiration. When the City that I live, city that I am public welfare campaign, carried out by the Office of the Historian, Chocolatiqui shared his knowledge from an act as simple as handing out candies during the participation games and seeing his final destination on the ground of the squares, made a reflection for the good of all the inhabitants.
Thus, he feels that he contributes to the care of heritage, while providing basic knowledge about relevant sites and characters in our city, in addition to talking to his audience about the importance of caring for the city in which we live.
In a lively and cheerful way, he tries to play on the boys’ innocence; to touch their sensitivity and contribute to their formation.
Long live Chocolatiqui
With that smile that never fades from Reinier’s lips, his friend and photographer Rogelio joins us in the conversation; and so we take the opportunity to get some images of Chocolatiqui in action.
The photos turned out very beautiful. “It’s been 20 years, but I think my character will never die,” says the clown. “When I no longer go on stage, it will remain for my family, for memories, because this profession brings me closer to the fabulous world of the nobility that children overflow. I work for them.”
So I also support his wish… long live the dreams of Chocolatiquiǃ
Translated by: Aileen Álvarez García
