The 27-year-old learned of her selection while dining in a restaurant in Ciutadella. The procession, considered the most typical of Mallorca, will take place on the first Sunday of September.
Cristina Cladera Sánchez, a 27-year-old resident of Santa Margalida, was chosen last Sunday as La Beata of the procession that fills the streets of the municipality every first Sunday of September. The news reached her while she was on holiday in Menorca, specifically in a restaurant in Cala Morell, Ciutadella, where she followed the draw via video call. "I started crying and shouting right there," she confesses, still emotional.
A dream come true from afar
Cladera could not be present at the Auditori Municipal de Santa Margalida when her name was drawn from the urn. "I preferred to wait outside the restaurant while the draw was taking place. I didn’t want to miss it, and in one way or another, I wanted to be present," she explains. The young woman says she still has "goosebumps" and that "it’s a very strong feeling."
The selection of La Beata combines luck and experience. Candidates, aged between 18 and 30, accumulate points for each role they have played in previous years in the procession. Each point equals one more ticket with their name in the draw. Cladera has been participating since she was five: "I haven’t missed a year. It’s a festival that my grandparents have experienced, and they have passed this passion on to me."
"I was already frisava for it to be my turn," she confesses in Mallorcan, noting that she had few opportunities left to be the protagonist. This year, half a hundred candidates were presented, so she acknowledges that "you have to be very lucky." For her family, the appointment means "a pride," as no one before had been La Beata. "I’m the only girl in the family," she highlights.
The most typical procession of Mallorca
The La Beata procession is considered the most traditional on the island. Last year, it mobilised over 2,000 active participants among pagesos and pageses, in addition to 150 dimonis. The figure of La Beata represents the Mallorcan saint and is the most coveted role among the young women of the village.
For Cladera, the role signifies the culmination of a journey that began when she was a child. "My grandmother has been going to the procession since she was little, although she never ran for it, and since I was a child, I was brought into this trui," she explains fondly. The young woman, who is still "on a cloud," assures that she is looking forward to the day when she can wear the dress and parade through the streets of Santa Margalida.
The event will take place on the first Sunday of September, when thousands of people will gather in the municipality to witness one of the most deeply rooted festivals of the Part Forana. Cristina Cladera is already preparing to experience "the most special day" of her life, surrounded by her family and an entire village that will acclaim her as their Beata.
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