Maya protest Elton John concert

Elton John concert to go ahead despite Mayan angerOrganizers said a concert by Elton John in the ruins of Chichen Itza would go ahead Saturday even after the stage collapsed injuring three workers and complaints from indigenous Mayans it was irreverent and out of place.

Thursday's accident, caused by a collapsing 80-meter (262-foot) metal tower, left one worker with serious leg injuries.

The announcement rankled local Mayan leaders and officials, who pointed out that perhaps the accident was the work of "aluxes," the Mayan culture's equivalent of fairies, who were upset because their gods' permission for the concert was lacking.

"With each concert, in the early morning, a ritual is performed to ask for permission, and this time it was not done," Yucatan state public works secretary Francisco Torres told the Reforma daily.

As with previous concerts by Spanish tenor Placido Domingo in 2008 and British soprano Sarah Brightman in 2009, Mayan leaders, archaeologists and some say even the local gods, resent the sacred ruins being used for profit-seeking entertainment.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Domingo Sings at Chichén Itzá.