We hope to provide a little time for you to attend part of one Monday afternoon’s performance of the Guelaguetza, if you wish, on July 27th. This will not be an organized visit, and it will be optional. You might also choose to try to catch the Donají legend theatrical event on Sunday evenings, July 19th or July 26th, on your own.
- This blog from 2013 includes some descriptions and many excellent photos of the festival.
- Here is the page from 2013 about the Legend of Donají (in Spanish).
- Extensive photo page from a Guelaguetza parade (calenda) in 2012.
On the two Saturday afternoons before the Monday performances, if you are vigilant, you will see the calenda (parade) winding its way down the pedestrian street (Macedonio Alcalá) to the zócalo. Here you will get glimpses of the performers and dances that are part of the scene up on the hill under the big white roof (locally nicknamed the “diaper”) on Mondays, but this one is free-flowing and without the cost of admission. Definitely worth watching for!
Calenda figure from the mezcal fiesta of 2009 (S. Wood)
Additional Resources
Please see our page of resources relating to dance and to ethnomusicology if you are interested in designing curricula around these themes. In both arenas, you will find that pre-Columbian indigenous traditions live on in various forms, often in combination with European forms.
