Festivals & Events, October 6, 2006

Excerpted from “The Best of San Miguel de Allende”© by Joseph Harmes. Reprinted with permission. See more at www.thebestofsanmigueldeallende.com 


October: The Festival Internacional Cervantino, one of the most important cultural events in Latin America, begins in the city of Guanajuato. Some of the theater productions and concerts perform again in San Miguel de Allende.



October 4: Festividad de San Francisco de Asis (Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi). The founder of the Franciscans is honored at La Iglesia de San Francisco.



October 12: Día de la Raza (Day of the Race, or Columbus Day). The base of the monument to Columbus (at San Francisco and Benito Juárez streets), larger than the statue atop it, says much about how Cristóbal Colón is regarded south of the Río Bravo. Latin America’s indigenous population, in recent decades, adopted the view that the Portuguese explorer was the catalyst of genocide and the slave trade. Locally, the day is marked with a candlelight ceremony at the Plaza de Toros Oriente.



Cervantino Festival kicks off in Guanajuato
By Jesús Ibarra

The yearly International Cervantino Festival has rolled around again, and from October 4 to 22 the streets of the city of Guanajuato will fill with exuberance and culture. This year’s honored country is the United Kingdom, which will present several events, among them the Akram Khan Company & Les Ballets, a mix of contemporary and Indian dance and theater. Akrahn Khan Company will perform Thursday through Saturday, October 19 through 21, at 6pm in the Teatro Principal. 

Also from the United Kingdom comes the Philharmonia Orchestra, directed by Sir Peter Maxwell and Martryn Brabbins and featuring Nathalie Clein on the violoncello. Sir Peter Maxwell was a director for 10 years with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra formed in Russia and England, and Brabbins is an associate director with the Scottish BBC specializing in works by Mozart. The Philharmonia Orchestra will play at Teatro Juárez on Sunday, October 15, at 9pm. 

Aberfedly, a band from Edinburgh, Scotland, has a style between indie pop and indie folk, a new sound that has won the attention of European youth. They will perform at the esplanade of the Alhóndiga on Saturday, October 21, at 9pm. 

From New Zealand comes the New Zealand String Quartet, acclaimed in international music festivals. They have distinguished themselves with their impeccable performance of some of the most important international musical pieces for quartet. The New Zealand String Quartet will perform at La Valenciana Temple, on Friday, October 20, at noon. 

A French jazz group, noJazz, has a fresh take on jazz, mixing in other kinds of music and rhythms. noJazz will play at the esplanade of the Alhíondiga on Wednesday, October 11, at 8pm.

For more information on the Cervantino Festival, see http://www.festivalcervantino.gob.mx  or call 01-800-300-0123.