The Muertos Festival celebrates the Day of the Dead in San Antonio style

Hemisfair's Día de los Muertos celebration, also known as Muertos Fest, has drawn national attention, in part for its “rows of colorful ofrendas layered with marigolds, monarchs and treasured photos” in the city's largest altar display, it said National Geographic magazine.

But for festival artistic director Jim Mendiola, Muertos Fest is beloved by San Antonio residents because it is a truly homegrown event.

“We definitely take inspiration from some community groups that have been doing this a lot longer than we have,” he said, citing the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center, the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center and the Centro Cultural Aztlan.

“We stand on the shoulders of a lot of these smaller cultural organizations,” Mendiola said.

The Day of the Dead is a centuries-old Mexican and Central American tradition honoring deceased loved ones and beloved figures, Mendiola said. Arts-oriented community groups in California began promoting it as a facet of the emerging Chicano identity in the 1970s, and the phenomenon has spread.

Mendiola said the tradition, now celebrated as an annual holiday in the United States and Mexico, has gained wide appeal because “the instinct to remember who came before you is universal.” Everyone has grandparents, everyone has Moms and dads… that’s why it has this cross-cultural appeal that’s reflected in the crowds we attend.”

Mendiola is expecting 130,000 visitors to the Hemisfair grounds during the two-day festival this Saturday and Sunday, all with free entry.

Local live music is in abundance

Now in its 12th year, Muertos Fest continues its tradition of presenting a comprehensive program of live music. San Antonio indie rock band Girl in a Coma will return to the stage as the festival's headliner on Saturday at 9:30 p.m., followed by Mexican punk marimba band Son Rompe Pera.

Other local acts include Santiago Jimenez Jr., Jesse Borrego y Tribú, Piñata Protest, Chavela and Mariachi Campanas de America. Mendiola said Eddie and the Valiants, who usually devote themselves to the West Side Sound, will play a Día de los Muertos-themed set in honor of conjunto legend Joe Jama.

But the live music and roster of DJs are just one aspect of the Muertos Fest, he said. On both days, a traditional procession will wind through Hemisfair, mingling parade-ready festival-goers with commissioned artists.

Among the processions, expect to see a tribute to legendary Corpus Christi musician and television host Johnny Canales, who is known for introducing Selena to his show for the first time, Mendiola said.

Community at the heart

The centerpiece of the Muertos celebration is the monumental community altar, an inclusive tradition that invites San Antonians to donate memorabilia and artifacts in honor of their loved ones.

Cat Cardenas, curator of the festival's Muertos Mercado with local vendors, also organized the Muertos Fest's large altar display this year.

Nearly 90 members of the community will contribute handcrafted altars to the festival, a display that runs through Civic Park and Nueva Street through Hemisfair.

Altar makers compete for a modest cash prize that encourages serious effort, Cardenas said. Two San Antonio families, the Garcias and the Gardeas, have won top honors in recent years, and both expect to capture the attention of festival-goers this year, she said.

Although the altar makers are keeping their efforts more secret until the event, Cardenas hinted that the Garcias, who took first place last year with a version of their grandmother's cooking, will create a church-themed altar this year. She's also looking forward to seeing the Gardeas' super-sized calaveras.

The Gardeas view the event as an opportunity to come together as a family, Cardenas said, and play Loteria in the evening to prepare the altar. “They bring food and have a little party around the altar building. It’s really fun,” she said.

Free family fun

Mendiola said family traditions like these, like the holiday itself, can inspire others to join in.

“What we've seen over the (past) 12 years is people going there and looking at these altars that they've never made before and then coming back the next year as altar makers,” he said.

Accessibility to the public is a key factor in the success of the Muertos Festival, he said. Mendiola and his partner Faith Radle, who programs the festival's music program, said they were inspired by a popular Día de los Muertos event in Los Angeles at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. But unlike that event, which costs $45 per person, Muertos Fest is free to attend.

“And it will always be free,” Mendiola said.

Cardenas recommended downloading the free Muertos Fest app to navigate the festival layout and event schedule.

The Muertos Festival celebrates the Day of the Dead in San Antonio style

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