Looking for some tips on what to do this weekend? We’ve got you covered. Here are a few recommendations from Ocean State Media’s Mareva Lindo and James Baumgartner.
Spotlight: Día de Los Muertos celebration, Nov. 2
On Sunday, Rhode Island Latino Arts is holding their annual celebration of the holiday traditionally honored in México, Guatemala, El Salvador, and beyond. Mareva Lindo spoke with RILA’s executive director, Marta Martinez, who said it’s not a time to grieve, but to celebrate life while remembering loved ones who have passed away.
"Like everything I do, it started off with, 'I need to tell people what this really is.' It's not what they think it is, you know, like the Mexican Halloween," Martinez said. "It's a two-day celebration that begins Nov. 1, which is All Saints' Day, and that's when we remember saints, obviously. And that has a little bit more of a religious connotation."
But, she said, "Día de Los Muertos, Nov. 2, or Day of the Dead, has become more of a cultural celebration or tradition."
Martinez said she started the event years ago because she missed the traditions she’d grown up with.
"For me, it meant sitting with my grandmother and watching her put photographs on what we call an ofrenda, an altar, and photographs, and flowers, which are marigolds called cempasúchil, and food, various foods. And one of the main pieces of food is a bread, it's called pan de muertos, or bread of the dead," she said.
Although it’s primarily a Mexican holiday, Marta said everyone is welcome to participate.
"The way we celebrate is not about the Mexican culture and mariachis and maracas," she explained. "It's about remembering loved ones, and we all want to do that. So everybody's welcome.
The festivities begin at 4:30 p.m. at the Southside Cultural Center in Providence, where there will be art-making, face painting, and a community altar where you can leave a photo or memento of a loved one. There will also be a fashion show featuring anyone who comes dressed up as La Catrina, an iconic figure of the holiday: she’s that smiling, skeletal woman you’ve probably seen donning a hat, surrounded by flowers and feathers. And finally, a procession to Grace Cemetery will begin at dusk.
Click here for more information.
Other events to check out:
'Metropolis' at PPAC, Oct. 30 at 8 p.m.
See the iconic 1927 German expressionist science fiction silent film, complete with live musical accompaniment by organist Peter Edwin Krasinski. Click here for details.
'Off the Wall' by Ballet Rhode Island at The United Theatre, Nov. 1 at 7:30 p.m.
The production features three newly choreographed works that are inspired by the Westerly Art Museum’s collection of American Impressionist paintings. More information here.
Jack-o-Lantern Spectacular at Roger Williams Park Zoo, through Nov. 1
Walk through thousands of intricately carved pumpkins, solve clues and answer trivia for kids and adults. Open now through Saturday night, 6-10:30 p.m.
Note: Ballet RI is a business supporter of Ocean State Media. Editorial decisions are made independently of financial support.
