The 15th annual May Cultural Festival will see the Canadian province of Quebec share its unique artistic, musical and performance styles with the state of Jalisco.
Fans of culture will be treated to 110 activities and a hodgepodge collection of 384 artists over the 17-day span of festivities from May 11 to 28.“There are many similarities between Quebec and Jalisco, and now we have a great opportunity to get to know each other better,” Jalisco Governor Emilio Gonzalez Marquez said at a press conference to release details of the event.
Sergio Matos founded the May Cultural Festival in 1997, and for the first five years it lacked the funds and stature to invite other countries. Fifteen years on, each iteration of the extravaganza has only increased its reputation.
“We now have worldwide prestige, for example more artists from Quebec are coming to the May Cultural Festival than to Guanajuato’s International Cervantino Festival,” Gonzalez added.
State authorities are investing 22 million pesos to bring this year’s cultural celebration to an increasingly tuned-in public. Most of the events will be free and open to everyone.The festival will feature six disciplines of art: contemporary circus, music, audiovisuals, performance art, conferences and modern art.
Quebec has previously been the invited guest at the International Book Fair (FIL) and the Guadalajara Film Festival.
The exhibits and performances will be showcased at 28 venues in Guadalajara, Tlaquepaque, Lagos de Moreno, Tapalpa, Zapopan, Puerto Vallarta, and Zapotlan El Grande. None will grace the shores of Chapala this year.
The festival opens on Friday, May 11, 8:30 p.m. with a performance from Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal in the Teatro Degollado. BJM, as it is known, celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.
Other highlights
Candide/Candido – Collection of Quebecois modern art. May 12-15, Instituto Cultural Cabañas. Tuesdays to Sundays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Fanfare Pourpour – Upbeat, danceable, jazzy group of Montreal musicians. Saturday, May 12, Instituto Cultural Cabañas, 8:30 p.m. Sunday, May 13, Plaza Liberación, 8 p.m. Free.
Les Violons du Roy – Renowned Quebec City chamber orchestra of 17 instrumentalists will play Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons” and Astor Piazzolla’s “Four Seasons.” Tuesday, May 15, Teatro Degollado, 8:30 p.m. 90-150 pesos.
LOL Brothers – Circus duo fuses rock and roll music and street performance. Select performances: Wednesday, May 16, Parque Revolucion, 7 p.m. Saturday, May 19, Estacion Universidad, 11 a.m. Sunday, May 20, Plaza Liberacion, 7 p.m. Free.
The Jalisco Philharmonic Orchestra – Conducted by Alondra de la Parra and featuring Quebecois Alexander Da Costa on violin, the JPO will perform pieces by French composers Edouard Lalo and Claude Debussy. Sunday, May 20, Teatro Degollado, 12:45 p.m. 100-200 pesos.
L’Orchestre d’Hommes – This orchestra will perform a repertoire of Tom Waits songs complete with an appropriately bizarre jumble of castoff props and whiskey bottles. Saturday, May 19, LARVA, 8:30 p.m., limited seats. Sunday, May 20, LARVA, noon. Free entry, limited seats.
Les Chasseurs de Rêves – Performance artists climb up on stilts and operate marionettes to turn themselves into slender bird creatures. Sunday, May 20, Plaza Liberacion, 9 p.m. Free.
Les 7 doigts de la main – Cirque du Soleil-style performance art. Teatro Degollado. Friday, May 25, 8:30 p.m. Saturday, May 26, 8:30 p.m. Sunday, May 27, 6 p.m. Admission: 120-250 pesos.
See upcoming editions of the Reporter for more details or check out the full event calendar and find more information at www.festivaldemayo.org.