A wide array of special events tied in to Mexico’s deeply-rooted Dia de Muertos traditions offer lakeside residents and visitors multiple options for gaining insights and appreciation for the country’s most singular holiday. The activities listed below are open to the public free of charge unless otherwise noted.
Wednesday, October 30
- The Son de Mexico folkdance troupe from San Juan Cosala goes on stage at the Auditorio de la Ribera in La Floresta, 6:30 p.m., with a dazzling show wrapped around Day of the Dead themes. Admission is 150 pesos per person. Repeat performances are slated for November 6 and 13, same time and location.
Friday, November 1
- Instituto Loyola welcomes the public to its out-of-the-mold Humanities Fair where visitors can stroll through a candlelit graveyard scene created by the students, this year dedicated to deceased illustrious women of Mexico. There will be a music program and typical dinner fare on sale to enhance the atmosphere. The campus is located in San Antonio Tlayacapan, next door to Lakeside Little Theatre. Gates open at 6:30 p.m.
Saturday, November 2
- Neighbors of Chapala’s Calle 5 de Mayo will once again host a display of 50 or more Dia de Muertos memorial altars spanning almost the entire length of a street. The set-up process starts early in the day, continuing until sundown when householders will begin serving samples of the favorite foods and drinks once enjoyed by their lost loved ones.
- Chapala’s Preparatoria (high school) will also mount an altar exhibition along Avenida Madero outside the City Hall building, ready for viewing at 4 p.m. A mock funeral procession, starting at 7 p.m., will wind through the streets via Madero, Morelos, Zaragoza and Raul Navarro.
- Ajijic will mark the occasion with a display of altars and decorative street carpets made with tinted sawdust and natural elements at the central plaza, set up by 4 p.m. The whimsical Noche de Muertos parade heads out from the cemetery at the west end of town at 7 p.m., arriving at the plaza via Ocampo and Hidalgo. Townies will party to the rock beat of Fuego Tres, from 8 p.m.
- San Juan’s Dia de Muertos festival kicks off at 7 p.m., with an altar display, art show and handicraft fair set up at the plaza. Danza Azteca, folk rock singer Ivan Antillon and Los Creepta band will head up the live entertainment.
- A celebration organized by the Centro Cultural de Ajijic will encompass diverse expressions related to the holiday, including the plastic arts, music, poetry, legends and typical foods. The event will take place on the north side of the town plaza from 6 p.m.
- The Jocotepec government’s office of Arte, Cultura y Tradicion has put together a big program, starting with the opening of the Ajijic Society of Arts (ASA) collective show, 5 p.m. at the Casa de Cultura. Students and graduates of the University of Guadalajara dance school will stage “La Muerte También Baila,” an original folkdance program, 7 p.m., at the central plaza. An altar display and living catrina statues will appear simultaneously. The traditional mariachi Los Choznos and Grupo de Son No Son will perform at the square from 8 p.m.
Monday, November 4
- Prepa Chapala’s ongoing Day of the Dead cultural week picks up again with recitations of top entries in a writing contest of humorous Calavera verses, 6 p.m., at the Malecon outside the Beer Garden.
Wednesday, November 6
- Prepa Chapala hosts readings of thematic stories and legends, 6 p.m., at the Malecon outside the Beer Garden.
In keeping with local custom, native families will visit the family grave sites on November 1 to remember angelitos – the “little angels” who died in infancy, returning the following day to pay tribute to loved ones who passed on at a riper age. After cleaning, repairing and decorating burial plots they will cluster around the tombs to relive fond memories and abide with the spirits of cherished muertitos who rest six feet under. Memorial masses will be held at 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. in the Chapala cemetery; 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. in Ajijic.