Over 3,000 artists from 26 countries are taking part in the 40th edition of Guanajuato’s International Cervantino Festival (FIC), up and running until October 21.
Each fall the streets and public plazas of this colorful and charming colonial city become venues for a host of live music, dance, theater and fiestas. There are four guests of honor this year: Austria, Poland, Switzerland and the state of Sinaloa.
Among the Sinaloan artists participating are Banda El Recodo, the Sinaloa Folkloric Company and the Sinaloa Symphony Orchestra of the Arts, who will perform in the closing ceremony.A host of international guests includes the Shanghai Beijing Opera Troupe performing “The Revenge of Prince Zi Dan,” a contemporary version of William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet.” There’s also a performance by the Royal Court Dancers of Mangkunegaran, Indonesia. For drama lovers, the Royal Shakespeare Company presents “A soldier in every son,” while Austria’s Burgtheater interprets “Dorian Gray.”
For the full lineup, schedules and costs (many of the hundreds of events are free of charge), plus more information, visit www.festivalcervantino.gob.mx.
While space in hotels in Guanajuato may be hard to find at such a late stage, nearby San Miguel de Allende offers a delightful accommodation alternative.
Guanajuato’s main year-round draw is a “mummy” museum that demonstrates how the area’s mineral-rich ground can prevent a body from decaying. The house where famed muralist Diego Rivera was born, an excellent museum housing possibly the world’s largest collection of art (more than 600 pieces) dedicated to Don Quixote de la Mancha, and an 18th-century grain storage facility that was a base during the Independence war and is now a museum, are just a handful of the requisites to a complete trip to Guanajuato.