Music, movement, art and heritage converge in downtown Walla Walla on October 6 for the third annual Festival de Cultura Viva.
The celebration of culture includes the unveiling of a new mural and takes participants along Main Street in a parade of color, larger-than-life puppets and merriment on the way to a daylong celebration with food, vendors, performances and more at Gesa Power House Theatre.
Coordinated by Nelly Pilares and Victoria Lidzbarski, the event has grown each year since its start in 2022. Pilares recently spoke about the roots of the festival and where it’s going.
What is Festival de Cultura Viva and how did it start?
The initiative came together from Teatro Popular and Big Bang Projects with the idea of celebrating the Hispanic culture but also to create bridges and community. We believe that we cannot be kind to each other if we don’t know each other.
The festival kind of has two parts: One is an educational component in partnership with Picture Lab (where Pilares is executive director). We go to schools the week or two weeks before the festival, and we talk to students and create art coming from the Hispanic culture. Kids can create their own things, then we bring whatever they produce to the festival to showcase. We work with Latino Club at Walla Walla High School and College Place, and the Walla Walla Public Library has an art workshop where kids can make giant parade puppets of papier-mache.
We use art as a way to celebrate the Hispanic culture. It’s a space for all Hispanic communities to feel part of the festival — whether you’re from Nicaragua, Argentina, Bolivia, Mexico.
We always want the festival to be within Hispanic Heritage Month — Sept. 15-Oct. 15.
What does the festival entail?
It starts with the unveiling of a new mural. The art is created in conjunction with the Whitman College Spanish Department and student groups. It will be at the (northwest) corner of Palouse and Main streets behind the building.
People will congregate for the parade. We want it to be colorful. Everyone who wants to participate comes. If there are traditional clothes of their own countries, they can dress in that. If not, we have props for them to walk down the street to the Power House Theatre, and then we start the celebration there.
There, we will have two stages — one inside and one outside. Outside we have booths of community organizations, each with an activity for families and kids. Then we also have performers. We will have mariachi, Latin music, Ballet El Color de México, flamenco, merengue, juggling workshops and more.
We have food trucks and traditional beverages.
On the upper floor of the theater is art exhibitions from community members who want to show their work. There are many people creating nice things but who don’t have the time or chance to exhibit.
Who should attend?
The event is free and open to all.
For me, the festival is a celebration. It’s a happy place where I want everyone to feel welcome. We basically do Spanglish or bilingual things. If you don’t speak English, you’re welcome. If you don’t speak Spanish, you’re welcome.
I think that art is the universal language.
How has the event changed since it started?
It gets bigger every year. In the first year, about 500 people attended. Last year, we had about 1,000. I think more people in the community know this is happening. More people want to be there — even organizations, which makes me happy because that tells me if an organization is interested in being in the festival, they want to make bridges in the community.
For 2024:
Festival de Cultura Viva is Sunday, October 6. It starts with the mural inauguration at 10:15 a.m. at Palouse and Main streets. The parade begins at 10:30 a.m. with a walk along Main Street to Gesa Power House Theatre, at Sixth Avenue and Main. From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. is the festival inside and outside of the theater building.