Festival Cervantino
The Festival Internacional Cervantino, or International Cervantes Culture Festival as it is otherwise known, takes place annually in Guanajuato, Mexico, aiming to celebrate arts and culture and is an event that is renowned worldwide, thus increasing very much the importance of this city. It primarily serves to celebrate the contributions of Miguel de Cervantes to the culture of Mexico, however in recent years it has transformed into more of a commemoration of artists and the art movement as a whole. Taking place over two weeks in October, this is definitely a festival worth experiencing. To date there have been around 37 official festivals, with each growing in importance as the years go by. An important example being that of 2009, in which guests of honour came from Quebec and the state of Zacateacas, and presentations take place originating from all over the world. In 2010, the festival will, in fact, coincide with the 200 year anniversary of Mexico's independence, as well as the 100 year anniversary of the Mexican revolution making it all the more important, and including guests of honour from Argentina, Chile and Columbia, as well as from the states of Chihuahua, Querétaro and Michoacán. All of which have been invited to make their own contribution to the proceedings with specific examples from their own country or state.
Historically the exact date of conception of this festival is not known, however one can most definitely see its growth and importance, especially following the involvement of the local government in 1972, at which point the name of said festival became official, and thus became an endorsed and popular event to which artists from around the world flocked. The first official event thus took place on September 29th 1972. This recognition was made all the more important because of the desire of the leaders of the city to increase tourism, wanting to become a place of national as well as international renown following its accreditation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This has undoubtedly been successful as visitors now attend from all over the world, and this very much multi-cultural event often sells out months before its starting date, with free hotels in the surrounding area becoming almost impossible to find.
The traditional origins, however, date back to the staging of plays of Miguel de Cervantes by students of the University of Guanajuato in the colonial places of the city, and thus the acclaim of this led to the recognition and fame for this annual tradition, making it a festival for anyone, including artists and actors from around the world, rather than just students. Now, the festival is sponsored by the federal government of Mexico, the government of the state of Guanajuato, as well as the National Council for Culture and the Arts.
Controversy has however struck in recent years, as the party atmosphere has, for many, overtaken its cultural importance, and instead of attending for the performances and experience, many young people are said to attend for the novelty of drugs and alcohol. In order to combat this, alcohol sale is now monitored and limited, and drinking in the streets made illegal, as well as a larger number of police patrolling the streets in order to combat anti-social behaviour as well as reassert the focus back to its cultural and artistic significance.
As regards the actual performances, world famous groups, for example Radiohead and Stomp have performed in the past, as well as artists such as Rudolph Nureyev, Phillip Glass, Ely Guerra and Horacio Franco. In addition to this, the festival is known for its unofficial events, including small coffee house performances as well larger privately sponsored concerts, intended for the youth and less traditional audience. Furthermore street theatre has an important role in conjunction with living statues and street musicians that crowd the area, but following the problems of the early 2000s, the rate of these has decreased dramatically.
