The Gazette-Enterprise

SEGUIN — After the Halloween candy has all been passed out and the costumes have been put away for another year, the cultural celebration can begin for Dia De Los Muertos.

Teatro De Arts De Juan Seguin is holding a Dia De Los Muertos presentation to celebrate the Mexican holiday at 6 p.m. Monday at the Teatro’s Cultural Arts Center located at 921 W. New Braunfels St. The event is free and open to the public.

Megan Connolly at Teatro said the event will be a learning experience.

“It’s a significant event in Mexican culture,” Connolly said. “We’re doing this to bring that culture to other people and to incorporate it into Texas culture.”

Dia De Los Muertos is a holiday celebrated mainly in Mexico and by people of Mexican heritage all over the world. It can be dated back to indigenous people such as the Olmec and Aztec. The holiday coincides with the Catholic All Saints’ Day, and All Souls’ Day.

Connolly said there will be many things people can look forward to at the Teatro event.

“We will have a presentation about the history and culture of Dia De Los Muertos,” Connolly said. “After the presentation we will have refreshments, and crafts. People can also see our traditional Dia De Los Muertos altar.”

This year’s celebration will also include an art project created by students at the Lizzie M. Burges Alternative School. The students created paper-mâché skulls and discussed the tradition and history of Dia De Los Muertos.

Although the idea of a holiday to remember the dead may seem unusual here in the United States, where the topic of death is often avoided, celebrating the lives of deceased ancestors and loved ones has a rich tradition among cultures around the globe. In the Mexican tradition, Nov. 1 is the day when deceased infants and children are remembered, and Nov. 2 is the day that deceased adults are honored.

Teatro’s Dia De Los Muertos celebration is being held at Teatro De Arts De Juan Seguin Cultural Art Center and is free. Guests are invited to add to the altar by bringing photos of deceased loved ones.

For more information about the event, visit the Teatro De Arts De Juan Seguin at www.teatrodeartes.org .

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