by the El Reportero’s wire services
The Mission District will sizzle with the sights and sounds of samba, salsa, soca, cumbia and more when the 38th Annual Carnaval San Francisco makes its way through the neighborhood, showcasing the very best of Latin American and Caribbean cultures over Memorial Day Weekend, May 28 and 29.
Themed “¡Viva La Madre Tierra! /Long Live Mother Earth,” Carnaval San Francisco’s two-day festival and grand parade offers a dazzling array of food, music, dance and artistry from Bolivia, Brazil, Cuba, El Salvador, Jamaica, Mexico, New Orleans, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and more. Works created by the talented community of Mission District residents and Bay Area artists are also showcased.
Headlining entertainment this year includes performances by Venezuela’s Grammy Award-nominated “Lion of Salsa” Oscar D ’Leon, Los Rakas and Gondwana. A complete lineup of performances can be found at http://www.carnavalsanfrancisco.orgwww.carnavalsanfrancisco.org. Located on Harrison Street between 16th and 24th Streets, the Festival will feature a rich assortment of food, music, dance, arts, crafts and other fun activities and entertainment on several stages for people of all ages to enjoy.
The Grand Parade on Sunday, May 29, begins at 9:30 a.m. and will be led by American Labor Leader and Civil Rights Activist, Dolores Huerta. Following Huerta will be Carnaval San Francisco’s 2016 King and Queen, and a brilliant procession of contingents, most of which will feature beautifully adorned floats depicting rich multicultural themes and featuring performers who engage and entertain the crowds. Brazilian-style “escola” samba schools with up to 300 members dance through the streets in fantastic feathered headdresses or sweeping Bahia skirts, while Caribbean contingents perform the music and dance of the Bahamas, Colombia, Cuba, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Peru, Puerto Rico and Trinidad.
Other parade groups include Mexican Aztec Dance performers, traditional African drummers, Polynesian dancers, Japanese drummers, giant puppets and folkloric groups representing Guatemala, Honduras and Bolivia. The Grand Parade will start at the corner of 24th and Bryant Streets where it will proceed west to Mission Street. From there, the parade heads north on Mission down to 17th Street, where it will turn east to South Van Ness.
Event organizers chose this year’s theme, “¡Viva La Madre Tierra! Long Live Mother Earth!” to draw awareness to environmental problems that are challenging our health, climate and overall survival.
“Over the past decades the loss of love and reverence for mother earth has destroyed and polluted her and therefore ourselves,” said Carnaval San Francisco’s Artistic Director, Roberto Hernández. “Only by changing the destructive ways that we treat our planet can we restore and heal her back to the beautiful and divine entity that she is. As a species we need to draw awareness to the damage we have created and rally to protect our most precious resource. Viva La Madre Tierra!”
The Carnaval San Francisco Festival will be held Saturday and Sunday, May 28 and 29 from 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Grand parade start at 9:30 a.m.
Admission to the festival and parade is FREE. Grandstand seating for the parade, located on Mission Street between 21st and 22nd Streets, is available for purchase online. To purchase tickets or for more information, please visit http://www.carnavalsanfrancisco.orgwww.carnavalsanfrancisco.org.
