South of the border: Extravaganza on Museum Hill celebrates Mexican, Indigenous culture

Sep. 13—The Extravaganza on Museum Hill is a celebration of Mexican and Indigenous cultural heritage.

The event takes place from 1 to 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21, on Milner Plaza, 706 Camino Lejo, in Santa Fe. It will feature live music, dance, theater, educational activities and live luchador wrestling. The event is free and visitors are asked to register at internationalfolkart.org.

"La Cartonería Mexicana/The Mexican Art of Paper and Paste," which showcases more than 100 historic sculptures from the Museum of International Folk Art's permanent collection, many of which have never been displayed, is another highlight of the event.

"We have a Mexican papier-mâché, show, 'La Cartonería Mexicana,'" said Charlie Lockwood, executive director of Museum of International Folk Art. "I thought that it would be really interesting to try to do some kind of celebration around regional Mexican traditions that are represented in the exhibition and try to couple those with music and dance and other things, especially during Hispanic Heritage Month and around the (Sept. 16) Mexican Independence Day celebration."

Lockwood said conversations took place between the Museum of International Folk Art and its neighbors at the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture on Milner Plaza to make it a Milner Plaza community day.

"We were able to get that approved, basically to have both museums free and open to the public all day, which is something that is an annual tradition we're trying to bring back," Lockwood said. "It became sort of a joint celebration of both Mexican cultural heritage and Indigenous cultural heritage of our region. And so that's really what the activities in the lineup represent."

There will be a variety of Pueblo dance groups performances including the Danza del Venado, a traditional Deer Dance performance of the Yaqui Indians by Diego Martinez and Los Niños de Santa Fe's Adult Ensemble at 1:30 p.m. The performance is coordinated by the Consulado de México en Albuquerque, and Patricia Pinzón, Cónsul de México in Albuquerque, will introduce the dance.

"The plaza up here, it's such a beautiful space," Lockwood said. "It really comes alive and I think it really takes on its true form when there's community here and when there's a lot of people celebrating and having a good time. And so that's the other goal, is to fill the plaza with people and have them enjoy music and dance."

Some local food trucks will be on site and there will be some educational activities including a Lucha Libre (Mexican wrestling) mask making station for children.

Headliner Tropa Magica will perform psychedelic cumbia rock 'n' roll at 4 p.m. A Lucha Libre wrestling match by Duke City Championship Wrestling out of Albuquerque will follow at 5:30 p.m.

"This is certainly reflecting the important performance culture of the (Distrito Federal) and the Mexico City area," Lockwood said. "It's represented in the exhibition and we thought it would be fun to offer a performance to our community here on the Plaza. So it should be pretty amazing."

Lockwood said there is a large collection of Mexican folk art at the Museum of International Folk Art. He said the Consulado de México en Albuquerque has been helpful in promoting the exhibition.

"The museums are free and open to the public all day, so people can enjoy the event outside, and then if they need to cool off or warm up, depending on how the weather goes, they can come in the museum and check out our galleries," Lockwood said.

This event is made possible by support of the Friends of Folk Art and the Consulate of Mexico in Albuquerque, and in partnership with AMP Concerts, Duke City Championship Wrestling and the Museum of New Mexico Foundation. Promotion for this event is supported in part by the city of Santa Fe Arts and Culture Department and the 1% Lodger's Tax.