By Lookout Staff
November 2, 2017 -- On Saturday afternoon, Santa Monica's Woodlawn Cemetery will be filled with music and dancers, altars and food as the beach city celebrates the sixth annual El Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead.
The event takes place from noon to 3 p.m. on the roads and grassy areas of the cemetery at 1847 14th Street, with activities focused in and around the Mausoleum, City officials said.
There will be performances by Trio Bolero, Grandeza Mexicana, Las Colibrí, Trio Mexicano, Martin Espino, Aldo Cruz and Emcee Julieta Isela.
The event also features marigold offerings, a slide show honoring lost loved ones and a communal memory wall, organizers said.
Los Tamaleros Truck and The Churro Company will offer authentic Mexican food for sale, and Doña Inez: Mexican Embroidery Clothing will sell color clothing.
"The family-friendly event celebrates the cycle of life and the remembrance of ancestors," organizers said. It also offers an opportunity "to engage in, and become familiar with, the many aspects of this important and rich tradition."
Dia de los Muertos, which traditionally falls on November 1, traces it roots among the people of West Mexico, who customarily buried their dead in underground shaft tombs as deep as 68 feet, according to National Geographic and several academia sources.
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The ancient Mexican people “believed in the continuation of the soul after death in an underworld, and their practice was to 'feed the dead' with necessities for their afterlife,” according to Dr. Alison Hall, a lecturer in anthropology and museum studies at the University of Central Arkansas.
The ancient Aztecs celebrated what would become El Dia de los Muertos over several months, instead of a single day.
Dia de los Muertos by Jose Guadalupe Posada (Courtesy of Houston Institute of Culture) |
Cars will not be allowed in the cemetery during the event. Two golf carts will offer limited pick-up and drop-offs from the cemetery entrances to the Mausoleum.
Woodlawn Cemetery is easily accessible by foot, bike, bus or car.
Free parking will be available at the Santa Monica College lot located on the south side of Pico Boulevard between 16th and 17th Streets. An ADA compliant shuttle will run between the SMC lot and the cemetery from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For more information call 310-458-8688.
