Schedule announced for virtual Festival Latino
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX/WTTE) — The Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA) has announced the schedule for the 2020 Festival Latino.
After the in-person event was canceled due to COVID-19, the 2020 Festival Latino will be a week-long online experience that will offer a series of online cultural events and activities that highlight some of the favorite features of Festival Latino, including offerings in Latin music, food, dance, visual artists, children’s activities, fashion, and community and health and wellness resources.
The event will take place from Monday, Aug. 3 to Sunday, Aug. 9:
Monday, Aug. 3 - Focus: Festiva Latino history and local community
- A health and wellness resource page will be posted, offering links to local health and social service organizations offering free health screenings and bilingual services as well as information on local education and community programs.
- Those who have attended previous years of Festival Latino are encouraged to post their favorite festival images from years past in the online photo gallery.
- 7 p.m. video feature: DJ Cale will kick off the week with a special introduction video that looks back on some great moments of Festival Latino from past years. He’ll chat with some of the event’s most popular vendors and introduce a customized Spotify playlist that will be made available for download featuring hits from the international and national artists that have previously headlined Festival Latino.
Tuesday, Aug. 4 – Focus: Latin cuisine
- A Latin cuisine resource page will be posted, offering links to local restauranteurs and Latino grocery stores that specialize in a wide variety of cuisine from Latin America and beyond.
- Submit your favorite traditional Latin recipes.
- 7 p.m. video feature: Nadia De Jesus, owner and operator of D’Nadia Catering, will demonstrate how to make the traditional Dominican dish mangú, salami, y queso frito (mashed plantains, salami, and fried cheese) and the popular Dominican beverage morir soñando, a creamy combination of milk and freshly squeezed orange juice. Omar D’Angelo of Barroluco Argentine Comfort Food will share some special dishes and the recipe for their famous empanadas, a fried turnover common in Latin America.
Wednesday, Aug. 5 - Focus: Latin dance
- An online gallery will be posted showcasing images of dance demonstrations and instruction from past Festival Latino events.
- Columbus-based flamenco and classical Spanish dancer Griset Damas-Roche will post a flamenco dance demonstration video, exhibiting the genre’s emotional intensity, proud carriage, expressive use of the arms, and rhythmic stamping of the feet.
- 7p.m. video feature: Carlos “El Hiperactivo” Rubio, “The Salsa King of Ohio,” will teach salsa and bachata dances in an online video lesson.
Thursday, Aug. 6 - Focus: Children's activities and local Latin artists
- Children’s activity sheets will be available for download including Dia de los Muertos coloring pages, a how-to worksheet on creating Mexican paper flowers, and a how-to worksheet on crafting Papel Picado (paper snowflakes). Photos of completed activities can be posted to #vivafestivallatino.
- A resource page of Festival Latino marketplace artists will be posted, offering links to shop the work of local Latin artisans.
- An online gallery will be posted showcasing images of marketplace vendors from previous years of Festival Latino.
- 7 p.m. video feature: Local Mexican culture expert Leticia Vázquez-Smith explains the Mexican holiday Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), the significance of calaveras (sugar skulls) to the celebration, and demonstrates how to create and decorate sugar skulls at home.
Friday, Aug. 7 - Focus: Latin fashion
- An online gallery will be posted showcasing images of Festival Latino fashion shows from previous years.
- 7 p.m. video feature: Local fashion designer Gerardo Encinas exhibits his latest cultural fashion line with a video runway show.
Saturday, Aug. 8 - Focus: Latin music
- 7 p.m. video feature: DJ Cale broadcasts a DJ House Party from Genoa Park, spinning the hottest Latin tracks from a variety of national and international Latin artists.
- Viewers are encouraged to prepare for the DJ House Party by downloading the ¡Viva Festival Latino! Spotify playlist and picking up pre-party Latin food from the posted list of local Latino restauranteurs.
Sunday, Aug. 9 - Focus: Latin music
- 7 p.m. video feature: ¡Viva Festival Latino! presents an online, video concert from headlining musical act Funk Salsa Urban.
- Viewers are encouraged to prepare for the concert by downloading the Viva Festival Latino! Spotify playlist and picking up pre-concert Latin food from the posted list of local Latino restauranteurs.
All events and activities will be posted to the Festival Latino website and the Festival Latino Facebook page.
