3RD LIFE AND DEATH TRADITIONS FESTIVAL

Your senses are filled with the seductive aromas of incense and the tzempazuchitl flower. Your heart thrums to the beat of the traditional mayapax drums.  Delicacies melt in your mouth and your skin is caressed by the power of darkness, of the scintillating candle light and the silence of prayer.  We`re in Quintana Roo, at the great celebration of the banquet of the souls, the Hanal Pixan, a beautiful tradition from the Mayan region, which is celebrated year after year in order to remember the Dearly Departed.

Families from more than 39 Mayan communities will arrive punctually to the call to the 3rd Life and Death Traditions Festival, Xcaret - Riviera Maya 2008. Just as it did one year ago, from October 30th to November 2nd Xcaret Park will be turned into a gathering place for friends and strangers, Mexicans and foreigners alike, to hear the voices of the ancient ones, to walk the pathways guided by the sound of prayers, songs, music and the seductive aroma of smoking copal wafting through the air.

To this magnificent event will join at least one hundred painters, muralists, sculptors, players, dancers, musicians, story tellers, chroniclers, puppet masters, singers and writers, all local and national artists who have dedicated their brain children—the product of their personal style and talent—to death, the Grim Reaper, the Banshee, the Pale Horseman.

This year`s roster of talent will be headed by two distinguished artists:  award-winning actress Ofelia Medina, with her production of “Cada quien su Frida” (To Each His Frida); and the extraordinary singer Betsy Pecanins, who will present a concert entitled “Luz y sombra celebrando la vida y la muerte” (Blues and shadows, a celebration of life and death).

The organizers of the Life and Death Traditions Festival are proud to say that this year there will be a huge variety of contemporary theater written, produced, acted and directed by Quintana Roo`s indigenous communities, who are the essence of rural life and the guardians of our Mayan customs and traditions.

Come dance with the rattling skeletons, listen to the elders and fill yourself with the colors, aromas and flavors of our very Mexican Day of the Dead festivities, designated in 2003 as a Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO. Bring to this festival full of magic, which promises to be one of the most important events in the region, your song, your prayer and your memories of "those who have gone before us".  Let the ancient magic of our traditions entice you to join us in the revelry, ruckus and merrymaking to celebrate life and the festivities dedicated to the Dearly Departed.