Festival de Juan brings multicultral mix of food, music this weekend – St George News

NS. GEORGE - There's a family party at Vernon Worthen Park on Saturday night, to which everyone is invited.

File photo of cumbia group Sonora Tropica performing during the third annual Festival de Juan in Town Square Park in 2019. The event will take place again this weekend in Vernon Worthen Park, St. George, Utah, April 6, 2019 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News

After a hiatus delayed by the pandemic, the multicultural Festival de Juan, presented by St. George News' Canyon Media partner Juan 106 FM, is back with food, music and other entertainment in St. George this weekend. The fourth version of the free event will take place on Saturday from 5pm to 10pm in Vernon Worthen Park.

Juan 106 FM morning presenter Pedro Magdiel Lopez, who started the event in 2017, said the event shows people that the food and fun of the Latino community is not just one culture.

"From the start, when I had this crazy idea of ​​gathering as a community, the idea was to show the Latino culture ... that there are people of different nationalities," said Magdiel. "I mean, there are not only Mexicans like me, but many people from Central and South America who share the language but have different cultures."

And the cultures the event can enjoy extend beyond the local Latino community, as evidenced by the number of popular Mexican, Peruvian and Salvadoran restaurants in the St. George community that will be represented at the festival.

In a file photo, Pedro Magdiel Lopez (center) is accompanied by other Juan FM employees during the Festival de Juan 2018, St. George, Utah, April 28, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News

“You don't have to speak Spanish. The idea is to unite the cultures, ”said Magdiel. “We want to show our culture, our traditions and simply be able to share them with everyone without paying attention to color, skin, language or cultural background. We just want to unite the city of St. George. "

The Festival de Juan, usually held in the spring, has been called a popular event by many in St. George, but as with many things, the pandemic got in the way.

The 2020 event was canceled and Magdiel said it was important to make sure attendees can feel safe when the outdoor event returns.

"We wanted to wait a bit to make sure that this situation with the COVID-19 pandemic goes down, so to speak, and that we can gather together as a community in the park without any problems," says Magdiel named.

Few things bring cultures together more than food, and Magdiel said there will be many - including the ability to “chip” samples before partaking in main courses. This includes pupusas as well as samples from El Salvador and Central America. And while it might not be Tuesday, they have all kinds of tacos with different types of meat.

File photo of children playing in an inflatable bouncy castle at Festival de Juan 2018, St. George, Utah, April 28, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News

There are several inflatables, games and attractions for the children.

As varied as the food is, Juan 106 FM is a “Musica” station. The sampling of the music will be just as varied.

The big attraction will be the La Banda Vallarta Show, which pioneered the “La Quebradita” dance style in the 1990s - a fusion of techno and folklorico music styles. In the Latino community, the La Banda Vallarta Show is a big deal. For non-Latino audiences, consider whether Backstreet Boys or Boys II Men would be coming to play St. George.

The Festival de Juan will, in fact, mark the start of Technobanda 2021's national tour that will take off to Las Vegas and Phoenix and beyond.

“It's a big, big band,” said Magdiel. “They were really big in the 90s. It was a revolution in the Latino community. "

At the same time, Magdiel stressed that there are several other bands and performers who will spread their sounds, including several local bands from St. George and Mesquite.

"We're going to have these great bands," said Magdiel. "They are local bands who are just getting started, but hopefully they'll make it big."

Event details

• What: Fourth "Festival de Juan"
• When: Saturday, October 23, 5 pm-10pm
• Where: Vernon Worthen Park, 300 p. 400 E., St. George.
• Cost: free admission. Groceries and other concessions can be purchased from vendors.

Additional info: Visit the broadcaster's streaming website or it is Facebook site.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2021, all rights reserved.

Chris Reed is the weekend editor and reporter for St. George News. After growing up among the Valley Girls in Southern California's San Fernando Valley, he steadily moved east. He graduated from Cal State Northridge before spending a decade in Las Vegas. As a sports reporter and editor, he once compared shoe sizes with Shaq. As a news reporter and editor, he has covered parades, triumphs and tragedies. He also got close to the stars once when he was promoting a manufacturer of space modules. He came to St. George out of love and loved the community. He is the proud father of two boys; his youngest is a master against autism and type 1 diabetes.

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