South San Francisco High School’s annual Día de los Muertos celebration returned for the first time since 2019 with live dance performances by the school’s ballet folklorico program and the construction of a gigantic Day of the Dead altar.
“Today we’re celebrating Día de los Muertos or Day of the Dead,” said junior Selena Angulo, “and it’s a day when we celebrate everyone who’s passed in the past year, and we celebrate their lives together.”
The Mexican tradition took on greater significance this year in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which kept South City High students in distance learning for the entire 2020-21 school year, while also claiming 625 lives in San Mateo County and almost 5 million lives worldwide as of November 1.
“We are definitely remembering those people,” said senior Adriana Diaz. “The altar is not dedicated this year simply to the people whose pictures are placed on the altar but also to those who lost their lives because of COVID.”
As ballet folklorico students, Diaz and Angulo took part in a series of dances to commemorate, honor, and celebrate the spirits of the deceased.
First was a solemn dance called “La Llorona”, which references a well-known Mexican folktale.
This was followed by two livelier dances from the Mexican state of Jalisco: “Las Alazanas” and “El Gavilan”.
According to ballet folklorico teacher Martin Cruz-Barajas, the dances are a celebration of life and a gift to the spirits of the dead.
“We dance to honor the lives of our ancestors,” said Cruz-Barajas.