Fiesta del Pacifico facts for kids
The Fiesta del Pacifico (which means Festival of the Pacific in English) was a big festival held in San Diego, California. It took place during the 1950s. This exciting event happened all over the city for several weeks in the summer. Its main purpose was to attract tourists. It also wanted to highlight San Diego's rich Spanish and Mexican heritage.
How the Fiesta Started
In 1955, the San Diego City Council approved a plan for a month-long celebration. This event was set to happen in the summer of 1956. A private group, led by Wayne Dailard, organized the fiesta. Mr. Dailard had also managed a big event called the California Pacific International Exposition in 1936-37.
The first Fiesta del Pacifico lasted 33 days in 1956. It received some money from the city and county. The idea was for the fiesta to happen every year. However, it didn't make as much money as expected. Also, people from the tourism industry complained. They felt the fiesta was taking visitors away from other popular attractions.
Because of these issues, the festival continued for only three more years. Each year, it became shorter and less grand.
- In 1956, it ran from July 18 to August 12.
- In 1957, it was from July 24 to August 10.
- In 1958, it took place from August 29 to September 9.
- In 1959, the last year, it was from September 4 to 17.
After 1959, the Fiesta del Pacifico was stopped.
Fun Activities and Shows
The festival offered many different activities across the city for weeks. These included:
- A beauty pageant
- Several parades
- Road races
- A rodeo
- Street parties
- Many shows of dancing, art, and other cultural activities.
The main event was a huge play called The California Story. This play was first written for California's 100th birthday celebration in 1950. It had been performed in the Hollywood Bowl. For the fiesta, this amazing show was performed in Balboa Stadium. The stage was as long as a city block!
The California Story had 35 scenes and a cast of 1,300 people. This included a full symphony orchestra and a choir with 150 voices. In 1957, Lucille Norman was the main singer and star of the show. Vladimir Rosing directed the play, and Meredith Willson conducted the music. Both had done the same jobs at the Hollywood Bowl.
The play told the history of California. It started with the arrival of Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo in 1540 and went up to the early 1900s. It was advertised as "the biggest non-movie spectacle ever produced anywhere." In 1959, the last year of the fiesta, The California Story was replaced. A new two-hour show called Stars over Pacific took its place.
A Musical Memory
The Fiesta del Pacifico inspired a very popular piece of music. It was written by composer Roger Nixon for a symphonic band. The piece is also called Fiesta del Pacifico. Nixon composed it in 1958-59, and it was first performed in 1960.
Nixon explained why he chose the name for his music: "Fiesta del Pacifico is held in San Diego and features a play on the history of the area, a parade, a rodeo, and street dances. It is one of several festivals held annually in various communities in California that celebrate the Old Spanish Days of the State, and I chose its name as representative of the spirit of those occasions."
