San Sebastián Street Festival facts for kids
Quick facts for kids San Sebastián Street FestivalFiestas de la Calle San Sebastián.
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View of San Sebastián Street during the event in 2005
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| Nickname | Fiestas de la SanSe |
| Status | Active |
| Begins | Third Thursday of January |
| Ends | Third Sunday of January |
| Frequency | Yearly, third weekend of January coinciding with the feast day of Saint Sebastian |
| Location(s) | Centered around San Sebastián Street in Old San Juan in San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| Country | Puerto Rico |
The San Sebastián Street Festival (known in Spanish as Fiestas de la Calle San Sebastián), often called La SanSe, is a super fun festival in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It happens every year in January, usually on the third weekend. This big party takes place mainly on San Sebastián Street in Old San Juan. It started as a way to honor Saint Sebastian, a saint celebrated by the Catholic Church on January 20.
Many people in Puerto Rico think of La SanSe as the official end of the Christmas and holiday season. It has become a huge celebration for San Juan and for all of Puerto Rican culture. Over 200,000 people attend, making it famous on the island and beyond. The festival has even started to be celebrated in Florida and Texas since the 2010s.
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History of the San Sebastián Festival
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Before the big festival we know today, there was a smaller event. In the 1950s, a church member named Juan Manuel Madrazo started a small yearly parade. This parade honored Saint Sebastian and helped raise money to fix the San José Church. This tradition continued until Madrazo retired.
How the Modern Festival Began
In 1970, a historian named Ricardo Alegría had an idea. He worked for the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture. Alegría suggested bringing back this tradition as a bigger festival. He talked to Rafaela Balladares de Brito, a community leader on San Sebastián Street. Their goal was to celebrate Puerto Rican culture. They also wanted to raise money for a nearby Catholic elementary school called Colegio de Párvulos.
Growing into a Big Event
At first, the local community organized the festival with help from the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture. As the festival grew, it became a much larger event. The responsibility slowly moved to the Municipality of San Juan. Today, the city government handles all the planning, management, and security.
The festival has been held every year since it started in the 1970s. However, the celebrations in 2021 and 2022 were canceled. This happened because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 festival was almost canceled after an earthquake on January 7. But the mayor at the time, Carmen Yulín Cruz, quickly decided to bring it back.
The Festival Today
Even though the festival still starts with a church service for Saint Sebastian, it has become much more. Today, it is a very important social and cultural event. It celebrates Puerto Rican folk arts, music, and traditions. You can find markets selling traditional arts and crafts. There are also music and dance performances on different stages around Old San Juan.
The Famous Big Heads Parade
One of the most famous parts of the festival is the Comparsa de los Cabezudos. This means "parade of the Big Heads" in Spanish. These are large figures with exaggerated, funny faces. They are usually made from papier-mâché. The parade starts near the San Juan Cathedral. The Cabezudos then join the street party, dancing and singing with everyone.
Originally, the Cabezudos showed funny characters from local stories. Examples include El General and Juan Bobo. Now, they also honor important people from Puerto Rican history. Some of these include Felisa Rincón de Gautier, Francisco Oller, Diplo, and Ricardo Alegría, who helped start the modern festival.
San Sebastián Festival in the United States
In recent years, many Puerto Ricans have moved to the United States. Because of this, the San Sebastián Festival is now celebrated in other places too. You can find versions of the festival in different parts of Florida. It is also celebrated in the Dallas-Fort Worth area of Texas.
In 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was even celebrated online for the first time. These festivals in the U.S. also feature Cabezudos and Puerto Rican folk art markets. They offer many traditional Puerto Rican dishes and rums. More than 6,000 people have attended these events.
See also
In Spanish: Fiestas de la Calle San Sebastián para niños
- Fiestas patronales in Puerto Rico
- Institute of Puerto Rican Culture
