Dayton Dia De Muertos (Day of the Dead) Parade and Celebration

Dia de Muertos is a unique and colorful holiday observed across Mexico, the southwestern United States, Latin America and right here in Dayton, Ohio. During Dia De Muertos people reminisce on the lives of loved ones who have died by creating and sharing ofrendas (Day of the Dead alters), food, sugar skulls, papel picado banners, processions, calaveras (skulls) music, traditional dance while wearing sugar skull painted faces and bright costumes.

The Dayton parade and celebration will include all of these traditional Mexican traditions with some unique Gem City twists.

Expect more than a thousand people to participate in this free and family friendly event. October 21^st 2 – 8 PM.

2 pm Gather for the Pre-Parade activities at the Yellow Cab 700 E. 4th Street Dayton, OH 45402. There will be storytelling, games, Rev. Cool of WYSO spinning Latin music, great food, expert face painting and the NEW Dayton Dia De Muertos T-shirt for sale.

4 pm The Dayton Dia De Muertos Parade departs the Yellow Cab and loops through the Oregon District in Downtown Dayton to trek down the middle of E. Fifth Street and back to the Yellow Cab.

The celebration begins when the parade returns to the Yellow Cab Tavern:

Authentic Mexican folkloric Dia De Muertos dancers from ORGULLO MEXICANO
Traditional rancheros from the father and daughter singing team of LESLIE PEREZ AND THE ALACRAN DE DURANGO
Dayton’s own famed and mysterious original Lucha mask-wearing rockers TEAM VOID.
REV. COOL of WYSO’s Around the Fringe show will MC the event and DJ high energy traditional and not so tradition Latin dance beats between sets and to end up the evening.

Traditional homemade Mexican food will be provided by the families of St. Mary’s Church on Xenia Ave in Dayton. El Meson’s food truck will also be there.

Traditional Dia De Muertos ofrendas (alters) will also be on display.

Dayton Dia De Muertos t-shirts and stickers will be available.

The fifth annual Dia de Muertos celebration and parade kicks off Sunday, Oct. 23, at 2 pm with pre-parade family activities at K-12/Tejas Gallery. Participants are encouraged to arrive early to make colorful parade accessories, learn traditional Mexican folk dance moves and transform your face into a sugar skull with the help of professional artists and students from Decoy Art Studio. An exciting element of Dia de Muertos is being a part of the action, so plan ahead and bring strollers and wagons for young children. An El Meson food truck will be on hand for tasty choices until the parade lines up.

The parade will take off from K-12/Tejas Gallery toward Fifth Street at 4 pm, travel through the Oregon District and stop at Missing Peace Art Space, located across from Stivers School for the Arts at Fifth and Dutoit streets. St. Mary’s will be there serving up traditional Mexican food and Pa’s Pork will offer other eclectic choices.

Entertainment will begin as soon as the parade arrives, with the legendary Rev. Cool Carter as master of ceremonies spinning records between acts until 9 pm. Ballet Folklorico Orgullo Mexicano will be back to delight the crowd with traditional dancing, and returning storyteller Alicia Pagan will capture the imaginations of both young and old. This year, guitarist Ramon Perez El Alacran de Durango will perform with his daughter, and the Lucha Libre rock band Team Void will bring a new sound to the celebration.

The Missing Peace Art Space will display personal ofrendas, traditional altars recalling the lives of loved ones who have passed. Artist Tiffany Clark will offer a community ofrenda for families and friends of heroin loss, and the Tree of Life congregation will honor the lives of those lost at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, Fla. A general outdoor altar will offer the opportunity to leave memorial notes and light candles for loved ones.

Be sure to put us on your calendar for a day of celebration and healing as we honor the traditional Mexican memorial holiday of Dia de Muertos, recalling the beauty of lives gone before us, and including all cultures in a celebration that is uniquely Dayton.

Dia de Muertos Dayton — A Movable Celebration of Life – Sunday, Oct. 23,

2 to 4 pm: Pre-parade activities at K-12/Tejas Gallery, 314 S. Jefferson St., Dayton

4 pm: Parade leaves K-12/Tejas Gallery and travels toward Fifth Street

4:30 pm: Celebration at Missing Peace Art Space, 234 S. Dutoit St.

Story contributed by Joy Levett