Just under 2,200 concertgoers milled about the venue, snacking on queso and fajitas and sipping before finding their seats for several hours of lively mariachi tunes and traditional baile folklórico.
Monica Lopez had brought her four sons along with her and her husband, driving in from Cypress to catch the show. Lopez and mariachi shared a birthplace, the state of Jalisco, and she said she made a point of attending shows as often as she could around Houston.
“I just want my kids to grow up with that,” she said, gesturing to the boys who sipped their blue Gatorades. “I want them to grow up with our culture.”
Outside the theater doors, vendors hawked their wares, including Richard and Jennifer Cisneros, who had traveled down from Oklahoma City to display their La Catrina dolls.
The pair were accompanied by five women in elaborate hand-stitched dresses and full-body makeup, designed to look like La Catrina, a skeleton clad in an elaborate hat that has become synonymous with Día de los Muertos.
The line to take photographs with the ghostly women snaked around the cavernous theater lobby, as Richard explained they were attempting to expand La Catrina’s appeal beyond Día de los Muertos to other holidays, including Mexican Independence Day and Cinco De Mayo.
“She represents that we are all equal in death,” he said of catrinas.
The theater buzzed with anticipation in advance of Saturday’s bands, though several attendees said they had a tough act to follow.
Two ushers raved about Friday’s performance by 9-year-old Alessandra Gutierrez of California, who has won national mariachi competitions and garnered more than 730,000 followers on TikTok. “She was magnificent,” one of the ushers said.
Another native of Guadalajara on hand for the festivities was Edgar Olivares, an anchor at Telemundo Houston who was on hand to emcee the event. Olivares said he thought the celebration of mariachi was essential for young musicians looking for exposure on a bigger stage.
In between introducing the acts, Olivares was prepared to listen from the wings for the moment when all of the bands’ instruments, from the trumpet to the violins and the guitarrón, blended into a smooth harmony.
“It’s hard to explain, but you just feel it inside,” he said. “Suddenly everything is perfect.”