ABOUT FIC

Festival Internacional Cervantino: A Cultural Bridge Celebrating Its 53rd Edition

For more than five decades, the heart of Mexico has beaten stronger every October to the rhythm of music, theatre, dance, and visual arts. Festival Internacional Cervantino (FIC), one of the most important cultural events in Latin America and around the world, began in 1972. Its roots go back to a key figure: Enrique Ruelas, a playwright and cultural promoter from Guanajuato, who in the 1950s brought to life the Entremeses Cervantinos in Plaza de San Roque. His vision of bringing theatre to the streets and connecting audiences with Cervantes’s works in open, colonial spaces, was the seed that grew into what is now known as the Cervantino.

Today, it is synonymous with diversity, artistic dialogue, and a vibrant convergence of cultures.

But the Fiesta del Espíritu, as it is also known, is much more than artistic performances. It is a multisensory experience. Here, you can attend free concerts in public squares, visit arts exhibitions, stroll through historic alleys with the estudiantinas, participate in workshops, talks, presentations, and open-air cinema. The city itself becomes a stage: every corner holds an artistic expression; every street is an invitation to experience culture at its fullest.

From 10 to 26 October 2025, FIC celebrates its 53rd edition, featuring two guests of honour who promise a remarkable programme: the United Kingdom and the state of Veracruz.

From the British Isles comes a rich, eclectic, and deeply inspiring cultural offering. The United Kingdom will be present in Guanajuato with a programme that celebrates both its tradition and its innovative proposals. Punk, pop, experimental dance, electronic sounds, and urban expressions that have shaped generations of young people worldwide will resonate in this edition. Meanwhile, Veracruz arrives with its unmistakable mestizo essence, bringing sones jarochos, danzones, marimbas, and jaranas, carrying the heart of the Gulf of Mexico to the Guanajuato highlands. Its vibrant folklore, flavours, rhythms, and festive energy will be among the festival’s great treasures, connecting the Afro-Indigenous and Spanish past with the state’s contemporary artistic expressions.

And what else can we expect for this edition?

This year, we will have the presence of 3,458 artists from 32 countries, prestigious international companies, innovative multimedia proposals, urban interventions, film screenings, dance, and science, all merging for 17 days in a city that becomes a living stage. Guanajuato, a World Heritage Site, will once again shine as the epicentre of global culture.

This Cervantino will be a bridge between generations, continents, artistic languages, and ways of understanding the world. A festival that not only withstands the test of time, but also takes risks and reinvents itself every year to remind us that art is the universal language that unites us.

This year’s programme is aimed at young people and invites them to reconnect with art and culture in a free, fresh, and participatory way. Urban spaces are transformed into stages, immersive experiences, interactive shows, and activities designed to break down the barrier between audience and artists. Young people are no longer just spectators, but active participants in the artistic and social dialogue driving the festival.

The countdown has begun. The 53rd edition will be no ordinary festival: it will be a profound journey through the roots, sounds, and visions that unite us as humanity, without labels, made for you to claim as your own, experience in your own way, and carry with you. Because it’s not just something to watch, listen to, or dance to; it’s something to feel.

See you in Guanajuato!