October offers cornucopia of diverse festivals in El Paso area

Maria Cortes Gonzalez, El Paso Times
·6 min read

October is a great month for El Pasoans who love festivals. And the celebrations will include ones where you can listen to music, enjoy food and wine, or celebrate art and ethnic cultures.

Most are in the El Paso area.

So, get your calendars and mark down your favorites.

Chucopalooza features 12 bands in Anthony, NM

Chucopalooza started in 2021 in an effort to celebrate music, life, and culture in the borderland and is now maturing into a music festival in 2022. This year's fest will be from 3 p.m. to midnight Saturday, Oct. 1, at 2500 O'Hara Road in Anthony, New Mexico.

Chucopalooza 2022 will feature 12 bands on two stages, featuring The Retroz, Broken Dime Band, Hijo De Ilegal, Sweet Bisket, Ana Rosales, Musas, Elton Juan, J. Cabrera, Radio La Chusma, Jessica Flores, Olio (LA Band), and New Mexico's only Grammy Award Winning Band and Smithsonian Folkways Recording Artist Los Texmaniacs.

Tickets: $10 advance at chucopalooza.ticketleap.com/cp22/, $20 day of; children 10 and under are free. Small to medium ice chests are allowed; BYOB, chairs are permitted.

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Take a bite of the Apple Festival

Time to pick apples and eat fresh-made apple pies during the Apple Festival, starting at 9 a.m. Oct. 1-2 at the Nichols Ranch, 236 Cottonwood Canyon, in La Luz, New Mexico.

The event will offer various activities, including live music, a petting zoo, carnival games, and arts and craft vendors.

The cost is $10 for adults but is free for kids younger than 12. For tickets, go to nicholsranchandorchards.com.

Festival of Chariots brings Indian culture Downtown El Paso

This will be the second year for the Festival of Chariots, which brings India's culture, food, music and traditions to El Paso.

The festival will be from 2 to 8 p.m. Oct. 8 at the parking lot at 401 East Main St. (across from the Hotel Indigo) in Downtown El Paso. Entertainment will include theatrical performances from South Africa, Poland and London; an Ayurvedic tent; Vedic astrology readings; yoga; and a meditation booth.

"We are so excited to bring back this special holiday, Ratha Yatra, to our El Paso community," said festival organizer Madhi Nair. "We are also excited to partner with Chalk the Block to offer El Pasoans a weekend of fun, culture and art."

Nair said everything is free as a gift to the El Paso community. The headlining event, a parade of chariots (Ratha Yatra), will kick off at 3:30 p.m. at the parking lot located at Campbell Street and Mills Avenue and proceed down Mills to Oregon Street and then Main Street before ending back at the parking lot at Campbell and Mills.

"Last year, we served 4,000 plates of food, so we are excited to do it again. We have a team of chefs coming from Florida and New York to prepare the food in advance," Nair said. "We also have a beautiful gift shop with clothing and artifacts and culturally relevant shawls and jewelry."

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Chalk the Block celebrates 15 years

The family-oriented Chalk the Block festival will be Oct. 7-9 in Downtown El Paso. This year it is sponsored by Raiz Federal Credit Union. Preview Night will be from 6 to 10 p.m. Oct. 7; the event will be from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Oct. 8 and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 9.

The festival, marking 15 years in 2022, usually draws close to 50,000 over three days, with numerous artists participating in and around the Downtown Arts District. The celebration includes local artistic talent such as chalk artists, musicians, muralists and arts and crafts vendors. In addition, interactive installations from internationally recognized artists will be featured during the festival.

Chalk the Block features a range of activities from chalk artists and live installations to performers.
Chalk the Block features a range of activities from chalk artists and live installations to performers.

There will be free art activities at the El Paso museums of art and history. The Museums and Cultural Affairs Department that organizes it says must-see activities include:

  • Mural Walk: Curated by Christin Apodaca of El Paso, in the Pedestrian Pathway

  • Chalk-Bot: Installation by Fab Lab from El Paso in the Arts Festival Plaza

  • Bike Zoo: Installation by Jeremy Rosen of Austin, in various Downtown locations

  • Intrude (Sm): Installation by Parer Studio from Sydney, Australia, across multiple Downtown locations

  • Cloud Swing: Installation by Lindsay Glatz of New Orleans in the San Jacinto Plaza

  • Kids Zone: InterExtreme on Oregon Street

  • Regional musicians and artists will be performing at San Jacinto Plaza.

A new website also has been created: www.chalktheblock.com.

Chinati Weekend in Marfa, Texas

From a local community event in 1987, Chinati Weekend in Marfa has become a popular cultural event each year with special exhibitions, talks, music and meals; all offeredfreeto the public. Chinati Weekend will be Oct. 7-9.

This year, Sarah Crowner's Platform will be a major site-specific installation, featuring over 2,000 square feet of handmade tiles, glazed turquoise blue and produced in Mexico. Crowner will speak about her work at 3 p.m. Oct. 8.

Chinati Weekend 2022 will focus on the restored John Chamberlain Building, which is part of the newly designated downtown Central Marfa Historic District. For a full schedule of events, go to http://chinati.org.

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El Paso Film Festival to showcase local talent

The El Paso Film Festival is back for 2022 with more than 45 new films and some special guests. It has grown into one of the larger showcases of independently made narrative and documentary films in the Southwest.

Some of the films of the El Paso Film Festival will be shown in the Philanthropy Theater of the Plaza.
Some of the films of the El Paso Film Festival will be shown in the Philanthropy Theater of the Plaza.

The festival will be Oct. 13-16 at the El Paso convention center and the Plaza Theatre. Opening VIP Night will be from 9:30 to 11:30 p.m. Oct. 13 at the Paso del Norte Hotel Downtown. VIP and Filmmaker Badges required for entry. For a schedule of films and to get tickets, go to http://elpasofilmfestival.org.

El Paso Wine & Food Fest to feature 400 premium wines

The El Paso Wine & Food Fest, put on by the Rotary Club of El Paso, will feature local chefs and fine wines from 1 to 5 p.m. Oct. 15 in the El Paso Downtown area. About 20 restaurants will participate, including Ambar, Anson 11, Crave and Mesa Street Grill.

The El Paso Wine & Food Fest, put on by the Rotary Club of El Paso, will be Oct. 15 in Downtown El Paso.
The El Paso Wine & Food Fest, put on by the Rotary Club of El Paso, will be Oct. 15 in Downtown El Paso.

The event will feature 400 wines from around the world, plus food from 20 of El Paso's finest restaurants. In addition, selected participating wineries will offer discounted bottles of wine for sale. Representatives from some of the world's top wineries will be on hand to showcase their wines and answer questions.

Single tickets are $125 each and are available at eventbrite.com. VIP tickets and reserved seating areas are available for $175 each.

Make plans for inaugural Spooky Moon Festival

The Spooky Moon Festival will be from noon to 2 a.m. Oct. 29 at Ascarate Park. The festival will feature an EDM lineup, a special drone show and more. Tickets are $79,99, plus tax, available at eventbrite.com Use promo code elpasotimes to get 10% percent off.

More:Spooky Moon Festival to bring EDM DJs, 400-drone show to Ascarate Park

María Cortés González may be reached at 915-546-6150; mcortes@elpasotimes.com, @EPTMaria on Twitter; eptmariacg on TikTok.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso festivals include Chalk the Block, Festival of Chariots