Everything is ready in Redován to kick off the patron saint festivities in honour of the Virgen de la Salud and San Miguel. A month of festive, cultural and leisure events in the municipality which will get underway on Thursday 29 August and will last until 29 September, the feast of San Miguel Arcángel. The Mayoress and Councillor for Fiestas, Nely Ruiz Peral, has been in charge of presenting all the details of these celebrations, which are included in the book that the residents of Redován can pick up from today at the Town Hall and which has as its letter of introduction a cover that combines photography and illustration by Francisco Miguel Fuentes Medina and Sergio Hernández Gil.
“It is certainly a poster that leaves no one indifferent and that brings together the important role that women play in Redován and in its fiestas, through a photograph of the queens and representatives of the comparsas and barracas with their backs turned, hugging each other around the waist and witnessing a firework display”, described Ruiz, who thanked the authors for their work, as well as the publication’s director, Myriam Lledó Illán. “It is a magazine that brings together the whole town of Redován through its associations, services, businesses and neighbours, a publication that is more important and interesting every year,” said Nely Ruiz.
The mayoress took the opportunity to present this year’s festive charges, with María del Carmen Mas Almarcha as town crier; Pepi Ibáñez Salazar, from the Sultanas del Rey Ahmed troupe as Festera de Honor and, therefore, in charge of firing the traditional ‘chupinazo’ from the balcony of the Town Hall; as well as the adult and children’s courts of honour, whose queens will be known after the election gala to be held on the evening of Friday 30 August. They are Leyre Ruiz Fuentes, María Pérez Canales and Ylenia Martínez Trigueros as candidates for Child Queen, and Ainhoa Tejuelo Pérez, Nicole Emperatriz Estañ Pozuelo and Triana Contreras Lucas as candidates for Mayor Queen. The one who will not have to go through any election is the Queen of the Third Age, Encarna Hernández Rocamora, who will be crowned that same night on the stage of the Plaza de la Paz. Until then, Martín Cartagena Martínez and Chloe Cartagena Navarro, will be in charge of guarding the crowns of the queens as Pajes 2024.
“The fiestas programme, which can also be consulted on our social networks as well as on the website, has been designed, as usual, so that everyone who lives in Redován has the opportunity to enjoy it, with events of different types and for all audiences”, said Nely Ruiz, who pointed out that it includes the traditional parades, concerts, as well as events which have been incorporated into the programme over the years, such as the PhilanTrophic Sound, a festival which will return on Friday, Friday, May 27th, who pointed out that it includes the traditional parades, concerts, as well as events that have been added to the programme over the years, such as the PhilanTrophic Sound, a festival that will return on Friday 20 September to the Los Pasos Sports Centre after the success of its first edition last year.
The fiestas get underway on Thursday 29 August with the festive concert and the awarding of prizes to the corporals and ranks of the different sides in last year’s parades. The Election of Queens is brought forward to Friday, specifically to the evening of 30 August in the Plaza de la Paz, where the opening speech will also be read by Mari Carmen Mas Almarcha. On Saturday morning, August 31st, the children’s chupinazo and the foam party will take place in the Plaza de la Paz and in the evening at 20.00 hours the Ofrenda de Flores will start in the Plaza Miguel Hernández. At 21.00 the Chupinazo and the Retreta will take place from the Town Hall Square to the Los Pasos Sports Centre, where DJs Mel Rows and Víctor Alavés will perform in the covered area. On Sunday 1 September the Barraca La Gramaera will hold the traditional exhibition of grass and spinning in the school playground.
After this intense weekend comes an even more intense week, as far as fiestas are concerned, which will begin on Wednesday 4th with the opening of the barracas. On Thursday 5 September at midday there will be the charanga tapeo and on Saturday 7 the General Parade organised by the Junta Central Festera. On Sunday 8th, the festivity of the patron saint, the mass and the procession will be the focus of the festive agenda. One of the most popular events of the fiestas is the evening bullfighting in the bullring, on the 9th, 10th and 11th of September at 21.00 hours. On Thursday, 8 September, there will be an equestrian show ‘La doma en el aire’ (Dressage in the air). On Friday 13th the Redován Dance Association will bring its traditional dance gala to the Plaza de la Paz and on Saturday 14th the Fiesta Blanca will flood the Plaza Miguel Hernández, with performances by the group Ciudad Canalla and DJ Isidro. On Sunday morning the 15th it will be time for the little ones, with children’s games in the Plaza Miguel Hernández.
The PhilanTrophic Sound Festival, which once again this year will donate the funds raised to different groups in Redovan. A day later, the Gran Desfile Multicolor will display in the streets of Redován the great creativity of groups, barracas and comparsas when creating costumes, a day that will end with the Fiesta Remember Redován Baila 2.0 in the Polideportivo Los Pasos. The last weekend of fiestas will continue on Friday 27 September with a concert in honour of San Miguel by the Unión Musical de Redován and on Saturday 28 live music will return with La Hornet. On Sunday 29th, the feast of San Miguel, the fiestas conclude with religious acts in honour of the patron saint and a fireworks display.
“We hope that it will be a programme that everyone will like and, above all, that it will be enjoyed by everyone in a few days in which we take the opportunity to make our feeling of being a town even greater”, said the mayoress, who specified that any changes to the programme for reasons beyond the organisation’s control, as well as the instructions to follow to register for events such as the White Party or the Multicolour Parade will be announced on the Town Hall’s social profiles.
Nely Ruiz added that it will also be through social networks, specifically Facebook and Instagram, where the public will be able to vote for the first song to be played after the Chupinazo in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento. “We will do this through a survey that will be launched on 26 August and we encourage young people and those who attend this event to participate, and on Friday we will announce which song we will enjoy at the official start of the fiestas”.
