Yupi! Latin American Arts Family Festival

About this event

Yupi! Latin American Arts Family Festival takes place October 16–18, 2026, at Presentation House Theatre. Produced by Neworld Theatre, it welcomes children aged 3–12, their families and people of all backgrounds for music, dance, theatre, workshops and creative activities in English, Spanish and Portuguese.

Public show start times, in Vancouver local time: Friday, October 16 at 6 p.m., Opening Night. Saturday, October 17: Canto Vivo Choir at 1 p.m.; Muévete Marimbas at 2:40 p.m.; Moonweavings at 4:20 p.m. Sunday, October 18: Moonweavings at 11:20 a.m.; Nahualli Folklore at 2 p.m.; the closing Baile de Carnaval at 5 p.m. Attend individual sessions rather than a continuous event.

Mainstage shows require tickets. A mainstage ticket includes free workshops, with no experience required: Latin American music, movement, capoeira, carnival masks, drumming and Brazilian carnival dance. Free ancillary activities include screen printing, face painting, puppetry and Mexican bingo. Select performances and tickets through the organizer’s ticket page.

All festival spaces are wheelchair accessible. Limited free public-transit tickets and ASL/LSE support are available on request; booking assistance is also available. Contact yupi@neworldtheatre.com or text +1 604-602-0007.

Opening night features Alma Raíz, whose live music and traditional dances explore Colombia’s mountains, rivers and coasts through Indigenous, African and European heritage; Aché Brasil, combining Afro-Brazilian dance, percussion, martial arts and acrobatics; and MNGWA, blending cumbia, salsa, funk and psychedelic rock.

Canto Vivo is VLACC’s community choir, founded in 2017 and directed by Sérgio Pires, with 34 singers from 15 countries singing in Spanish and Portuguese. Muévete’s young marimba players perform from memory, with original music and songs inspired by Latin America, Africa and local artists. Moonweavings follows three young cousins turning their beach-cottage bedroom into a theatre of stories and Latin American children’s music. Nahualli presents Mexican regional folk dances through costumes, music and choreography. The closing Brazilian carnival party includes samba, traditional marchinhas and other Brazilian genres; costumes are welcome.

Workshops require sign-up in addition to a mainstage ticket. “This is How Latin America Sounds,” led by Yunuen Perez-Vertti and Fiorella Pinillos, invites participants to share songs, sounds and memories of home while making a collective installation about Latin American cultures, migration and community. Carla Alcántara’s Joy in Movement uses playful games and guided movement for all ages. Capoeira Aché Brasil, founded by Mestre Eclilson de Jesus and teaching in Vancouver since 1990, introduces movement, music, culture and respect. Mariana Frochtengarten’s carnival-mask workshop uses Brazilian colours, patterns, plants and animals to create a wearable mask. Dani Gramani’s Batucadinha explores percussion and carnival songs with families. Luciana D’Anunciaçao’s Brazilian carnival dance combines guided instruction, improvisation and group exercises inspired by Frevo, Funk Carioca, Samba and Ciranda. Expect vigorous movement, sweating and an elevated heart rate. All ages and experience levels are welcome; wear clothes that allow free movement and supportive shoes suitable for jumping and impact, and bring water.

The free ancillary activities are screen printing with Yaimel López, face painting with Karen Morales, Juanito the Puppet with Mary Soto and Mexican bingo with Carla Vallin. Presentation House Theatre, VLACC and La Libélula support the festival. For access arrangements, contact boxoffice@phtheatre.org or 604-990-3474.