A highlight for Fiesta 2023 is sure to be La Primavera which returns to the Historic El Paseo Restaurant for one extraordinary evening.
This not-to-be-missed event begins with a reception at Casa De La Guerra, the former home of José Antonio de la Guerra y Noriega, the last Commandant of the Presidio of Santa Barbara. Later, guests dressed in their finest Fiesta attire, will stroll down the “Santa Barbara Street of Spain” and arrive at the El Paseo Restaurant to enjoy an elegant "Four Nations Dinner" honoring the Chumash, Spain, Mexico and the United States.
Thanks to a generous donation from the Spanish Office of Tourism in Los Ángeles, Spain's Award-Winning dancer, Patricia Guerrero, who has been called "a flamenco dancer of a supernatural force" will perform. Performances by Manuel Gutierrez, Daniela Zermeño Sanchez and Ryan Zermeño, and Solera by Flamenco! Santa Barbara will also be showcased at the event.
A highlight will be the official first dances of the 2023 Spirit and Junior Spirit of Fiesta followed by a live auction.
”The vision for this year’s La Primavera celebration is to honor our history and culture, and also provide an evening of outstanding entertainment and food at one of this town’s most iconic Fiesta venues,” said 2023 El Presidente David Bolton. “So many memorable Fiesta evenings have taken place at the El Paseo, and there are few venues more historic than Casa De La Guerra. It will be a great evening!”
Why: “La Primavera” means Springtime, the annual season when hide and tallow trade ships arrived to do business in Santa Barbara. The rancheros would get together to celebrate during those “Old Spanish Days” in the 1800s.
In 1919, a group of local citizens met and organized the La Primavera Association to "perpetuate through a spring festival the memory of the early Spanish and pioneer days of California”. And so began the longstanding tradition of hosting a Springtime party in Santa Barbara. The La Primavera Association is also the origin of the present-day “Old Spanish Days in Santa Barbara Fiesta”.
The current La Primavera Event is a fundraiser that raises money for our beloved free Fiesta community events like La Fiesta Pequeña, Las Noches de Ronda and El Desfile Histórico (the historic Fiesta Parade).
When: Saturday, May 13, 2023
Where: Red carpet arrival at Casa De La Guerra. Dinner and flamenco show at the Historic El Paseo Restaurant.
