Forum. Central Topic: The Panamanian cultures: Evolution, Contributions, and Challenges, National Festival of La Mejorana. (As it is the case for ALL EVENTS of the festival, this Forum will be in the Spanish language).

Venue: José del C. Domínguez Cooperative headquarters, Bella Vista, Guararé.

Crowning Ceremony for Her Majesty Isabella Marie Peralta Espino, Queen of the LXXIV (74^th) National Festival of La Mejorana, by Her Royal Majesty Lourdes Mercedes Esquivel Cedeño, Queen of the LXXIII (73^rd) National Festival of La Mejorana.

Homage to Her Majesty Yusmaira Vaca Díaz, Queen of the LI (51^st) Festival, on her Silver (25^th) Anniversary, and to Her Royal Majesty Janeth Alvarado López, Queen of the XXVII (27^th) Festival, on her Gold (50^th) Anniversary.

Traditional Junta for building the barrera (bullring) for the bullfights. This event is traditionally called "Hecha de la Barrera."

In the countryside tradition, tasks such as planting, harvest, home construction, and others, which require substantial labor, are occasions when neighbors come together for a work gathering (junta) to complete the task. Music, yelling, singing, cooking, eating, and drinking are part of the routine from the beginning, but once the job is done, the party gets going in full force.

Improvised bull fights (possibly) - Once the bullring is ready, you may have to try it out, right?

Novena in Honor of Our Patron Saint, the Virgin of Mercy, at the Church of the Virgin of Mercy.

In the Catholic tradition of Panamá, a novena is a devotional practice including prayers (and possibly a mass) carried out for nine days. In preparation for the Patron Saint Festival of the Virgin of Mercy, each day is "sponsored" by a family or by a village in the District of Guararé who will decorate the church, provide the choir, and possibly donate to a hospital or other charity. The listing here is most likely the next-to-last of the nine days.

Salve (Hail Holy Queen) and Procession in Honor of Our Patron Saint, the Virgin of Mercy.

Handcrafted / artisan fireworks at the Nicomedes Barrios Bullring, after the procession.

Solemn Eucharist (Mass) in Honor of Our Patron Saint The Virgin of Mercy.

Loas (sung praises) to the Virgin of Mercy by décima singers and mejorana performers from the region, at the Mejorana Palace (the main stage).

Recognition to Efraín Gutiérrez (a mejoranera performer), Virgen de las Mercedes medal sponsored by Licenciada Nedelka Díaz.

A décima (also known as décima espinela) is the traditional, folkloric verse form used in Panama and several other Latin American countries such as Puerto Rico and México (Veracruz). It originated in Spain. Each strophe or stanza consists of ten eight-syllable lines, with the strict rhyming pattern ABBAACCDDC. It is sung in one of the many torrentes (styles) of mejorana, accompanied by the mejorana or mejoranera (the small Panamanian guitar).

Pilgrimage to the Statue of Professor Manuel Fernando Zárate (founder of the Festival). Special Program.

The statue of Professor Zárate is in front of the Festival's museum, which is a traditionally-built house just two blocks away from the main stage of the festival, walking down hill beside the church. As a historical note, the house, made of wood, mud, straw, and cañaza (a bamboo like material) was built by a junta, just like the bullring is built each year.

Traditional Bullfights. In Panama, bullfights include teasing of bulls, but not killing and normally not intentionally hurting the animals. There is usually one or more hired bullfighters, but there will always be guys who are interested in showing off, and who will become improvised bullfighters or will ride the bulls rodeo-style. This can often be quite entertaining to watch, but it is dangerous and has at times resulted in badly hurt or even dead people. Once in a while a bull will escape the barrera (the bullring), which creates another particularly thrilling situation, especially when you are too close to the place where the bull breaks away. It is usually better to find a safe place from which to watch.

Guararé features one of the only two traditional bullrings in Panama. The other one is in Parita, Province of Herrera. The barrera (bullring) is built each year immediately in front of the porches of the houses that surround the empty plaza, leaving very little space for people to move around the bullring, except in the four corners, where the street intersections provide more space. In recent years, people have built a few rudimentary, elevated stands (palcos) in some areas around the bullring, which provide added comfort and safety; these stands are often reserved for owners and their friends and family. Most of the young people just sit on the bullring's fence, which is not always that safe but is part of the adventure. You just need to be very careful to have a way to maximize your level of safety.

8^th Saloma Competition Ceferino "Fefe" López, at the Mejorana Palace (the Main Stage)

Saloma is a type of a-capella, ad-lib singing, mostly performed by men when they are working some difficult or long task. It often combines melodies with lyrics and melodies without lyrics, and it is usually sung in between some periods of traditional yelling. In the traditional popular "tipico" musical band, the woman singer also sings salomas, melodies mostly without lyrics, between verses and when the song changes parts.

8^th Grito (Yelling) Competition Jacinto "Chinto" Vergara (at the Main Stage)

This is not just any yelling! It consists of what could be considered "lines of a guttural melody". The pitch variation over time (the melody) and length of each line change as the performance progresses. This can be performed by a single man (or a woman, which is much less common), but it is often performed by two people. The first person yells a "line" that the second person reproduces, and then the first person yells a second line, and so on and so forth. The back-and-forth lasts approximately one minute, but it can vary in duration. This is not a simple thing to do, and some of them are quite elaborate and great to watch and listen to.

30^th Sung Décimas Competition “Bernardo Cigarruista” (for adults).

Entrusting of the Burlap Flag to the Flag Bearer for the Traditional Día Sereno and Great Atolladera (both of which happen the next day).

Día Sereno (Serene Day). Traditional cowfights. Great Atolladera (Mud Party) inside the bullring (the barrera) (atollar means to put or get mud on - atolladera is when that happens as a purposeful group activity, a tradition which was born at this festival many years ago).

Tuna (dancing parade) with the Burlap Flag led by Her Majesty, her court, and the flag bearer for the day.

It usually rains a lot in September in Panama. The second day of official bullfights is called the Día Sereno (Serene Day). That day the flag is made of burlap, and the queen's tuna actually goes inside of the barrera, where the cowfights stop for a while, lots of fireworks of various types will be ignited, and some of the party goers will be thrown in the mud or at least partially covered with mud, for fun. The queen, her court, and others in the tuna will usually dress in white that afternoon, to make the mud on their clothes even more visible. The tradition to wear white is said to have been started by Dorindo Cárdenas, a very popular and beloved accordion musician, singer, and songwriter who wrote the song "Décimo Quinto Festival en Guararé" (Fifteenth Festival in Guararé) among many other hits. That song was made popular around the world by Dorindo's friend, Colombian accordion musician Alfredo Gutiérrez, and in a salsa version by the Gran Combo de Puerto Rico. The song has also been covered by many other musicians/bands for many years. In the seventies, Dorindo was chosen as flag bearer for the Día Sereno and Atolladera for several years. Dorindo is still one of the most renowned and sought after "típico" musicians, and his band usually performs for popular dances several nights at the Festival. Dorindo was chosen as the flag bearer again, for the Day of the Atolladera, in 2017. People carried him in a taburete (a chair made of wood and cowhide) during the dancing parade with the Queen inside the bullring, just like the first time many years ago when he did not want to stand up to get into the atolladera and folks forced him to participate by carrying him in his chair.

24^th Female and Male Attire Competition Professor Dora Pérez de Zárate.  Male/Female Work Modality; Male Modality: Coleta Shirt for festivities (medal gifted by Familia Pinzón Del Castillo). Female: Montuna Pollera or Festive Montuna Pollera (medal gifted by Her Royal Majesty Mirín Díaz). This takes place at the Mejorana Palace (the main stage). In addition to wearing their traditional outfits, participants perform some old-style country job of their choosing, such as sharpening a machete, making some traditional dish, or calling and feeding the chicken.

Professor Dora Pérez de Zárate was the wife of Professor Manuel Fernando Zárate, the founder of the Festival. Together, they performed research and published several books about Panamanian folklore. After his passing, Dora continued the mission of protecting Panamanian folklore, mostly by educating new generations.

Beginning of the Great Tournament of La Mejorana with diverse vernacular expressions.

29^th Youth Accordion Competition Didio Borrero at the Palacio de la Mejorana (the main stage). Sponsored by Didio Borrero Foundation.

52^nd Written Décima Competition Manuel F. Zárate, organized by Lions Club of Guararé. The location is the Lions' Den.  Prizes will be awarded at 2:30 p.m. at the Palacio de la Mejorana (the main stage).

48^th Drumming Competition for Adults Gumercindo Díaz, sponsored by José del C. Dominguez Cooperative.

38^th Mejoranera Performance Competition Aristides Gil - Esteban Rodríguez for adults.

The Greatest Folklore Awards
Presentation of Award  Dora Pérez de Zárate to Victoriano A. Gavidia G. and Award "Orden Manuel Fernando Zárate" to Mara Olimpia García C. Gold medals and recognition plaques by the Festival Organizing Committee and the Ministry of Culture.

The late Manuel Fernando Zárate and wife Dora Pérez de Zárate were the main motors behind the founding of the festival in 1949.

63^rd Accordion Competition Rogelio Gelo Córdoba for adults, supported by Panama's Ministry of Education (gold medal) and Más Móvil.

Winning this competition is a great honor and a key goal for any accordion performer in Panama. In fact, many of the most renowned accordionists in Panama have won this competition.

The accordion here is a diatonic accordion. The standard is the Hohner Corona III, which has three reeds per note and two different notes for each of the 31 keys (one note in, one note out). One of the three notes in each key and direction is tuned a little off in frequency, to give the accordion a better timbre.

Regional Dances
Continuation of the Great Tournament of La Mejorana. Adult delegations will perform their regional dances as part of the 32^nd Folkloric Dance Competition Lorenzo "Lencho" Vergara.

The Great Tournament of La Mejorana consists of performances and competitions in diverse vernacular expressions, some of which do not relate directly to mejorana. The word mejorana currently conveys several related meanings: (1) the singing of décimas in the Panamanian folkloric style; (2) the music that accompanies the singing of décimas in the Panamanian folkloric style; (3) the dancing of the mejorana music without lyrics; (4) the small rustic guitar that accompanies the singing or dancing (also called mejoranera); and, much more recently, (5) the festival itself, (6) a particular, privately-owned venue for public dancing located in Guararé, and (7) a particular hotel located in Guararé.

Homage to  “Cultor del Folklore” (folklore exponents/promoters/advocates): Ana Victoria Espino.

Performances by Folkloric Projection (Dance) Groups according to the conditions established by the Festival Organizing Committee.

Gathering and organization of the oxcarts, delegations, and general public, in preparation for the Oxcart Parade. This is on Carretera Nacional (National Road) in front of  Juana Vernaza Primary School.

15^th Mejoranera Performance Competition "Gabriel Villarreal" for children.

20^th Children's Sung Décima Competition Félix Pérez. .

Beginning of the Great Oxcart Parade led by Guararé's Lions Club. Two competitions will take place during the parade: the 35^th Tuna Competition Martina Castillo and the 29^th Oxcart Competition Tiburcio Saavedra.

A Tuna, in Spain's tradition, is a group of musicians, singers, and dancers that parade through the streets. In Panama, tunas consist of one lady singing a verse and a choir of ladies (these days men sing as well) responding. The singing is accompanied by drumming. There are three types of drum in Panama: the repicador, which provides the syncopated , mostly ad-lib accents, the pujador, which is slightly lower in tone and provides the rhythm with a few syncopation excursions, and the caja, which provides the constant beat. The repicador and pujador are played with bare hands, while the caja is played with sticks.

In the case of the oxcart parade at this festival, a tuna accompanies each oxcart. Each oxcart is nicely decorated according to some folkloric theme and usually carries one or more people representing a particular custom from life in the country. Some of these can be quite funny. The queen, princess, and other ladies dressed in beautiful polleras (the Panamanian national female dress) also have one oxcart and one tuna each.

28^th Violin (fiddle) Competition Escolástico "Colaco" Cortez and 48^th Great Classic Night of Violins (the music is Panamanian folkloric fiddle music).

2026 Festival Closure.