Hello San Diego!

From Oktoberfest celebrations to international film screenings, cultural festivals, captivating performances, and much more, there's lots for everyone to enjoy this weekend and all next week!

Throughout the weekend, the La Mesa Oktoberfest will take place.

Friday and Saturday, the film Cassandro will be shown at the Digital Gym.

Friday, the San Diego/Alcalá Sister Cities Society and the House of Mexico will present An Evening With Don Quixote at the Hall of Nations in Balboa Park. MiraCosta College Symphony Orchestra will present their Under the Spell of Spain concert. The legendary Banda El Recodo will perform at the Civic Theatre. And you can hear Sentencia2 play at Sierra Madre Cantina.

Saturday, the 12th Annual International Dragon Boat Race will take place in Mission Bay. At the Mira Mesa Senior Center, there will be a Silayan Filipina Marketplace. At Design 39, there will be an Indian Ganapati Festival. A Baja Lifestyle and Travel Expo will be held at Crown Point Park. East Village will hold an Oktoberfest at the Quartyard. At the Theatre Box downtown, the Ukrainian film A Rising Fury will be shown. Korea-ful Night at the Balboa Park Club will feature talks, performances, and a dinner. At Wild Island Collective, there will be a Hawaiian Lei Po'o Making Workshop. The Irish trad and European folk/rock band Gadan will perform at Pilgrim United Church of Christ in Carlsbad. At Rock Steady Jamaican Restaurant, they will hold a Nigerian Independence Celebration.

Sunday, the annual Dia de los Muertos - La Experiencia will begin at Fiesta de Reyes in Old Town with displays and more throughout the month. At All Saints Episcopal Church, Classically Ukraine will be a concert of classical works inspired by Ukraine or written by Ukrainian composers. There will be a Shakespearian Shylock Versus Portia Mock Trial held at the Mission Valley Branch Library. At Quartyard, there will be a Nigeria Independence Day Party. And at White Rice Morena, there will be a Traditional Filipino Kamayan Dinner to kick off Filipino-American History Month.

Monday at SDSU's Smith Recital Hall, the Balkan music band Tzidia will perform. At the Mingei, there will be an Immigrant Food Tasting and Stories event.

Tuesday, the San Diego Filipino Film Festival kicks off with films screening each day until Sunday the 8th. Les Misérables opens at the Civic Theatre with performances until the 15th.You can celebrate Latino Heritage Month by partaking in an Altar Making Workshop at Mira Mesa College.

Wednesday, the Coronado Library will screen the Indian film Polite Society.

Next Thursday at UCSD, there will be a discussion with the authors about their book Banished Men, How Migrants Endure the Violence of Deportation.

Next Friday, the film Made in Mexico will screen at Miracosta College in Oceanside. Mexican singer Ana Barbara will perform at the Magnolia in El Cajon. Latina singer Becky G will perform at the Balboa Theatre. Los Darth Vatos will be at Navajo Live. '

Next Saturday, there will be a Lōkahi Festival at Guardian Angels Church in Santee. Ponce's Mexican Restaurant will have a Dia De Los Muertos Painting Class. Casa Familiar is celebrating its 50th anniversary with Casa Fest 2023 at Waterfront Park. At the San Diego Museum of Art, there will be a Persian Mehregan Fall Fête. There will be a San Diego Diplomacy Council 45th Anniversary Event at UC San Diego Park & Market. At the St. George - Serbian Orthodox Church in Bay Park, there will be a Bulgarian Festival. At La Paloma Theatre, there will be a Masters of Hawaiian Music Benefit Concert for Maui. At the Grand-Ritz Theater in Escondido, there will be a Hawaiian Music and Dance Concert featuring Sean Na'auao, Kūhai Hālau O Kawenaokalā’īokalani Pā ‘Ōlapa Kahiko dance group and local band Spam and Egg.

Next Sunday, Bread and Salt Gallery will host a Mexico in a Bottle event celebrating the varieties of distilled liquid refreshments produced in Mexico. At the Clark Cabaret & Bar, Filipino music artist Justin Huertas will perform. Syrian singer Nassif Zeytoun will perform at the Sycuan Casino Resort in El Cajon.

Local theatrical productions include Cabaret, at the Old Globe, The Savoyard Murders at Scripps Ranch Theatre, Dragon Mama at Diversionary Theatre, Dishwasher Dreams at the White Theatre at the Old Globe, Sumo at the La Jolla Playhouse, and Les Misérables will open at the Civic Theatre on October 3rd.

Please note that after two weeks in the main calendar section, ongoing events (such as exhibitions and plays) can be found in Ongoing and Extended Events.

Everyone here at the San Diego Participant Observer and the Worldview Project wish you fulfilling, illuminating, and culturally-rich experiences in the days ahead. See you next week!