ZOZOBRA—THE ORIGINAL BURNING MAN GOES GLOBAL
For 2020, No Mass Crowd In Santa Fe But The World Is Invited Online For Free
SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO 12 August 2020—On Friday, September 4, a spectacularly unique and transformative annual experience happens in Santa Fe, The City Different. Due to crowd gathering restrictions from the Covid-19 pandemic, a New Mexico secret for nearly a century is now available to everyone as The 96th Burning Of Zozobra will be broadcast live, with personal participation easily accessible online.
In a typical year, over 60,000 people from fifty states and 21 countries pack into Fort Marcy Park to dispel all thoughts and feelings of gloom, ill will and negativity by placing written statements and documents into a gigantic marionette named Zozobra, aka Old Man Gloom, at what is reverently nicknamed “The Original Burning Man”—an absolutely unforgettable, awe-inspiring visual sensation.
“With each passing year, we’re increasingly humbled to discover that for most people Zozobra isn’t just a spellbinding show,” said Ray Sandoval, Event Chair for The Burning Of Zozobra. “The occasion is something of a sacrament to unite with community, write down all that’s bothering you, and let it go up in smoke and away.”
Ancient Power Of Community Ritual
While we eagerly await scientific solutions to the Covid-19 crisis, we must also realize that for millennia artists and ritual have also played an essential role in mankind’s survival. Santa Fe locals will tell you that The Burning Of Zozobra is in effect New Year’s Eve, July 4th and Burning Man all in one—a brand new beginning where bad is cathartically burned and resolute joy and unity are welcomed in with open arms, song, food & dance.
Santa Fe has faced centuries of challenging cultural division due to its unique geography and history, and in 1924 American painter and WWI veteran Will Shuster created Zozobra in response for more inclusiveness. The city continues to make great progress as a beacon of tolerance, diversity, creativity and welcoming and is now routinely voted as one of the topmost friendly destinations in the world.
The burn has seen the community through World War, depressions, drought and decades of America’s racial, social and cultural upheaval. Zozobra was born shortly after the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic, however, so he relishes this rare opportunity to attack where so much gloom, fear and anxiety can prevail. Santa Fe welcomes the world into our virtual backyard to help us repel these serious foes as a global community and reset the tone with love and hope for the challenges to come.
Who?
Zozobra creator Will Shuster selected the Kiwanis Club of Santa Fe to steward the tradition following his death in 1969. Members volunteer thousands of hours each year to prepare for the burn. Shuster’s was an inspired choice. For more than a century, Kiwanis has created opportunities for children to be curious, safe and healthy regardless of the community in which they live.
Whaaaat?
Zozobra is an eerie, 50-foot tall marionette who embodies all the gloom that builds up during the year. The spectral doomsayer will return for the 96th time to battle the Fire Spirit, brought to life by the collective goodwill and united spirit of all who yearn for a better world. For 2020, most uniquely, Zozobra will sport corona virus molecules in his hair—gray for the occasion—and Killer Hornet cuff links.
Here’s a short video with superb drone footage as a sneak preview of the spectacular drama coming to your screen soon.
When & Where?
On Friday, September 4 this year’s celebration will have no crowd for the first time ever and instead be televised live on New Mexico ABC affiliate KOAT Channel 7 and live-streamed online at https://www.koat.com. The program begins at 8:00 p.m. MDT with an hour special on Zozobra’s history, customs and traditions and then the burn commences at 9:00 p.m. The program will be archived and viewable after the event.
Why—Good Will & Charity
Since 1924, the City of Santa Fe has built and burned Zozobra, stuffed from head to toe with untold thousands of glooms, bad habits, hurt feelings, unrequited love letters, divorce papers, unwanted photos, paid-off mortgages, parking tickets and more. Relationship gone south? Boss too bossy? Had it up to here with the virus? Send in your gloom and let the fires of renewal make for a brighter day.
Not only will you help rid yourself of darkness, you’ll make a difference in a child’s life too. Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to improve the world one child and one community at a time. Kiwanis Club of Santa Fe will donate the net proceeds of the 2020 Burn My Gloom campaign to nonprofits that help make life better for children. Past recipients include: Cooking With Kids, Casa Familia, Girls, Inc., Santa Fe Youth Symphony, Adaptive Sports of New Mexico, Reel Fathers, Wise Fool, Santa Fe Dreamers Project, Bike Santa Fe, Girls on the Run, Feeding Santa Fe, Unlocked Minds, and Assistance Dogs of The West.
This year, 20 percent of proceeds will also help fund The Eliminate Project. Kiwanis International and UNICEF have joined forces to eliminate maternal and neonatal tetanus—a deadly disease that steals the lives of nearly 31,000 innocent babies and a significant number of women each year.
Burn Your Gloom & Your Friends’ Gloom Too
This year is easier than ever to let your stress and despair become part of Zozobra’s ashes. On the new Burn My Gloom web page, anyone anywhere can simply enter their glooms for a nominal $1 fee and they will be printed and placed inside Old Man Gloom himself.
You can also make a gift of gloom liberation. The web page lets you share the tradition with friends, families, first responders who deserve a break, and anyone you know who needs some release from the troubles of this difficult year. Just enter name and email. In another first, following the event, all those who submitted glooms will receive an Official Certificate denoting the good deed as done.
Our hearts go out to everyone who has lost someone or suffered in any way from the ongoing devastation of this disaster. We look forward to take some of the edge off and show how The City Different has rolled over all gloom for nearly a century.
Be Safe, Be Well & Please join us Friday night September 4.
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Contact:
John Feins
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