Adam Castan͂eda Presents Alebrije Fall

A whimsical new dance and music work celebrating the Mexican folkcraft of Pedro Linares

HOUSTON (October 12, 2026) – This fall Houston-based choreographer Adam Castan͂eda unveils his latest celebration of Mexican American culture, community, and craft with Alebrije Fall, a new dance work that pays homage to famed artist Pedro Linares’ iconic creations. Imagined during a fever dream Linares experienced while ill, alebrijes are fantastical creatures that exhibit features from species that span the animal kingdom. The work will be performed twice at two longstanding community festivals: 

October 17 @ 6:45PM
MD Anderson YMCA Fall Festival / 705 Cavalcade Street, 77009

November 1 @ TBD
MECA Dia de Muertos Festival / 1900 Kane Street, 77007

Adam’s latest work was inspired by the ongoing gentrification of his home neighborhood, Near Northside, and other Latinx communities throughout Houston. Alebrije Fall is an attempt to insert a cultural reference/memory/token into these amorphous social landscapes to honor the rich histories of these communities. “As the demographics of the Near Northside and other Mexican American neighborhoods shift, it’s important to remember the people who lived in these places for decades before they became trendy,” says Castan͂eda. “The appearance of the alebrijes at these community festivals are meant to foster a sense of cultural pride and appreciation.”

The alebrijes are the brainchild of Mexican cartoneria artist Pedro Linares. These small papier-mache sculptures grew in popularity and became Linares’ calling card while the folk craft evolved to use wood as the primary material. Today alebrijes are viewed as symbols of national pride, and the craft is a significant source of income for artisans of Oaxaca. Each year the Museo de Arte Popular presents the Mexico City Alebrije Parade with giant alebrijes traveling from El Zocalo to the Angel of Independence. These beautiful, fantastic creatures, painted in all colors and designs real and imagined, are often associated with pre-Columbian beliefs in animal spirit guides and protectors. 

Alebrije Fall is crafted by a team of beloved Houston artists, including Sonia Flores (original music), Ashley Horn (costume design), and Tami Moscioni (soft sculpture). 

The cast of Alebrije Fall features a roster of celebrated dance artists who often find themselves in the colorful worlds of Adam Castan͂eda’s choreography: Jai Alexander, Jade Devault, Cynthia Garcia, Sierra Johnson, Cloe Leppard, Kristina Prats, and Soren Rivero.

Alebrije Fall is funded in part by a Support for Artists and Creative Individuals Grant from the City of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance.

ABOUT Adam Castan͂eda

Adam Castan͂eda is a dancer, choreographer, writer, and arts administrator living in Houston, Texas. He is the Executive and Artistic Director of the Pilot Dance Project, a professional Modern dance company that serves as an outlet for his choreographic voice, as well as those of other Latinx, BIPOC, queer, and women-identifying dance-makers. His programming has been funded by the Mid-America Arts Alliance, City of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance, Houston Endowment, Texas Commission on the Arts, EmcArts, the Morales Foundation, HoustonFirst, the Midtown Management District, Bunnies on the Bayou, the Woodlands Arts Council, Harris County Public Health, the BIPOC Arts Network & Fund, and Dance Source Houston. In addition to presenting a full season of contemporary dance, The Pilot Dance Project also produces the Texas Latino/a/x Contemporary Dance Festival, a three-night program of Latinx-identifying choreographers from around the Lone Star State and beyond, as well as Bayou City Dances, a festival-format celebration of the city’s most prolific dance companies staged at the Miller Outdoor Theatre. 

In addition to his company and non-profit work, Adam is a five-time recipient of the Houston Arts Alliance’s Support for Artists and Creative Individuals Grant for his evening-length works Lazarus in the Promised Land (2021), Migration (2023), The Women of Northside (2024), Carnegie Summer (2026), and Alebrije Fall (2026). He has had the pleasure to choreograph for theater in the original works of director/designer Afsaneh Aayani, and mainstage productions of Catastrophic Theatre and Main Street Theater. When not performing with his own company, Adam dances in Houston and New York with the Michele Brangwen Dance and Music Ensemble, and will soon be seen as a corps dancer in Houston Grand Opera’s upcoming production of Aida (2027). Outside of dance, Adam is a proud full-time faculty member of Houston City College’s English department. 

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