San Antonio | The Saga, celebrates the evolution of San Antonio and Texas with a video painting on one of the city’s most historic structures.
The Main Plaza Conservancy, the organization that hosts the nightly lightshows projected onto the facade of the 18th-century San Fernando Cathedral, recently announced that the show has been extended for another decade. The original contract was for 10 years beginning in 2014.
Part history lesson and totally an incredible art show, the 24-minute program bathes the cathedral in a multimedia production that has become a San Antonio institution. All the historic Texas heroes appear on the stone wall that the colorful lights turn into a canvas while choreographed music plays around the plaza.
The light show is the creation of French artist Xavier de Richemont, who has only done a few of this type of site-specific installations. This is the only one in the U.S., says Molly Hall-Villarreal, executive director of the Conservancy.
The artist has made a few updates and tweaks to the show, she says, but most visitors won’t notice a difference.
De Richemont will attend the 10th anniversary celebration to be held on the Main Plaza on Saturday, October 12 from 6 to 10pm. There will be activities, live music, and vendors around the downtown park that once was the social center of San Antonio.
Not only is The Saga the best light show in Texas, it is also the best free event in the state. “It always has been and always will be the best free art show in Texas,” Hall-Villarreal says. Support for the show comes from the city of San Antonio, sponsors, and public donations.
The Saga, as most people refer to it, happens at 9 and 9:30pm every night except Monday, year round. The Main Plaza is at 115 N. Main Ave. in San Antonio. For more information, go to www.mainplaza.org.
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This article appears in September 27 • 2024.
