Quinceañera - 1993

Photograph - left to right- Josefina Oropeza, Veronica Zavala, and Alfredo Zavala. In the Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central and South American traditions, the custom can be referred to as a Quince (XV) Años, a quinces,a Quinceanera, a Quinceanero or a Fiesta Rosa. The Quinceanera celebration traditionally begins with a religious ceremony. A Reception is held in the home or a banquet hall. The festivities include food and music, and in most, a choreographed waltz or dance performed by the Quinceanera and her Court. It is traditional for the Quinceanera to choose special friends to participate in what is called the Court of Honor. Usually, these young people are her closest friends, her brothers, sisters, cousins - the special people in her life with whom she wants to share the spotlight. The Quinceanera's Court of Honor can be comprised of all young girls (called Dama), all young men (called Chambelán or Escorte or Galán) or a combination of both. The Quinceanera traditionally wears a ball gown, with her Court dressed in gowns and tuxedos. Guests usually receive small tokens, cápias and cerámicas, to commemorate the celebration. http://www.quinceanera-boutique.com/quinceaneratradition.htm Image Description: A picture of a young girl celebrating her Quinceanera. The girl has long brown hair and is wearing a decorative head piece. Her dress is white with puffed shoulders and long sleeves. She is shown cutting into her three-tier birthday cake. To the left of her, a woman with black hair looks directly into the camera. She is wearing a purple dress with a decorative flower pin and black shoulder decorations. The left of the young girl is a her Chambelán. He is wearing an all-white suit and purple bow tie. Behind the Chambelán is the rest of the young girl’s court