I was walking down Calle Simon Bolivar, a pedestrian thoroughfare in Mexico City (CDMX), when I noticed this tall puppet-like figure with a crown walking down the street. I didn’t realize this until after I took the photo that this “king” with a crown was walking past Burger King just as I took his picture, which is the reason for this blog post title. He may be a king, but he’s not the Burger King.
You may notice the guy dressed like a pirate (?) walking next to him holding a sign – I can’t read what it says on the sign, but I think the two of them were walking down Calle Simon Bolivar to draw attention to a theater showing a play on that street. I wish I knew more to tell you, but I was on the go and wanted to capture this moment and didn’t double-back to find the theater.
I believe this type of figure or costume is referred to as a “mojiganga” in Mexican culture. A definition of mojiganga is a giant, colorful papier-mâché puppet (often around 15 ft tall, which is about what this guy appears to be, if you include the height of his crown) used for celebrations like weddings and festivals, or in this case, to draw attention to a theater show.