Photo courtesy of Flam Chen Ring of fire: Flam Chen, a Tucson-based performance troupe that blends pyrotechnic arts, theater, and traditional circus elements, performs Saturday as part of the 14th-annual All Souls' Procession.

As you awaken from your candy-induced coma on Nov. 2, a myriad of things run through your mind. How many mini-Snickers did I eat? Why did I insist on wearing that Spiderman costume? And who was that ghost I was making out with?

The most important question to ask yourself, however, is, "What am I going to do today?" Never fear, your social calendar doesn't have to have an empty space. The 14th- annual All Souls' Procession will fill that space with enough excitement to last you until Thanksgiving. Plus, you can dress up again without people thinking you are a freak.

The procession, which starts in the parking lot between Time Market and Trinity Presbyterian Church, 400 E. University Blvd., will feature masterful creations by Tucson Puppet Works and pyrotechnic theater performed by Flam Chen. It will also involve a marching band, a dance troupe and normal people. Organizer Diane Daly likens the procession to a momentum building snowball.

"It starts out with a few hundred, but snowballs into over a thousand by the time it hits the Fourth Avenue underpass," she said.

Thousands of people will line the streets and also get involved in the procession. The organizers of the event encourage audience participation.

"Nearly everyone in the march will be in costume and make up," Paul Weir, technical director of Flam Chen said. "All are welcome to participate in the procession. There will be extra stuff for late comers to garb themselves."

And, as Daly added, "(The people) can also expect to see themselves join the procession, whether they are in costume or not."

Flam Chen, a performance group that blends fire arts, theater and circus skills, will be bringing the procession to a close with a performance described as the "operatic wedding of the sacred bride and groom."

In addition to the Flam Chen finale, Tucson Puppet Works will be a part of the procession, putting on a huge puppet spectacle.

But, if you think the procession ends there and everybody goes home, you are wrong. There will be an after party at the Mat Bevel Institute, 530 N. Stone Ave., that will feature music by Cat Martino, the Hill Williams and the Molehill Orkestrah. If you are at the event and don't know how to get to the institute, there might be a guide to lead you there.

"Rumor has it that a Clown Band will be leading procession goers to Mat Bevel Institute following the Flam Chen performance," Daly said.

The procession traces its roots back to 1989 and local artist Susan Johnson. Johnson, as a tribute to her deceased father, held a three-day performance to help accept the grieving process. The public took notice and showed interest in the performance. The artists involved with Johnson then decided to take the performance out into the streets. Thus, the procession was born. The first All Souls' Procession, like the one coming this Saturday, took place in 1994.

"Nadia Hagen of Flam Chen, along with Sue Johnson, were the originators of the All Soul's Procession," Weir said. "The first one happened in 1994 as an artist parade of 50 people on the sidewalk."

The participants in the procession agree that the parade is something more than just people walking down the street. Participation gives people a sense of community.

"We participate as homage to our beginnings as a troupe and for the community spirit that it embodies," Weir said. "The essentials of parade culture lend themselves to the binding of the community in ways that no one event can do."

The procession also lets people be spontaneous, and enables them to celebrate the normal aspects of life and death. This, according to Daly, is what separates this procession from other holidays.

"Most of our holidays are mass-marketed," she said. "So they miss the subtleties that are celebrated in this event; the idea that death is part of life, and that by facing death we can recognize how electrifying life is."

If you attend the event, be sure to have your walking shoes on with that ballerina costume. The procession travels three miles through Tucson. You might also want something to keep yourself warm. The parade begins at 8 p.m. and ends sometime during the month of November. Outside of the Mat Bevel Institute will be performances by other fire performers like the Art of Illusion and Cult de Fue.

As for what the organizers want people to gain from attending the event, Daly wanted people to take two things with them.

"A richer understanding of life and death, and all the trash they brought in."