page_title: The Ramona Pageant
section_title: Overview
hierarchical_section_title: The Ramona Pageant / Overview
caption_attribution_description: English: Ramona first edition by Helen Hunt Jackson 1884
context_page_description: The Ramona Outdoor Play, formerly known as The Ramona Pageant, is an outdoor play staged annually in Hemet, California since 1923.
  It is based on the 1884 novel Ramona by Helen Hunt Jackson.
context_section_description: The play can be considered a "Romeo and Juliet that is set in the Wild Wild West", since it resembles the story of two star-crossed lovers challenging their rivaling families in order to be together, despite the ongoing situation of white settlers taking over the native land. Ramona is an orphaned half-Native American and half-Scottish, who was adopted by Senora Moreno, a Mexican-American woman. Unfortunately, Ramona was neglected by her adopter, since she was of mixed race. When Ramona met Alessandro, she fell in love with him. Alessandro is the son of Pablo Assis, the chief of the Temecula Indian tribe. When Senora Moreno found out about Ramona and Alessandro, she was infuriated because she does not approve the marriage between a half-Native American and a full-Native American. When Ramona finds out that Senora Moreno never actually treated her with love and respect as a child, she runs away with Alessandro. During their elopement, they were constantly going through hardships such as getting exiled from their land, having their properties stolen by immigrants, and being pushed further into isolation. Soon, they conceived a child. However, Alessandro had mental health issues and was eventually shot and killed. After Alessandro's death, Ramona returns to Senora Moreno's home and marries her son. They both have multiple children, along with Ramona's and Alessandro's first child.
caption: Ramona by Helen Hunt Jackson, 1884 print
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