Folkmoot Festival spans 12 counties
The 2011 Folkmoot Festival will take place July 21 through 31 throughout 12 counties in Western North Carolina, with new performances in Hickory and Jonesborough, Tenn.
Folkmoot performances can be seen in 16 cities, including Asheville, Hendersonville, Franklin, Burnsville, Maggie Valley and Waynesville.
Dancers and musicians in colorful traditional costumes from Trinidad, Croatia, Finland, Burundi, Puerto Rico, China, Guadeloupe, Turkey, Italy and the USA are expected to appear in more than 70 performances during the two-week event.
Performers travel to North Carolina for two weeks of entertainment, cultural exchange and education, to share cultural traditions with broad audiences and ensure these traditions are not lost in a fast-paced modern world.
Festivals like Folkmoot do not provide payment to the groups for their performances. Instead, all expenses are covered by the Festival, from the group’s arrival at a nearby international airport to their departure from the same airport two weeks later. Folkmoot staff will prepare 20,000 meals for performers and buses will travel more than 10,000 miles transporting groups to performances.
There are more than 300 international festivals like Folkmoot USA across the globe, but Folkmoot is one of only two similar international festivals in the United States.
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The Parade of Nations is scheduled for Friday, July 22, from the historic courthouse down Main Street in Waynesville to the Waynesville First Baptist Church. The Folkmoot 5K Run/Walk & Kid’s Fun Run will be held Saturday, July 23, in front of the Folkmoot Friendship Center.
Haywood County Arts Council’s International Festival Day takes place on Saturday, July 30, and features Folkmoot performers on stages throughout the day. In addition to 21 ticketed public performances, Folkmoot dancers and musicians are featured at many other private and charitable performances during the two-week Folkmoot Festival.
For a full performance schedule and to purchase tickets, visit www.FolkmootUSA.org.
