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Become a Friend of Folklife ($50-$249) to support Festival and Cultural Focus programs.
CULTURAL FOCUS
CELEBRATING FESTÁL
FESTIVALS
46th Annual Northwest Folklife Festival /
May 26 - 29, 2017
Pagdiriwang Philippine Festival /
June 3-4, 2017
Festival Sundiata presents Black Arts Fest /
June 10-11, 2017
Spirit of Indigenous People /
June 24, 2017
Polish Festival Seattle /
July 8, 2017
Arab Festival /
July 15-16, 2017
Iranian Festival /
August 12, 2017
BrasilFest /
August 20, 2017
Tibet Fest /
August 26-27, 2017
Live Aloha Hawaiian Cultural Festival /
September 10, 2017
Seattle Fiestas Patrias /
September 16-17, 2017
The Italian Festival /
September 23-24, 2017
CroatiaFest /
October 1, 2017
TurkFest /
October 14-15, 2017
Diwali: Lights of India /
October 21, 2017
Dia de Muertos: A Mexican Celebration to
Remember Our Departed /
October 28-29, 2017
Hmong New Year Celebration /
November 4, 2017
And continue into 2018:
T
ế
t Festival: Vietnamese Lunar New Year /
February 10-11, 2018
Irish Festival /
March 17-18, 2018
Seattle’s French Fest: A Celebration of French-
Speaking Cultures /
March 25, 2018
Seattle Cherry Blossom & Japanese Cultural
Festival /
April 20-22, 2018
Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month
Celebration /
May 6, 2018
Spirit of Africa /
May 12, 2018
A Glimpse of China - Chinese Culture and
Arts Festival /
May 19, 2018
Festival, Pagdiriwang, Chinese Arts
and Culture, Tibet Fest, Fiestas Patrias,
Festa Italiana and Hmong New Year
Celebration.
1998:
The Tet Festival partners with
Festál.
1999:
The Arab Center of Washington
partners with Festál and officially joins
the series.
2001:
Turkish American Cultural
Association of Washington presents the
first annual TurkFest at Seattle Center.
2002:
Asian-Pacific Islander Heritage
Month Celebration officially joins Festál.
2003:
The Dia de Muertos celebration
moves to Seattle Center in its third year.
2004:
A Glimpse of China: Chinese
Culture & Arts Festival, produced by
the Washington Chinese Art & Culture
Committee, joins Festál.
The first CroatiaFest is held as part of
Festál.
The region’s French community organizes
the first Bastille Day Festival, held at
Seattle Center.
Spirit of West Africa joins the series to
showcase the talents of West African
musicians, dancers and artists in the
region and from around the country.
2006:
Iranian Festival, presented by the
Iranian American Community Alliance,
joins the Festál series.
2009:
Live Aloha Hawaiian Cultural
Festival officially joins Festál.
2011:
The first Indigenous Cultures
Day takes place at Seattle Center.
2013:
Polish Festival Seattle joins the
Festál series.
2015:
Indigenous Cultures Day is
renamed the Spirit of Indigenous
People to coincide with the renaming of
Columbus Day.
2016:
Diwali: Festival of Lights, organized
by Vedic Cultural Center, joins Festál and
changes its name to Diwali: Lights of India.
These leaders gather a coalition of community members
each year to help produce a Festál festival, drawing on a
large, evolving network of volunteers, donors, sponsors,
performers, participants, master artists, musicians
and dancers. Each Festál event navigates its own
community internally, and the end goal is to showcase
that community’s cultural traditions to the larger region,
as well as provide an annual gathering space for the
community itself to come together.
The idea that culture exists all around us, in everything we
do, is at the heart of Festál and the Northwest Folklife Festival.
The two share a mission to engage audiences and to provide
opportunities for everyone to participate in and learn from
the arts.