Northwest Folklife facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Northwest FolklifeFolklife
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Fisher Pavilion at Seattle Center during Northwest Folklife Festival 2007
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| Genre | Music, dance, arts & crafts |
| Begins | Friday before Memorial Day |
| Ends | Memorial Day |
| Frequency | Annually |
| Location(s) | Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington |
| Years active | 54 |
| Inaugurated | 1971 |
| Most recent | 2023 |
| Participants | 7,800 |
| Patron(s) | 250,000 |
| Website | nwfolklife.org |
Northwest Folklife is a special arts group. It helps share and celebrate different arts, cultures, and traditions. These traditions come from many generations and places around the Pacific Northwest.
The Northwest Folklife Festival is a big yearly party. It happens every Memorial Day weekend in Seattle, Washington. The festival takes place at Seattle Center. It celebrates art, crafts, and music from different cultures and traditions.
Around 250,000 people visit the festival each year. About 800 volunteers help out. And about 6,000 musicians, dancers, and performers share their talents. You don't need to buy a ticket to get in! The festival is free because of community support. Visitors can also give donations. If you donate, you can get a special button with a new design each year.
Northwest Folklife started in 1971. It was created by several groups. These included the Seattle Folklore Society and the National Park Service. The idea was to let people from the Northwest share their own art and entertainment. The first festival was held in 1972. Since then, it has grown to be the largest festival of its kind in North America. The festival was cancelled in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was then held online in 2021.
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What Happens at the Festival?
Cultural Focus: Exploring Traditions
Each year, the festival highlights a special community or tradition. This is called the Cultural Focus program. In recent years, these focuses have included maritime culture and Arab-American life. They have also explored the Urban Indian and Bulgarian culture. The festival also looks at how traditions are passed down.
Some recent Cultural Focus programs include "Traditional Roots of Hip Hop." Others are "Echoes of Aztlan and Beyond" and "Youth Rising."
Stages and Performances
The festival has over 20 stages. These stages are set up all around the Seattle Center grounds. Most of the performers are local artists. Just like the volunteers, they perform for free. Many places, like the Armory and Fisher Pavilion, are set up for dancing. Everyone can join in the fun!
Music Jams and Buskers
The festival grounds also have lots of space for music jams. People can join drum circles too. Many visitors come from Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia. They come to play music with their friends every year.
You will also see street performers at the festival. These performers come from all over. They perform along the walkways at Seattle Center. Buskers include musicians, jugglers, circus performers, and magicians. They are different ages and styles. They all play for donations from the crowds. Festival organizers have recently asked buskers to donate 15% of their earnings. This includes tips or CD sales. This is the same amount asked of other vendors.
Diverse Music and Dance
The performances show what "folk" really means. You can hear traditional folk music from all over the world. But you can also hear rockabilly and Balkan brass. There's also folk punk and jug band music. Some music is hard to put into one category!
Dance performances include international folk dancing. This includes Morris dancing. You can also see swing and blues dancing.
Relaxing and Having Fun
The festival is also a great place to just hang out. You can enjoy the (usually sunny) Memorial Day weather. The giant fountain at Seattle Center is like a water park. Since the festival is open to everyone, people often come to picnic. They also sunbathe or just enjoy the beautiful grounds.
