The Caribbean Performing Arts Festival that will continue until Saturday began this week in Cartagena. The festival that began on Wednesday integrates dance, music and theater, and promotes the cultural diversity of the Caribbean region. As Cartagena opened its walls to the world it celebrated social inclusion, making cultural festivities available to all, as performances are free to attend. Cartagena’s streets will be filled with throngs of dancers, drummers and theatrical performances. The fourth edition of the festival will be staged in parks, universities and colleges, and other spaces of intercultural dialogue. These platforms will stage musicals and theatrical productions “which represent the diverse people of the Caribbean and Pacific both nationally and internationally,” according to the Colombian Minister of Culture, Araceli Morales.
| “Culture is what unites us despite our differences.” said Colombian Minister of Culture Araceli Morales |
The festival will also feature activities in northern coastal city Barranquilla, and the municipalities of Santa Rosa and San Jacinto. Colombian artists will participate alongside international creatives from Central America, Peru, Chile, the United States and Asian nations such as Indonesia and Japan. Cartagena’s annual festival also aims to highlight affinity between the shores of the Caribbean and Asia-Pacific. Already Caribbean folk music has filled the streets, enticing both visitors and local residents alike. During the opening ceremony a Chinese dragon performed a mesmerizing dance which represented wisdom, power and wealth of the ancient culture. Colombian Minister of Culture Araceli Morales and Project Manager Gloria Triana have brought together a wide range of creatives from Colombia’s Caribbean and Pacific coasts. The festival’s focus this year is on the Caribbean Pacific. Triana explained to El Colombiano newspaper that the Afro Colombian diaspora between the two coasts are connected as they share historical ties and communal customs . Planning for the 2015 festival is already underway and will be themed upon forgiveness and reconciliation.
Sources
- Las calles de Cartagena se llenan de bailarines en el Festival de Artes Escénicas (El Colombiano)
- Hoy arranca el Festival de Artes Escénicas del Caribe (El Universal)
