The 2015 Smithsonian Folklife Festival opened today with the flare of woolen skirts and the roar of a hundred hand drums. Our Opening Ceremony for the Perú: Pachamama program took place in the National Museum of the American Indian’s Rasmuson Theater
Meet the people and places featured in the Perú: Pachamama program in this introductory video for the 2015 Folklife Festival.
Now a Smithsonian Folkways Recordings artist based in Fresno, Agustín Lira continues to chronicle the experiences and little-known histories of Chicano, Indigenous, and immigrant communities in California.
To develop the Perú: Pachamama program, the Festival’s research, technical, graphic, and administrative teams exchanged ideas, strategies, and concerns with our Peru-based partners.
The Smithsonian Folklife Festival is turning 49 this year, and we think our Perú: Pachamama program deserves a welcome as vibrant and dynamic as the performers, artisans, cooks, and musicians representing their country on the National Mall.
If you plan to bring your whole family to the Folklife Festival, look for the big circular tent called the Wawawasi Kids Corner.
The Smithsonian Folklife Festival is ten days of music, dance, storytelling, processions, ceremonies, and more. The sights, sounds, and smells can be quite a sensory overload.
An event as large as the Folklife Festival relies on many moving parts behind the scenes, and the technical team has one of the most important roles in ensuring that the National Mall is ready for thousands of visitors
Long regarded as the national spirit of Peru, pisco is a grape brandy whose unique flavor and fragrance unites the European vine, the sunshine of Peru’s southern coast, and the wisdom of potters who create the jars in which the drink is stored.
This year’s Marketplace isn’t just a place to buy. It’s a place to meet some of Peru’s most talented artists and craftspeople and learn about the traditions behind the objects available for sale.