Take a trip through world cultures without leaving town: Head for the Northwest Folklife Festival [0] this three-day weekend at Seattle Center. Ethnic music and dance performances from many cultures draw a diverse crowd of all ages and nationalities to the popular festival with a relaxed, family-friendly atmosphere.
Sit and watch at indoor venues or outside on the lawn, or join in on everything from a Beatles singalong to a square dance, drum circle, cowboy polka party or Cajun dance.
If your skills could use a little work, daily workshops offer dance basics of all kinds, singing, drumming and more for all ages.
Highlights include the Friday-night square dance; "Folk Punk Attack" and "World Beat Manifesto" concerts Saturday; the "Just for Kids" showcase and "Indigenous & Indigenius Hip Hop" on Sunday; and "The Many Shades of Gospel Music" and "Bhangra and Bollywood" performances on Monday. This year's cultural focus is "Urban Indians," with Tlingit totem pole carving, a display of traditional powwow regalia, storytelling, music and dance throughout the weekend.
Along with sounds from around the world, tastes from around the world are a popular festival feature at the International Food Village, offering such items as pizza, crepes, bratwurst, barbecue, burritos, and Chinese, Lebanese, Greek, Thai and Kenyan cuisine. Browse the Crafts Marketplace at three locations around the Center grounds for folk crafts from world traditions.
Folklife's Web site [1] offers complete schedules and a helpful feature to find events by venue, type of event, performer name, day and other specific info.
The details
Time: 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday, Saturday, Sunday; 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday; crafts close at 8 p.m. Friday, Saturday, Sunday, 7:30 p.m. Monday; International Food Village vendors close 9:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday, Sunday, 9 p.m. Monday.
Entry cost: Free; purchase of $10 Folklife button encouraged.
Location: Seattle Center indoor and outdoor venues.
Parking: Seattle Center operates several garages and parking lots, some offering reduced parking rates for vehicles with three or more people. Call the Seattle Center traffic hotline for traffic and parking info, 206-233-3989.
Public transit: Metro shuttle bus service approximately every 20 minutes, 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and Monday between Seattle Center and Northgate Transit Center, $2/one way; Metro Transit information, 206-553-3000 or tripplanner.metrokc.gov [2]/.
The Monorail runs between Seattle Center and Westlake Mall every 10 minutes, 9 a.m.-11 p.m. daily; one-way tickets 75 cents-$2 (206-905-2620 or www.seattlemonorail.com [3]).
More information: 206-684-7300 or www.nwfolklife.org [4].
Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company
