Visit the Festarte International Costume Exhibition at the Town Hall
In keeping with tradition, the foreign groups invited to the Festarte- Matosinhos International Festival of Popular Arts and Traditions were received today at the City Hall.
The session took place in the Salão Nobre dos Paços do Concelho and was attended by the mayor, Luísa Salgueiro, and the councilor for Culture, Fernando Rocha.
Organized by Rancho Típico da Amorosa, from Leça da Palmeira, with the support of the Câmara de Matosinhos, Festarte assumes itself as a meeting point and cultural exchange between ethnographic, gastronomic and cultural traditions from the four corners of the world.
Festarte is now in its 23rd edition. According to the president of the management of Rancho Típico da Amorosa, Plácido Santos, 129 foreign groups from 49 countries around the world have participated to date in this festival.
This year, participating foreign groups come from Spain, Italy, Georgia, Mexico and Poland. They are: ZESPÓŁ PIEŚNI I TAŃCA "ZIEMI BOLESŁAWIECKIEJ" (Poland), CULTURAL AND FOLKLORIC ASSOCIATION "URBANITAS" (Italy), FOLK DANCE ENSEMBLE "ERISA" (Georgia), COMPAÑIA DE DANZA INDEPENDIENTE FUSIÓN FOLKLÓRICA MÉXICO B.C. (Mexico) and GROUP DE BALL PAGÈS ES BROLL DE SANTA EULÁRIA (Spain).
The mayor welcomed Matosinhos and “one of the most important traditional festivals in the region”. In addition to the tourist and economic component, Luísa Salgueiro highlighted the inclusive factor of Festarte and the respect for everyone’s culture and identity, especially in a “difficult time like the one we live in”, referring to the war in Ukraine and the growth of nationalist manifestations. and xenophobia. “When you return to your country, take our friendship and a part of us with you”, said the mayor.
For those who want to know a little more about the ethnography and culture of each of the participating groups, visit the International Costume Show, until August 7, in the atrium of the Edifício dos Paços do Concelho.
See the entire Festarte schedule at http://www.festarte.pt/