Once again, the Mare Nostrum Folk Festival is here, this year taking place on September 22, 23, and 24. Nine folk groups, five Colla from Ibiza and the rest from the Canary Islands, Galicia, and the two ‘Castelles’, are participating this weekend. The Festival is organized by the Federation of Dance Colla and Popular Culture of Ibiza and Formentera, with the sponsorship of the Consell d’Eivissa and the collaboration of the island’s town councils.
The festival will be divided into three days. It begins on Friday, the 22nd, at 8:00 PM in Antoni Albert i Nieto Square in Vila with Sa Colla de Vila and the Puertollano Folk and Cultural Association from this town in Ciudad Real, Castilla-La Mancha.
On Saturday, the 23rd, at 7:30 PM, the Mare Nostrum Folk Festival will move to Sant Carles Church Square. There, the main event of this edition will take place with the Sàmara folk group from Guía de Isora in Tenerife, the Galician traditional dance group Inquedanzas de Pazos de Reis, in Tui, Pontevedra, the Puertollano Folk and Cultural Association, the Sant Marc Doñinos folk group from Salamanca, and Sa Colla de Sa Bodega. In case of bad weather, the event will be moved to the Ibiza Congress Palace in Santa Eulària.
On Sunday, two events will take place at 12:00 PM. In Sant Jordi Square, the Sant Marc Doñinos folk group from Salamanca and Sa Colla de Sant Carles de Peralta will perform, and in Sant Joan de Labritja, the Sàmara Folk Group from Guía de Isora in Tenerife, along with Sa Colla de Labritja. Later, at 7:00 PM, in front of the Sant Mateu Social Center, the festival will conclude with the Inquedanzas de Pazos de Reis dance group and Sa Colla d’Aubarca.
During the press presentation, the president of the Federation of Dance Colla and Popular Culture of Ibiza and Formentera, Maria Marí, highlighted the longevity and consolidation of the Mare Nostrum Folk Festival and assured that “it is a renowned gathering with a very positive reputation among popular culture groups throughout Spain and also Europe, and we receive many requests from groups wishing to participate.” Meanwhile, the island councillor for Education, Heritage, Culture, Sports, and Youth, David Ribas, thanked the federation for the “magnificent work it does year after year, through this festival, in disseminating our music and traditional dances and for making possible the exchange of experiences with different groups and associations from such diverse places.”
P R O G R A M
- FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 22 – 8:00 PM – ANTONI ALBERT I NIETO SQUARE, IBIZA
SA COLLA DE VILA – PUERTOLLANO FOLK AND CULTURAL ASSOCIATION
- SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 24 – 12:00 PM – SANT JORDI SQUARE
SANT MARC DOÑINOS FOLK GROUP FROM SALAMANCA – SA COLLA DE SANT CARLES DE PERALTA
- SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23 – 7:30 PM – SANT CARLES CHURCH SQUARE
SÀMARA FOLK GROUP FROM GUÍA DE ISORA, TENERIFE – INQUEDANZAS GALICIAN TRADITIONAL DANCE GROUP FROM PAZOS DE REIS, PONTEVEDRA – PUERTOLLANO FOLK AND CULTURAL ASSOCIATION – SANT MARCOS DOÑINOS FOLK GROUP FROM SALAMANCA – SA COLLA DE SA BODEGA
- SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 24 – 12:00 PM – SANT JOAN CHURCH SQUARE
SÀMARA FOLK GROUP FROM GUÍA DE ISORA, TENERIFE – SA COLLA DE LABRITJA
- SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 24 – 7:00 PM – SANT MATEU SOCIAL CENTER
INQUEDANZAS GALICIAN DANCE GROUP FROM PAZOS DE REIS, PONTEVEDRA – SA COLLA DE AUBARCA
