The artist roster has been announced for the marquee PROVIDENCE INTERNATIONAL ARTS FESTIVAL, set for June 13th, 2015, with extended events taking place June 11th-14th. In this first-ever signature event, arts and culture will stage a friendly takeover of the city with 500 artists, 30 public art installations, 15 stages, 18 participating venues, 6 outdoor bars, 3 jaw dropping spectacles, and much more.
Led by a public-private partnership forged between the City’s Department of Art, Culture + Tourism and FirstWorks, festival events are free and open to the public. Lead sponsors include the National Endowment for the Arts, Providence Tourism Council, the Rhode Island Foundation, along with key support from IGT (formerly GTECH), and The Avenue Concept.
On Saturday, June 13th, the festival will showcase a bounty of local, national, and international artists – from Benin, Brazil, Cuba, Mali, Poland, Puerto Rico, Taiwan, and more; use entire buildings as public art canvases; create a remarkable cultural corridor; and light up the evening sky with extraordinary spectacles. As the main hub, Kennedy Plaza becomes a multistage pedestrian piazza with performances, art, and celebration. Washington Street offers an opportunity to stroll and experience surprising art installations, street arts, the diversity of Providence’s cultural community, and more. WaterFire activates the downtown rivers with a full lighting and dynamic sounds. A colorful procession and opening ceremony converges at the FirstWorks Plaza Stage.
Kennedy Plaza anchors the Festival with six stages, a Buy Local RI marketplace, art and performance inside City Hall, and two satellite art spaces.
Highlights include the Earth Harp Collective, Angélique Kidjo, BIXIGA 70, RPM Voices’s RI-Sounding Voices, Squonk Opera, Grammy Award-winning Malian superstar Oumou Sangaré with local master drummer Sidy Maiga, Providence-based band Arc Iris featuring Jocie Adams (formerly of The Low Anthem), and more.
The full festival schedule will be available on June 1st. For up-to-the-minute information, visit pvdfestival.com.