Six Festivals in One.
SAINT Lucia, whose global reputation for quality entertainment is built on 25 years of experience hosting the Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts festival, this week announced SOLEIL – the Saint Lucia Summer Festival, a series of six festivals taking place from May through October.
During a launch held on Thursday, at the Bay Gardens Hotel Prime Minister Allen Chastanet noted that “Saint Lucia continues to create unique entertainment opportunities for visitors to our shores and the launch of this festival is just the beginning of the exciting plans we have for the industry”
He said this was part of the drive to continuously diversify and enhance our tourism product, adding: “The idea is when you come to Saint Lucia you can stay all summer long with the extensive events calendar and no shortness of amazing places and sites to visit. We will appeal to all types of music enthusiasts from the region and internationally whether it be Jazz, Reggae, RnB . . . or you can now choose which event appeals to you most.”
The Summer Festival series will kick off May 12 -14, with Saint Lucia Jazz, a celebration of Caribbean and international jazz music. Events will take place across the island, culminating with a star-studded concert at Pigeon Island National Landmark on Sunday, May 14. Star-studded headliners include Grammy nominated singer and actress Vanessa Williams and dynamically talented Rachelle Ferrell.
Confirmed headliners such as Rupert Lay, steel pannist Victor Provost and Malavoi, hailing from Martinique, will also take the stage. Saint Lucian Jazz music will also be prominently featured with the Rupert Lay Quartet, Michael Robinson and the Caribbean band Bluemangó.
In its first year The Saint Lucia Summer Festival will also feature:
• Roots & Soul (June 16-18): Dedicated to new trends in reggae, conscious hip-hop, Afropunk and R&B, this festival will also mark the launch of Saint Lucia Carnival.
• Saint Lucia Carnival (mid-June through mid-July): A variety of musical competitions lead up to the Parade of the Bands on July 17 and 18. Throughout, Lucian Carnival gives revellers the opportunity to fête throughout the island in true Caribbean fashion.
• Saint Lucia Food & Rum Festival (August 24-27): This gastronomic festival invites chefs, wine connoisseurs, rum fanatics and foodies from the Caribbean and around the globe. Inspired by Chefs Nina Compton and Doran Payne, the event will feature culinary demonstrations, rum and wine tastings, dining events and experiences, and musical performances.
• Country & Blues Festival (September 15 – 17): The festival will reflect the diversity and modernity of the genres of music that act as powerful storytellers of the past and draw strong parallels to Saint Lucian folk traditions.
• Arts & Heritage Festival (October): Building on JounenKwéyòl, this month-long festival will celebrate Saint Lucia’s cultural, ethnic and artistic heritage with a variety of performances, seminars, lectures, culinary experiences, street parties and art exhibitions,
Full details about Soliel – the Summer of Festivals can be found at www.stlucia.org/summerfestival.
For more information about the island of Saint Lucia, call1-800-456-3984, or 1-888 4STLUCIA or visit http://stlucia.org/.