The 11th annual Hopkinsville International Festival is going virtual this week with the online version to include performances, bi-lingual readings, take-home crafts and more.
Executive Director Idalia Luna with the Hopkinsville Human Rights Commission says this year’s IFest is 100% virtual, allowing viewers to experience various aspects of the popular global showcase from the comfort of their home and by using the viewing screen of their choice. Beginning at 5:00 Friday afternoon, which Luna notes was originally slated as the first day of an in-person International Festival, online content and programming will be made available to the public through I-Fest’s social media channels.
Luna indicates all content will be staggered throughout a 24-hour period, wrapping up at 5:00 Saturday afternoon with the World Dance Party finale. She says the performances are free to watch can be accessed via desktop, laptop, smartphones, and tablets by visiting the ifest Hopkinsville Facebook page. She adds the performances will then remain accessible for the next year.
Luna says they are excited for Hopkinsville and Christian County residents, as well as our regional neighbors and beyond to have a chance to watch the variety of cultural and informational entertainment that we have planned this weekend. She adds while they wish we could all be together inside the global village, they feel this approach is the most appropriate this year, and will still give supporters an opportunity to take advantage of the international flavor our community has to offer.
The Hopkinsville International Festival remains possible as a result of grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Art Works, South Arts, Kentucky Arts Council and Hopkinsville’s Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market. Additionally, Luna says Nashville’s Global Educational Center is assisting with some of the performance content, which will be made available to local schools and for consumption by area students.
According to Luna, organizers are planning for the 12th annual I-Fest to return as an in-person event in 2022, likely to be held at its 2019 physical location — Planters Bank-Jennie Stuart Health Sportsplex Hopkinsville.
For more information on the event, click here or call (270) 887-4290.
