“Live from Gjirokaster, the city that welcomes so many guests and tourists, now ready to kick-start the National Folklore Festival,” PM Rama said.

The National Folklore Festival 2023 will begin tonight at the castle of the charming museum city in an open-air stage, free for everyone. Earlier today, the government head also took to the social media showing the festival’s stage that will see performances of over 1 200 artists.

The weeklong festival will showcase traditional costumes, dance, music and songs from all of Albania’s regions, Albanian communities in other Balkan countries, as well as the diaspora.

Folklore groups and ensembles from all over Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, folk music groups from Italy’s Arbëresh communities, Greece, the Kingdom United, Switzerland and USA will showcase the values ​​of Albanian tradition, folklore and ethnography.

A total of 1,200 artists will take to the castle stage and 90 special guests will be part of the Gjirokaster celebration. Colors, sounds of folkloric songs and dances will resound in the stone city to write another modern historical chronicle, of the All-Albanian Folk Festival, where the tourists who have been filling our heritage monuments for days will also become part of the celebrations.

The first National Folklore Festival of Gjirokaster took place in 1968. Since then, the festival has been held every five years. The 70s are considered the golden period of participation in this festival. The Gjirokaster Festival is designed to be a folklore competition.

/u.sh/