The music, culture and cuisine of the Caribbean Islands will be on colorful display once again when Braata Productions in association with Sam’s Caribbean Marketplace presents the 2017 Bankra Caribbean Folk Festival on Saturday June 3 beginning at 12 noon.
The third annual edition of the outdoor festival will take place on 160th Street between Jamaica and 90th Avenues in Jamaica, Queens.
The one day festival is fast becoming one of the largest and most eagerly anticipated summer events of its kind in New York City, attracting patrons of all ages .
This year’s event will again feature a food pavilion with cuisine from various islands, face painting and clown activities for children, cultural exhibits, and participatory folk games and dances for patrons.
The high point of the event will again be the Grand Cultural Concert which begins at 4pm and which will feature a lineup of celebrated Caribbean artistes.
Among those appearing on this year’s show will be singers Lloyd Lovindeer, Andrew Clarke, The Braata Folk Singers and Nadiva Deveraux, gospel artist Kukudoo, the drama ensemble Flat Tire Productions, horn player Carl ‘Rameses’ McDonald and The D’Oro Dance Ensemble.
Executive Director of Braata Productions and Founder of the Bankra Festival Andrew Clarke, is elated at the remarkable growth the event has seen since its inception in 2015.
“The excitement and anticipation for this year’s event is unprecedented and we are thrilled about that. When we founded this event, we called it a “Bankra” festival because in Jamaica, a bankra is actually a large woven basket which is usually used to carry an array of food and cultural items. So we view our festival as a huge basket of culture and folk traditions that we are sharing annually with our growing audience. And they are responding in large and very encouraging numbers.”
The event is also supported by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, as well as the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in Partnership with the city Council and Council Member I. Daneek Miller.
The festival is free and open to the public and runs from 12 noon till 7pm.