Tucson Meet Yourself Folklife Festival
October 14-16, 2011
Friday Oct 14th 11am – 10pm
Saturday Oct 15th 10am – 10pm
Sunday Oct 16th 11am – 6pm
The Tucson Meet Yourself Folklife Festival is FREE and takes place in Downtown Tucson. An easy to navigate layout covers these six main Festival areas:
El Presidio Park
Jacomé Library Plaza
La Placita Village
Pima County Courthouse (Old Courts & Administration Plaza)
Tucson Convention Center (TCC) Plaza & Leo Rich Theater
Meet the Street area on Church Street
Additional events take place at these adjacent sites:
La Cocina at Old Town Artisans, St. Augustine Catherdral and El Presidio de San Agustin del Tucson
Each Festival area features performance stages, food vendors, folk arts, exhibits and marketplaces.
Passport to the World: A new feature to navigate Tucson Meet Yourself Folklife Festival is the Passport to the World. Upon arrival at the Festival, pick up your Passport at any TMY Welcome Booth from a TMY Ambassador. The Passport will guide you on an adventure around the world in 8 blocks of Downtown Tucson! The TMY Passport acts as the Festival guidebook, map, schedule, and offers a bonus adventure and educational component. Passport stamps for participating in various activities and learning about traditions are collected at each Festival area. Learn to speak Yaqui, to dance the tango, or to play toka stick ball. Taste delicious foods from Sonora, China, Greece, Peru or American regional cuisine. Tell your story, dance to your drum, play your music, meet your neighbor…meet yourself! This new feature will make it easy to find your favorite foods, crafts, performers and events at the Festival in 2011.
Some unique new aspects of the 2011 Festival:
NEW IN 2011: The Sonoran Pavilion will feature displays about our neighboring state’s natural and recreational assets, vernacular foods such as the famed carne asada, chiltepin chile, coyotas, and flour tortillas, in addition to distinctive arts and crafts associated with the state’s vaquero and agricultural lifestyle. This is the first time that Sonora is featured in such a large scale at a local festival and recognized for its intertwined culture and economy with Tucson. Sonoran cities will showcase their culture, tourism, arts and foods in partnership with Sonora & Hermosillo tourism departments, cities and municipalities.
Traditions of Health & Wellness: In partnership with Pima County Communities Putting Prevention to Work and HealthyPima.org, and thanks to support from La Frontera Arizona and Providence Service Corporation, Tucson Meet Yourself will highlight traditional health and wellness practices in 2011. All Festival areas will be linked by the Tucson TREKKING pathway, presented by Tierra Antigua Realty. This easy to navigate, highly visible Pathway links all Festival areas, stages, vendors, and activities. The Tucson TREKKING pathway winds through the Festival grounds, encouraging movement, adventurous exploration, and engaging Festival goers in a variety of activities from many cultures. Ethnic & Local Food Vendors offer delicious healthy cuisine with special menu “Smart Choices”. The Health & Wellness Expo in Jacome Plaza & Pima County Main Library will feature practitioners of healing, wellness and fitness modalities from many cultures as well as exhibitors and non-profit health-related organizations. The Sports & Games Around the World Lawn will highlight martial arts, global sports and games from many cultures. Dance workshops and music sessions will activate your body and soul. Meet the Street will explode with basketball, bicycles, wheelchair sports demos, skateboard culture and more!
Tucson MOVE Yourself: A special MOVE event is planned for 2:00pm Saturday, October 15th that will have all Tucsonans MOVING! In support of First Lady Michelle Obama’s LET’S MOVE! Campaign, Tucson Meet Yourself will stage a giant participatory event designed to get everyone moving. Schools, youth groups, sports teams, and TMY performance groups will lead all of Pima County in a giant dance event, and people of all ages will take be invited to MOVE and highlight the joys and importance of activity as part of a healthy lifestyle. This special event will draw thousands of participants and international attention -you won’t want to miss it!
Kitchen Stadium, presented by the American Culinary Foundation / Chef’s Association of Southern Arizona, will feature TMY’s Iron Chef Ryan Clark of Lodge in the Desert as he defends his title against challenger Chef Albert Hall. Culinary schools will cook-off in the High School & College divisions. Master Chefs Bill Sy and Walter Leible and Executive Chef Joe Kraft will demonstrate delicious recipes in this outdoor Kitchen Stadium with fully equipped professional kitchen, courtesy of Arizona Restaurant Supply, Morrison and Rationale.
Pima County Meet Yourself is a special area of the Festival showcasing the many services and departments of Pima County. Learn about our great Pima County Libraries, Health Services, and Community programs. Get fit and learn about healthy choices with Communities Putting Prevention to Work. Natural Resources, Parks and Recreation will be on hand as will Pima Animal Care Center – you may even meet your new adoptable puppy! Learn about Pima County’s uniqueness and meet the people of Pima County who make our County great.
Meet the Street: The Lowrider Car Show will be back with its colorful assembly of vehicles & bikes decked out in the lowrider tradition. Basketball hoops, rope jumpers, break dancers, capoeristas, and a variety of street sports and games will fill the streets of downtown.
Festival goers can expect to experience old favorites including folk art demonstrators, music and dance performances on six stages, and delicious ethnic foods representing over 60 different countries and cultures. Closing Festival ceremonies will once again include traditional dancers of the Pascua Yaqui tribe and the Tohono O’odham nation.