SLCene Suggests: Living Traditions Festival

LIVING TRADITIONS FESTIVAL, SALT LAKE CITY & COUNTY BUILDING, Friday, May 17-Sunday, May 19, Free

Simply put, the annual Living Traditions Festival thrown by the Salt Lake Arts Council is one of my favorite civic events in Utah’s capitol city. Bringing together virtually all of the various ethnic communities that make up Salt Lake City, the festival is a celebration of the highest order. You can educate yourself on different folk arts from around the world, eat your way through a global feast and witness an array of live performances that match any of the dance performances or concerts we get to enjoy the rest of the year. And it’s all free! This year’s headliners include the Mariachi Divas on Friday, French-Canadian roots musicians De Temps Antan and Celtic folkie Maura O’Connell on Saturday, and what I consider the highlight of the whole weekend–the Relatives on Sunday night. The Relatives (pictured) are a gospel-funk group that originally formed in the ’70s, only to disband. Now they’re back, and include members of Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears among their members. Their high-energy show Sunday afternoon should make for a perfect capper on a great weekend.