The Cartagena Festival Internacional de Música, held in early January, attracts New and Old World musical talent to some of the most iconic venues in Cartagena, including the Castillo San Felipe, a 16th century Spanish fortress; the Teatro La Heredia, a restored 19th century Italianate theater; La Popa, a monastery which looks out over the city from its highest point; and several of the open-air plazas that dot the city. One of the goals of the festival is to inspire young people to be more musical. While the festival features world-class talent, it also provides an important showcase for aspiring local talent. In addition, a series of workshops and free concerts are held in tandem with the festival in schools throughout Cartagena.
The works of Stravinsky being performed at the Cartagena Festival Internacional de Musica. Photo courtesy of Cartagena Festival Internacional de Música.
The festival lineup is worthy of Carnegie Hall; however, the atmosphere is anything but Manhattan. Fashion-wise, the rule of “Cartagena formal” applies: most men will wear guayaberas and sandals. Just as traditional is the post-concert night-cap mojito and stroll atop the old fortified walls of the city.
What better place is there in which to celebrate the transformative power of the arts than Gabriel García Márquez’s city of magical realism? From January 29th to February 1st, 2015, internationally known writers, filmmakers, thinkers, and musicians will descend on the city for the annual Hay Festival Cartagena.
The Hay Festival is a celebration of ideas through a variety of cultural events. Bill Clinton has called it the “Woodstock of the mind.” The festival began in Wales in the 1980s, and has since expanded to all corners of the globe. This year’s 10th anniversary of Hay Cartagena has a varied program of topics and speakers planned, including two Nobel Prize winners: 1997 Peace Prize winner Jody Williams, an anti-personnel mines activist, and 2008 Literature winner, French-Mauritian author J.M.G. Le Clézio.
Just because you may not have read all those books on your list yet doesn’t mean the Hay Festival isn’t for you: The readings, chats, interviews, and performances that take place throughout this beautiful city are meant to be both enlightening and inclusive. To that end, tickets to every event of the festival are less than fifteen dollars. Just like the Festival Internacional de Música, the Hay Festival aims to inspire young Colombians. During the festival, classes are offered through the Hay Jóven (Hay Youth) program, and the Hay Festivalito arts education program remains available to locals year-round.
One thing that sets this festival apart is the amazing potential to interact with the luminaries who make up its heart. After most events, a lively question and answer session or book signing takes place – and there’s always a good chance that you will bump into a writer, filmmaker, or philosopher during a nighttime stroll along the bougainvillea-draped streets of the Old City.
