Yocona International Folk Festival » About the Festival

About the Festival

The Yocona International Folk Festival brings the world to North Mississippi. As Mississippi’s first annual International folk festival, we celebrate the world’s cultural heritage with exciting folk music and dance performances as well as captivating vernacular arts and crafts from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, South and North America.

Yocona International Folk Festival promises to thrill Mississippians of all ages and to share our storied hospitality with a global audience. New countries and performers will be featured each year unless back by popular demand.

Historic, charming downtown Oxford is the site of a memorable evening Parade of Nations. Performers from many countries offer arts and crafts in international market bazaars that spill over onto the stately campus of the University of Mississippi. Outdoor events include festive performances at venues ranging from the downtown square to the Powerhouse and the Grove Stage. The festival concludes with a moving candlelight finale at the new Gertrude Ford Theatre for the Performing Arts at Ole Miss.

We are proud to share our diverse North Mississippi cultural heritage with guests from abroad. Plans include annual appearances from Choctaw Indian dancers, Ole Miss Steppers, North Mississippi Hills and Delta bluesmen, shape-note singers, gospel singers, fife and drum bands, Natchez antebellum dancers, and more! Throughout the week, international dancers, musicians and artisans will visit Clarksdale, Marks, Greenville, New Albany, Blue Mountain, Tupelo, Holly Springs, and other towns of the Hill Country.

People from up to five countries will interact with children to teach them to appreciate the rich traditional cultures of many regions of the world. At Oxford’s Pat Lamar Convention Center and elsewhere, hundreds of children learn about the native cultures: languages, flags, costume, history, geography, folk tales, dance and music.

Both youths and adults will have the opportunity to attend authentic music and dance workshops taught by our international folk artists to learn their colorful, energetic dances. Exquisite reproduction costumes reflect the richness of their cultures shared right here in the Mississippi hills.

The Yocona Festival is modeled after the successful Folkmoot USA, in its 25th year in Waynesville, North Carolina. During Folkmoot USA’s history, more than 230 folk groups from about 120 countries have shared their colorful traditional heritages and cultures in Appalachian Western North Carolina. Like Folkmoot USA, we will visit schools, Boys & Girls Clubs, and nursing homes with performances in communities across the rolling Hill Country of North Mississippi.

 







   		  

A city of about 19,000 residents, Oxford is one of the South’s crown jewels. A vibrant university town, Oxford is home to unique shops and galleries, eclectic restaurants and clubs, historic landmarks, and comfortable inns. While dedicated to maintaining its Southern charm and gentility, the area has evolved into a cultural oasis for the arts and learning.

 		 
© Yocona International Folk Festival