Mountain Folk Festival

The Mountain Folk Festival is a folk dance festival for youth that is held every year at Berea College in Kentucky. For two days groups of young people from 4th through 12th grade, along with their dance leaders and chaperones, gather to dance, sing and learn together, discovering others in their age group who love traditional dance and song. The festival has a mission of educating the next generation of dancers about the joy of dance and carrying on a 76-year tradition of folk dance for young people at Berea College.

It has been my joy and honor to co-lead a group that has attended the festival for the last 11 years. My group happens to be from the Bloomfield area of Nelson County Kentucky, near where I once resided. Other groups come from various parts of Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina and as far away as Michigan, New Jersey and Oregon.

Groups also meet locally for a few weeks, learning required dances for that year’s festival. When at Berea College they mingle with youth from other areas, dance and sing together, socializing in a supportive, healthy environment. The festival culminates in a gala performance for the public and evening of dance shared with the community. For many kids this is their first introduction to a college campus and they often plan to apply to Berea College in the future. Here, students can take advantage of its excellent academic reputation, dance programs and unique work-study tuition-free environment. My groups always enjoy getting away from normal routines at home by staying in a hotel, swimming in a large pool and eating meals in restaurants.

Information on the Mountain Folk Festival can be found here.

Contact me about the Mountain Folk Festival.

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