By Monica Orosz
In 2004, a small group of city leaders in Charleston, WV met with Mayor Danny Jones to develop an idea for a citywide arts and entertainment festival. The concept was different from past events the city had hosted, such as its long-running Charleston Sternwheel Regatta, which took place on the riverfront and focused on music. Instead, these city leaders envisioned a more comprehensive festival, one that would include music, theater, fine art and dance.
Enter Larry Groce, longtime host and producer of West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s Mountain Stage, who was invited to expand on the idea. Groce suggested combining and building upon events the city already offered by arts groups in the summer, a concept called pyramiding.
“Rather than re-invent, we re-imagined,” says Groce. “Existing summer festivals such as Blues, Brews & BBQ and Wine & All That Jazz already had established identities and audiences. Theater groups such as the Charleston Light Opera Guild already produced summer shows. What we strived to do was use some of those events as anchors and add new events to them.”
All the Arts, All over Town
The name selected for this new venture, FestivALL Charleston, emphasized its goal of including diverse art and entertainment offerings, as well as presenting them in a wide range of venues throughout the city.
FestivALL Charleston debuted for three days in June 2005 thanks to financial support from Jones and the Charleston City Council. An estimated 15,000 to 20,000 people participated in one or more of the FestivALL events that first year.
Its original slogan, “All the Arts, All Over Town,” evolved into “A City Becomes A Work Of Art.” Both of these slogans emphasize the twin goals of celebrating the arts and celebrating Charleston.
“With major support from the City of Charleston and further help from private individuals and businesses, the State of West Virginia, the Kanawha County Commission, the Charleston Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation and more, along with positive feedback from attendees, we knew we had an event worth expanding,” says Groce, who now serves as FestivALL’s
executive director.
Groce credits FestivALL’s active steering committee for continuing to drive the event’s development. By 2013, FestivALL had grown to the point of offering 130 events and more than 360 performances, exhibits and presentations. Attendance was estimated at more than 60,000 people, a number that was based on ticket sales and head counts.
In 2013, the festival joined forces with West Virginia’s state sesquicentennial celebration, a pyramiding event that included a dramatic multimedia presentation and fireworks display at the state capitol along with historically themed productions such as the “The Civil War,” a musical produced by the Charleston Light Opera Guild.
“Our steering committee is always open to new ideas for developing FestivALL,” says Groce. “In the early years, we found ourselves working to persuade artists, performers and organizations to join FestivALL. Now, they come to us.”
Showcasing Charleston’s Charm
The result of this collaborative effort showcases the charms of West Virginia’s capital city. Events range from mainstream to quirky. You can hear rhythm and blues great Aaron Neville in Charleston’s 1,800-seat Clay Center or listen to the North Indian jazz of Red Baraat on the expansive lawn of the University of Charleston. Head over to a local middle school and watch wiener dog races or meander up the city’s scenic and historic Carriage Trail to hear street musicians and see scenes from a play. A family favorite and a FestivALL tradition is an elaborate balloon sculpture that takes shape each year at the Charleston Town Center Mall, thanks to the artistry of Columbus, Ohio’s Dizzy Doc.
While some events, such as Friday night Live on the Levee concerts at Charleston’s Haddad Riverfront Park or the Smoke on the Water Chili Cook-Off, may draw thousands of visitors, not all FestivALL events are designed with the “more is better” philosophy. Some attractions are more intimate; FestivALL guests can find themselves taking in an art exhibit with just a handful of other people.
10 Years and Counting
Now taking place over 10 days, FestivALL will celebrate its 10-year anniversary June 20-29. For this milestone,
FestivALL will include its now-traditional anchor events such as Live on the Levee; the Mayor’s Concert; Blues, Brews & BBQ; Wine & All That Jazz; Mountain Stage; the Capitol Street Art Fair; Taste-of-ALL food festival and The Dance Gala and Art Parade. In their ongoing efforts to tweak and freshen up the schedule and forge new bonds in the arts community, organizers continue to add events.
New this year is FestivALT, a concert featuring alternative rock and country bands that will take place at Appalachian Power Park; West Virginia Writer’s Roundtable; a juried children’s art exhibition; a religious icon exhibit; “WV Squares,” starring Hollywood Squares host Peter Marshall and Pittsburgh’s Attack Theatre performing original pieces in conjunction with public artwork.
“FestivALL is both easy and difficult to define because of our philosophy to stay open to new partnerships,” says Groce, “and that’s the legacy we hope to maintain moving forward.”
For information on this year’s FestivALL events, visit www.festivallcharleston.com.
