The Virgin Islands Folklife Festival, facilitated by The Ten Sleepless Knights Inc., kicks off its first of three events Saturday evening at the Frederick Dorsch Cultural Center at 6:30 p.m.
The two-prong event will include a film screening of a documentary that was curated by Stephanie Chalana Browne, with a subsequent presentation centered around the events that took place leading to Emancipation Day in the Virgin Islands led by Frandelle Gerard, the executive director of Chant.
Following Gerard’s presentation will be a panel discussion exploring various facets of Virgin Islands cuisine that will include panelists Sandra Gerard, Afiya Augustus, Bradley Christian, Emily Hansen, and Jahnesta Ritter.
The festivities continue on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. where a Quelbe Tramp will begin at the Fredriksted post office and will follow a route through the town of Fredriksted, culminating at the Verne I. Richards Memorial Park. Revelers will have an opportunity to enjoy music by DJ Swain and support local food and drink vendors before several sets of Quadrille dancing begins. This event will continue into the evening, ending at midnight.
Finally on Wednesday the community is invited to the Folklife Music Festival occurring at the Verne I. Richards Memorial Park that will feature music by the Renaissance band, Razor Fungi Band, The Lashing Dogs, and Stanley and the Ten Sleepless Knights. There will be food and drinks on sale, as well as exclusive Ten Sleepless Knights merchandise.
Kendall Henry, a member of The Ten Sleepless Knights hopes that these events will encourage the community to embrace Virgin Islands history and culture. “During the 90s members of the Virgin Islands community were invited to Washington D.C. Folklife Festival that was held at the Smithsonian. A slew of Virgin Islanders participated and we were inspired to re-introduce the Folklife Festival back into the Virgin Islands. We felt that this was an important component to preserving our traditions and culture,” said Henry.
“The community has been embracing what the Ten Sleepless Knights has been doing to uplift our culture. These cultural events have been met with such immense support and we have so many plans to continue our mission,” Henry continued.
Anyone with questions regarding the Folklife Festival, can contact Henry at Kc@tensleeplessknights.com.
