Summer is here and so are summer festivals. While big events like MerleFest or the National Folk Festival get much of the attention, many smaller festivals scattered throughout the state highlight the varied cultural communities in North Carolina.
Host Frank Stasio talks with festival organizers about this summer’s lineup, from the Highland Games in the west to the Yam Festival in the east.
Andrea Lawson, community engagement director with the North Carolina Arts Council's African-American Heritage Commission, and Molly Matlock, performing arts manager at the North Carolina Museum of Art, discuss some of the largest and smallest festivals in the state.
Stasio continues the conversation with Frank Vance, former director of the Highland Games in Linville, N.C.; Jan Parson, organizer of the Barbecue on the Neuse Festival in Kinston, N.C.; and Billy Roy, president of the Yam Festival in Tabor City, N.C.