Organized by the Cultural Affairs Bureau and co-organized by the Macao Government Tourism Office and the Municipal Affairs Bureau, the 23rd Lusofonia Festival will be held from 16th to 18th of October, at the Taipa Houses, presenting the lusophone culture to the public. The Festival offers a diversified programme of activities, including music and dance performances, booths, gastronomy and games, allowing residents and tourists to experience the Portuguese customs and feel the Festival’s cheerful atmosphere.
The first edition of the Lusofonia Festival was held in June 1998, aiming at honouring the Portuguese-speaking residents of Macao for their contribution to Macao’s development. Over the years the Festival became an important event aimed at sharing the culture of the Portuguese-speaking communities with the Chinese community, revealing Macao’s role as a platform of cultural exchange between China and the Portuguese-speaking countries.
The programme of this edition of the Festival is as diversified as in previous years. Different booths of the Macao Portuguese-speaking communities from ten countries or regions, namely Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Goa, Daman and Diu, Mozambique, Portugal, São Tomé and Príncipe, East Timor and the Macanese community, will be set up, introducing their countries or regions’ traditional music, geography, arts and crafts, customs, literature, tourist information, and gastronomy.
In each day of the Festival, local Portuguese-speaking artists will perform different styles of music and dance on the main stage of the Festival and soft music on the stage installed in Carmo Square. In addition, the Festival temporary restaurant will serve Portuguese dishes at lunch and dinner time, namely typical Portuguese grilled food and specialties of the various participating Portuguese-speaking countries and regions. There will also be a kiosk installed in the venue serving typical Portuguese snacks and drinks. Furthermore, visitors of all ages can participate in traditional Portuguese games, including wooden ski run, rope pulling and others which will be held at Carmo Square on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. Winners will receive bottles of wine, codfish, canned sardines and Portuguese sausage. Also, there will be table football tournaments. Teams consisting of two participants of two different categories, 16 years old and above and under 15, can enrol until 4:30pm on Saturday. During the afternoon of Saturday and Sunday, a leisure space for children featuring diversified games, puppet shows and face painting will be provided. The temporary "Radio Carmo" station will be installed on site broadcasting lusophone music throughout the Festival, plus broadcasting interviews with the public.
The Cultural Affairs Bureau will strictly follow the relevant epidemic prevention guidelines of the Health Bureau and make proper arrangements for art and cultural activities. Participants must wear their own face masks, will be measured their body temperature, show the personal health code of the day and cooperate with relevant epidemic prevention measures. For more information, please visit the Cultural Affairs Bureau website at www.icm.gov.mo or call IC through tel. no. 8394 3721 during office hours.
