A Festival for the whole family – fun, education and experiences at an affordable price.
What’s considered the premier folklife festival in the U.S. will welcome visitors once again this summer.
The 60th annual celebration of everything Pennsylvania Dutch, the Kutztown Folk Festival, will take place from June 27th thru July 5th, 2009. As in years past, this year’s festival features folk art exhibits, crafts, quilts, antiques, collectibles, entertainment, food and family fun.
A favorite first stop for many visitors is the festival’s quilt barn, where more than 1,400 locally made quilts and wall hangings are displayed and can be purchased.
On the second Saturday of the festival, the 24 quilts judged to be the best of the show will be auctioned off in an event that draws collectors form the world over.
Every day of the festival will offer demonstrations of traditional crafts by 200 of America’s most respected folk artists and craftsmen. The demonstrations will include pottery making, woodcarving and weaving.
Among the craftsmen returning to the 2009 festival are Ivan Hoyt, Eric Claypoole and Bill Schuster-American’s last remaining hex sign painters. Examples of this rare art can be seen on many of the barns on the farms in the Kutztown area.
Festival-goers can feast on the complete range of Pennsylvania Dutch delicacies-from roast ox to chicken dinners, from funnel cakes, to shoofly pie to hot waffles and ice cream sundaes. Authentic meals prepared by local cooks, from recipes handed down for generations, will be prepared in the festival’s summer kitchen and served country style each day.
Declaring that this year’s festival has put an even greater emphasis on family-oriented events, Festival Director Dave Fooks said, “There is truly something for everyone, and this year there will be more for our guests to enjoy than ever before.”
For example, five stages of entertainment will run continuously, featuring Pennsylvania Dutch folk music and dancing, Mennonite hymn singing and folklore presentations.
Children 12 and under are admitted free with an adult and can visit the farmyard puppet theatre, petting zoo, hay maze and the last mule-powered flying swing in America.
This year, in addition to the festival’s traditional 4th of July parade, there will be band concerts featuring patriotic music and other events.
Located just east of Philadelphia, Kutztown, Pennsylvania is easily accessible from PA Route 222.
Submitted by Kutztown Folk Festival
