Opening ceremony
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Take a scroll through our slideshow to see some of the images from the first week of the festival. Here Ceri Rhys Matthews leads musicians to Wales site at Smithsonian Festival on the opening day.
Welsh Dragon stage
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Crowds at the festival's main stage - the Welsh Dragon stage.
The Welsh in USA
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Find out what US place names have Welsh links on our USA map.
Rugby
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Rugby was included in the opening ceremony thanks to Owain Tudur of the Urdd.
Lovespoon Carving
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Mike Davies, lovespoon carver, talks to visitors about his work.
Food Demonstrations
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TV chef Angela Gray presents as Geraldine Griffiths cooks in a 'Taste of Wales' demo.
The Wales site & Smithsonian castle
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Welsh participants sing the national anthem on the festival site with the Smithsonian castle in the background.
Festival site
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The festival site on the National Mall in Washington DC is overlooked by the Capitol building.
Wales will be the featured nation at the 2009 Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the National Mall in Washington, from 24 – 28 June and 1 – 5 July.
The festival is an annual cultural festival run by the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, a research and educational unit of the Smithsonian Institution. The festival celebrates the cultural traditions of communities from across the United States and from around the world.
Over 130 participants will represent Wales at the event, on an area the size of four football pitches. This will be split into different themed areas, each telling a different story of:
There will also be a narrative stage, a ‘pub’ stage and main stage.
“Wales Smithsonian Cymru will present a dynamic view of Wales, its cultural and economic impact on the world, with themes ranging from the traditional to the contemporary and highlighting diversity and innovation – past, present and future. We will highlight the use of traditional methods to create new green solutions, products and processes. Indeed, the overarching theme of the Wales presence in the US capital will be sustainability.”
First Minister of Wales, Rhodri Morgan - speaking ahead of his visit to Washington to launch the festival programme in March
Film Wales in Washington - June 23 to July 3
Wales is a country with a long tradition in the performing arts and has produced some of the world’s finest actors from Richard Burton to Sir Anthony Hopkins. An independent film sector is today blossoming in Wales and we have pleasure in inviting you to a free festival in Washington DC, showcasing talented Welsh directors and award-winning movies from Wales . To find out more and to book your seats please click here.