Tucson Meet Yourself Folklife Festival

Tucson’s beloved folklife festival, since 1974 

Food, Music, Dance, Folk Arts

Free!

Live Performances

Over 75 live performances of traditional dance and music on three stages. Plus a special Accordion Encuentro!

Delicious Food

Over 50 food vendors with 15 new vendors sharing cuisine from Oaxacan, Moroccan, Syrian, Chamoru, Southern BBQ, and more.

Friendly Folk Artists

Over 75 traditional artists sharing traditional and contemporary craft from jewelry, woodworking, basketry and more.

Folklife Here

A wide range of folklife expressions under one roof—from drag queen make-up artistry to barbershop customs to women corridistas and more. Powered by TEP.

Kidlore Pavilion

Celebrate in the folklore of childhood with live and interactive performances and activities, plus a giant “alebrije”! Sponsored by PNC Bank.

Culture Kitchen

Share favorite dishes, techniques, and stories. Demos by Chinese Chorizo Festival, Anita St. Market, and Agave Heritage Festival. Sponsored by Tucson Water.

And Don’t Miss…

Folklife Everywhere: We’re saturating the festival grounds—literally—with invitations to reflect on your own folklife. How do you greet your friends? What’s your nickname? What’s a tradition you learned from an elder?

Dukes for a Day: Catch the lowrider car show only on Saturday at 41 E Pennington/Congress St, a parking lot across from City High School. 

“Traditions in Motion” A pop-up exhibit from Arizona State Museum celebrating car culture artistry and adaptation artistry in the Indigenous Southwest.

Community Matters: 75 community education projects and cultural entrepreneurs showcasing their causes and goods.

Heritage Beer Garden: For the second year in a row, TMY partners with Borderlands Brewery to bring a sampling of heritage brews inspired by Southern Arizona culture and geography. New location this year on Church and Pennington.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

SUNDAY, OCT 06

University of Arizona Stage at Stone Ave.

11:00 to 11:45 AM

Klezmerkaba

Klezmer Music

Performance

12:00 to 12:45 PM

Fiddle Traditions

Encounter: Andrea Hoag, Dan Levenson, Fadi Iskandar, & Tamara Khachatryan

Encounter

1:00 to 1:45 PM

Purple Bamboo Asian Music Ensemble and Tucson Sino Guzheng

Asian music

Performance

2:00 to 2:45 PM

Thistle & Bear

Celtic and Scandinavian Folk

Performance

3:00 to 3:45 PM

Ayure

Music of Morocco

Performance

4:00 to 4:45 PM

Tucson Scandinavian Dancers and Aurora Borealis Folk Band

Scandinavian Folk Dance and Music

Workshop

5:00 to 6:00 PM

South Image Waila Band

Tohono O'odham Waila Music

Performance

Desert Diamond Casino Stage at Jacome Plaza Lawn

11:00 to 11:45 AM

Celtic Steps

Irish Dance

Workshop

12:00 to 12:45 PM

Xanadu Dance Collective

Middle Eastern Bellydance/ Raqs Sharqi

Workshop

1:00 to 1:45 PM

UnderSkore

K-Pop

Workshop

2:00 to 2:45 PM

Balkan Allspice

Folk Dance from Balkans & Eastern Europe

Performance

3:00 to 4:30 PM

Mari Kaneta & Suzuyuki-Kai

Traditional Japanese Dance

Workshop

5:00 to 6:00 PM

Gamelan Dewi Malam

Balinese Gamelan and Dance

Performance

 Rio Nuevo Stage at Church Ave

11:00 to 11:45 AM

Tucson Sino Fashion

Chinese Cultural Dress

Performance

12:00 to 12:45 PM

Arizona Balalaika Orchestra

Russian/Slavic Folk Music

Performance

1:00 to 1:45 PM

Maguire Academy of Irish Dance

Irish Dance

Performance

2:00 to 2:45 PM

Ruta Verbena

Latin Music

Performance

3:00 to 3:54 PM

Grupo Riken

Caribbean Music

Performance

4:00 to 6:00 PM

Yaqui Ceremonial: Deer Dancers

Ritual Deer Dance of Yoeme/Yaqui Tradition 

Ceremony

TEP Folklife Here Pavilion

11:00 to 12:00 PM

Samba Southwest

Pageantry and Dress of Samba

Presentation

12:00 to 1:00 PM

Tucson Electric Power

Community Energy Solutions

Presentation

1:00 to 3:00 PM

Queen for a Day

Drag Make-up Tutorial with Kim Etiquette

Presentation/Demonstration

3:00 to 4:00 PM

Barbershops and Latino Masculinity

A discussion with Dr. Estevan Azcona

Presentation

4:00 to 6:00 PM

La Peña del SurCo (ENG-SPAN)

A Latin American Folk Music Gathering

Performance/Discussion

Culture Kitchen

11:00 to 12:30 PM

How to Process Wild Prickly Pear Fruit for Juice

with John Slattery, Desert Forager

Demonstration

12:30 to 2:00 PM

Matzo Ball Soup

with Lauren Garlovsky

Demonstration

2:00 to 2:30 PM

Sweet Southwest Honey

with Monica White, Southwest Bee Supply

Tasting

3:30 to 5:00 PM

Edible & Drinkable Mushrooms

with Hernan Castro, Desert Alchemist

Demonstration

Admissions

Tucson Meet Yourself is a FREE event.