Poetry, wood sculptures and concerts: Waco Cultural Arts Fest is a Must

By Bradi Zapata
Marketing & PR Intern

This post is an extension of the Conversations with Creative Waco radio program on 103.3 KWBU fm, where we take you behind the scenes of art and culture in Waco. Catch us on the air every fourth and fifth Friday of the month at 11:30 a.m. and 8 p.m.

Celebrate diverse talents of the local community at Waco Cultural Arts Fest on Oct. 5-7 at Indian Spring Park (101 N University Parks Dr.). The annual festival is Waco’s largest celebration of arts and culture in Waco and is comprised of ArtsFest, WordFest, FilmFest, ScienceFest, DanceFest and MusicFest.

Check out this month’s episode of Conversations with Creative waco on 103.3 KWBU fm to hear from festival founder Doreen Ravenscroft. In the meantime, read on to see what events to expect from each portion of Waco Cultural Arts Fest.

ArtsFest:

ArtsFest features fun children’s activities, such as face painting and crafting, alongside an arts market featuring wood sculptures, paintings, and an array of locally-made goods. It’s no wonder why Artsfest is the main attraction of Waco Cultural Arts Fest — it inspires creativity at every age. All events occur:

10 a.m. – 7 p.m. Oct. 6

11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Oct. 7

All activities will take place in Indian Spring Park (101 N University Parks Dr.)

WordFest:

Celebrate the beauty of words with local poets, musicians and writers at Wordfest. All events are free and open to the public. Events include:

7 – 9 p.m. Oct. 5: Open mic

11:30 a.m. Oct. 6: Boom/Wow: Flash Essays and the “Bigger Picture” workshop

1 – 2 p.m. Oct. 6: “SCAMPER – Creatively Rewriting Our Poems” workshop

2 – 3 p.m. Oct. 6: Feature Poet Reading – Nathan Brown

3 – 4 p.m. Oct. 6: “Writing Life’s Stories from the Five Senses” workshop

7 – 9 p.m. Oct. 6: Anthology Reading

12 – 1 p.m. Oct. 7: “Open Mic Empowerment” workshop

2 – 3 p.m. Oct. 7: Writers Panel: Nathan Brown, Anne McCrady, and Michael Guinn

3 – 5 p.m. Oct. 7: Open Mic

All events take place at the Waco Convention Center (100 Washington Ave.) in Texas South Rooms 116-117

DanceFest

Get off your feet and move to the beat of Dancefest. Dancefest showcases professional modern dance and local talented dancers. Events include:

10 a.m. Oct. 5: Kids Dance Program

5 p.m. Oct. 6: Concert

7 p.m. Oct. 6: Concert (mature audience performance)

12 p.m. Oct. 7: Class

2 p.m. Oct. 7: Family Concert

All events take place at the Waco Convention Center (100 Washington Ave.) in the McLennan Room on the second floor.

FilmFest

Immerse yourself in African culture at “Celebrate Africa” with FilmFest. The film portion of the festival brings outstanding, thought-provoking films to Waco. Events include:

6:30 p.m. Oct. 5: Opening reception

7 p.m. Oct. 5: “Queen of Katwe” film to be shown

Oct. 6 details to come. Visit wacoartsfest.org for more information.

ScienceFest

Promote Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math exhibitions and demonstrations through Sciencefest. This festival gives all ages the chance to think outside of the box and learn in a creative and imaginative way. Enlighten and exercise your mind with hands-on activities, interactive exhibits, science-themed performances, demonstrations and much more. Events include:

Oct. 6 – 7 at the Waco Convention Center (100 Washington Ave.) in the Texas Room 113 – 115

MusicFest

Sit back, relax and listen to some good tunes with the Musicfest. This festival is great for the whole family because it features various musicians and music styles.

Performances to take place Oct. 5 – 7 at various times throughout the day. Find information regarding performers and showtimes at wacoartsfest.org.

All performances will take place at the Indian Spring Park Amphitheater between the Waco Suspension Bridge and Franklin Ave.