Previous Story
DCCA cuts Flame Tree festival fees, shelves booth competition
|
Posted on Mar 02 2009
In light of the current state of the economy, the organizer of the 28th Annual Flame Tree Arts Festival has cut this year’s fees by 33 percent to encourage local artists to continue participating in one of the biggest community events in the region.
Parker Yobei, logistics committee chairman, yesterday disclosed that from $150 last year, the artist’s fee has been lowered to $100 by the Department of Community and Cultural Affairs.
For food vendors, the agency has reduced the amount from $650 to $600 per station, an 8-percent cut on the previous festival fee.
This year’s celebration will be held at the Susupe Civic Center from April 23 to 26.
Yobei said there are 100 booths and spaces available for the celebration, 20 of which are for artists and 80 for arts and crafts, vendors, and live educational demonstrations.
Besides lowering festival fees, DCCA also decided to stop the holding of the traditional booth competition, of which prizes rely on donations from businesses.
“We know that everybody is going through a tough time and we wanted to help…especially our artists because that’s the purpose of this festival: to help them showcase their output. We wanted this festival to be more beneficial to the artists as much as possible,” Yobei told Saipan Tribune.
He added: “This year, we don’t want to push it too hard on our businesses…which is why we will not hold the traditional booth contest.”
However, he said DCCA will still conduct the float competition, with prizes of $500 for first, $300 for second, and $200 for third prize.
As of yesterday, DCCA recorded 47 registered participants, with 30 artists; the rest are food vendors. The number is expected to go up before the end of the month, or the closing of the registration period.
Yobei said the new festival fees are good for the four-day celebration, which expects to gather thousands of spectators from all over Micronesia.
Yobei added that DCCA will use all fees to pay for power, materials, stage setup, garbage, and restrooms.
This week, invitation will be sent by the committee to off-island delegates.
The four-day event draws thousands of spectators every year.
