Turkish Heritage on Display at the 2021 DC Turkish Festival (photos)
By • October 6, 2021 0 2283
The rich culture of Turkey was on full display at the 2021 DC Turkish Festival on Sunday, Oct. 3 at The Wharf on the Southwest Waterfront in Washington, D.C.
It was the 19th Annual Edition of the popular Festival whose aim is to promote cultural understanding and friendship between the Turkish American community and other communities in the DC Metro area. From the reaction of the packed crowd, it was mission accomplished.
The celebration offered “a full day of free activities ranging from breathtaking live performances and cultural exhibits to arts and crafts activities for children and adults, delicious Turkish cuisine, famous Turkish coffee and fortune reading and a bustling bazaar.” It was organized, delivered, and financed by the Turkish American community and businesses in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area.
The Turkish Festival has grown substantially from it’s modest beginnings at Cabin John Park in Maryland in 2002. In 2004, it moved to the Freedom Plaza area in the District and became an instant success, attracting over 20,000 visitors every year. In 2009, the Festival for the first time received a grant from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities for its contribution to the city’s ethnic, cultural and religious diversity.
Sadly last year’s Festival had to be cancelled due to the COVID emergency. This year, for logistical reasons, the Festival’s organizing group decided to move it to the The Wharf DC from its traditional location on Pennsylvania Ave. “We are extremely happy with the turn out and positive reception from the festival-goers. We think that the comeback of this award-winning festival lived up to the expectations if not exceeded it” remarked Demet Cabbar, a Festival organizer and a founding member of the Kardelen Turkish Dance Ensemble. Other participating local groups included the Nomad Dancers and the Silk Road Dance Company. These were complemented by the MAYT dance group from Ankara, Turkey.
View a slideshow of Jeff Malet’s photos from the 2021 DC Turkish Festival from The Wharf in Washington D.C. by clicking on the photo icons below.
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- Charlotte Weir of the Nomad Dancers (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- The Whirling Dervish performer is Tulga Kamis of Ankara Turkey. Photo by Jeff Malet.
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- Murat Gunaydin and Ali Ozkan of MAYT perform as Ashuk ve Mashuk. (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Yeliz Gedik of the Kardelen Turkish Dance Ensemble attracts a friendly praying mantis (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Murat Gunaydin of MAYT (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Nomad Dancers: Amani, Karen, Patricia, Billie, Diego, Sema, Adriane, Charlott (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Cross cultural performance by Hector Tucupa Delgado and Carolina Hernandez (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Courtney Smothers of Silk Road Dance Company (photo by Jeff Malet).
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- Kardelen Turkish Dance Ensemble : Burcu Lale Yuksel, Yaprak Servi, Gulbin Yildirim, Tijen Sezgin, and Mariya Myroshnychenko (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Busra Kayi Tarhan (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Nomad Dancers Turkmen Weaving Dance: Sema , Patricia , Mindy , Christel & Parastoo. (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Zeynep Moore and 80 Rock Band (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Kardelen Turkish Dance Ensemble and MAYT (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Belly dancing by Carolina Hernandez (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Kardelen Turkish Dance Ensemble and MAYT (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Tulga Kamis, Ali Ozkan and Yener Servi of MAYT from Ankara, Turkey (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Nomad Dancers perform a Turkmen Court Dance where “all the lovely ladies of the Court dance for the Sultan in hopes of being picked as the chosen one ” Choreographed by Adriane Whalen. (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Carolina Hernandez and a young fan (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Silk Road dancer Sepi Farsadi (photo by Jeff Malet)
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- Kardelen Turkish Dance Ensemble is a group of dancers dedicated to promoting the culture of Turkey through dances from the region (photo by Jeff Malet)
