A signature event that defines the Creative Capital and reaches thousands…

Join us for a jaw-dropping celebration in Providence, Rhode Island

From world music to street theater, from public art to pure spectacle – experience stars of the global arena along with Rhode Island’s best and brightest at Providence International Arts Festival.

Join us for a jaw-dropping celebration in Providence, Rhode Island, June 11-14, 2015

Experience all the Creative Capital has to offer at partner venues and artist events throughout Providence.

Don’t just celebrate, participate! Join the grand festival procession as it parades through Downtown on its way to the official opening ceremonies.

Thank you to all of our sponsors and supporters – helping us to make it happen!

The Earth Harp is the largest stringed instrument on the planet. Part sculpture, part instrument, and part architecture, the sound it creates is nothing short of remarkable.

With a richly powerful voice, commanding stage presence and a dramatic past, Kidjo’s music grips audiences and leaves them calling for more.

Murals, art installations, interactive expressions of creativity, and a pop-up skate and art park. With internationally noted street artists Etam Cru and Natalia Rak.

The Squonkers roll into Kennedy Plaza with their latest road show– an outdoor musical spectacle about air, made of air, and powered by air.

The Creative Capital’s past, present and future merge as WaterFire presents the Gaspee Project at the Providence International Arts Festival. Celebrate the historic burning of the HMS Gaspee at an event that SmarterTravel.com ranked along with the Aurora Borealis as one world’s best after-dark destinations.

Gather at the beating heart of Kennedy Plaza—Providence City Hall – to kick off the first (ever) Providence International Arts Festival. Share in this unforgettable moment as a specially commissioned first work is unveiled and voices raised in song converge from all points of the compass.

Aerial acrobats perform feats that go beyond what you thought the human body could do. New Mexico’s Wise Fool combines circus acts with storytelling in unique and engaging displays of physical derring-do, bringing the Providence International Arts Festival to new heights – literally.

Oumou Sangaré, or “Sangaré the Songbird,” is a Grammy Award-winning, international star. She teams up with her Malian countryman Sidy Maiga, a Rhode Island-based master drummer in whose hands the djembe sings, laughs, whispers and electrifies.

Martinez is one of the masters of Afro-Cuban drumming, the world’s first-call rumbero, and one of the most exciting bandleaders working in jazz or Latin music today.

Showcasing striking, unexpected, and groundbreaking sounds, Bixiga is a brassy afrobeat orchestra bringing together an array of beats from Brazil’s musical palette to create a high-voltage live show that is not to be missed.

Mixing old school vibes with a forward-thinking sound, Mad Satta recently released its debut album, Comfort, produced by three-time Grammy winner Prince Charles Alexander. Led by the searing, sultry vocals of frontwoman Joanna Teters, this New York band mixes jazz, soul and modern day funk into its own unique blend.

JUMP! will create a signature site-specific dance around the Civil War Memorial—an iconic downtown Providence public art work. In the their signature white costumes, JUMP! dancers will move to West African drummers, led by music from Sidy Maiga’s Afrimanding. This is a one of a kind event!

Co-presented by The Providence Athenaeum and FirstWorks Featuring internationally heralded Festival performers/humanitarian activists Angélique Kidjo and Oumou Sangaré along with local leaders in the arts, education, and community health.

Showcasing the best the state has to offer in classical and jazz.

Envisioning a signature destination event for Providence

at the BuyLocalRI Merchant Marketplace located on the Exchange St. side of Burnside Park