“TWe try to do something that appeals not only to the older generations, but also to the younger ones, and invite people who are not part of the community and can learn about our culture and the contributions of Portuguese immigrants in the central valley”, Elaina Vieira told Lusa , president of the Carlos Vieira Foundation.
The fourth edition of the event takes place on April 22nd and 23rd and will feature some novelties, such as the performance of a Brazilian artist, Alex Ferrari, and art exhibitions by two Portuguese-American artists.
“We are excited to get closer to the Brazilian community, because we want to invite everyone to be part of this festival”, said Elaina Vieira. “We know that there are people from the Brazilian community around these parts and some have already come to our festival, but we hope that having a Brazilian artist will attract more Brazilians from the area”.
Founder Carlos Vieira’s parents emigrated from the Azores to Brazil before settling permanently in California, and the Brazilian food stalls that participated in the previous edition were well received.
Alex Ferrari will be one of several guests who will enliven the festivities, along with the comedy trio The Portuguese Kids and Portuguese singer Jorge Ferreira.
“We are going to have a cheese and wine tasting, a cultural exhibition, exhibitions of philharmonic bands and folkloric groups and a part of the popular fair”, described Elaina Vieira. The event will have around 50 to 60 food and handicraft stalls, such as Fagundes Meats and Avila Imports, and a cultural exhibition hall where fado will also be sung.
“This year we are going to add art exhibitions, with a pair of Portuguese-American artists from San Francisco Bay who will show the influence of their heritage in the art they create”, said the person in charge. There will also be performances by DJ Bruno Furtado and Marcos Shalom, singer Luis Silva and comedian Vavo Brito.
Admission is free on Saturday. On Sunday, April 23, the focus will be on the bloodless bullfight, which costs $15 to enter. Proceeds revert to the solidarity cause “Race for Autism”, with which the Carlos Vieira Foundation helps families with autistic children.
“We are excited to be back and we appreciate the support of the Portuguese community”, stressed the president, who in previous editions saw the event attract thousands of participants.
“The festival offers something a little different from what the Portuguese community is used to during the rest of the year”, he considered, noting that Portuguese culture is very strong in the central valley and regularly organizes festivities.
“But I think that none of them are quite like the Portuguese Festival, which is an event that happens only once a year, and that attracts people”, he said. “It gives them something to look forward to, because although the other Portuguese events are good, they are things they are used to doing and they happen almost every weekend.”
The organization is promoting the event on the radio, social networks and media in order to attract participants from various parts of California and even from other states, as happened in previous editions.
“I think people are excited to have this event that incorporates all the different aspects of Portuguese culture and only happens once a year”, he summarized.
On the other hand, there is a component of approximation to the younger generations that traditional festivals often lack.
“We try to appeal to the younger generation and work closely with our main sponsor, PFSA, which is always trying to have that connection with the new generation to keep Portuguese culture alive”, he pointed out.
PFSA is the Portuguese Fraternal Society of America and has been involved in sponsoring the festival since its first edition in 2019.
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