Bagamoyo Arts Festival

Event Overview

Bagamoyo Festival of Arts and Culture is a seven-day event that is held in Bagamoyo, Tanzania. It features music, dance, drama, acrobatics and many other arts related activities. It takes place every year at the end of September. The event was previously held under the shade of a mango tree but today it is staged at the new TaSUBa Theatre. The new venue is a 2000 seat amphitheater with modern sound and lighting facilities. It is reportedly the largest venue for performing arts in all of East Africa. The event dates back to the early days of the then Bagamoyo College of Arts, now referred to as TaSUBa. It was was initially established to display the works of students and teachers at the college. Since 1982, the festival has grown to become host to a variety of activities from many different countries. It mainly focuses on the country's music and that from East African countries. It showcases both traditional and contemporary performances. Music include ngoma, Afro-jazz, bongo flava, reggae, African fusion and taarab.