After a few years’ hiatus, a major Portuguese cultural festival is once again set to wow the citizens of Johannesburg and its surrounds.
This time the venue is the Nasrec Expo Centre, which has played host to countless exhibitions over the past few decades.
The Portuguese Festival 2023 is set to revive a proud decades-old tradition that was previously established at Wemmer Pan, which was unfortunately closed to the public, due to environmental and geological concerns.
Organiser Paulo Calisto said the three-day festival will encapsulate all that is best in the South African Portuguese culture, and also introduce some diversity in regard to the entertainment that is planned for the event, which kicks off at 10am on Friday, May 26 and runs through to 10pm on Sunday May 28.
Traditional Portuguese music and dance will once again be the centerpiece of the festival, while some top-class musical acts from a range of cultures and musical genres will feature throughout the three days.
Portuguese cuisine will be the key attraction and here Calisto will be drawing on the culinary expertise that is part of his culture, having grown up in the very same family that has established one of the best-known Portuguese restaurants in the country.
Headlining the entertainment on the stage at Nasrec will be internationally-renowned balladeer Joao Quintino, ost famous for the hits Queres Tu e Quero Eu and Adoro Portugal. Other hugely popular Portuguese artists that will appear include the soulful Diana de Sousa, Miguel Pregueiro and Ana de Abreu.
Representing a broader spectrum of South African musical faire will be Kurt Darren, Jack Parrow, Mi Cassa, Choppa and DJ Crazy G.
“We are extremely proud of the musical line-up we have put together for the 2023 Portuguese Festival,” says Paolo Calisto. “We have obviously catered for Portuguese tastes in our set lists, but we represent a whole range of musical genres on each of the show days. I advise any music fan who wants to see a particular artist to visit our website or Facebook page and see which artists are appearing on a particular day, as the set lists will be different.
“Obviously Sunday will be the big day as far as the musical line-up is concerned, when we will be rolling out our heavy musical hitters.”
The Portuguese community has grown vastly in South Africa over the years and is now said to number over half a million people.
Calisto points out that while the focus on the festival will be very much on food, drink and live entertainment, there will be a number of other attractions. One of these will be drifting on the Nasrec skid pan, where show-goers will be able to ride as passengers in bellowing, tyre-shredding V8 drift cars.
“We have run drifting events at our car shows for the past decade and people are always blown away by how exciting it is to be driven sideways, right on the edge of control, in a V8 monster.” There will be a large flea market section, with many fine goods on sale from stall holders. Other big attractions will be helicopter flips, and for younger children there will be plenty of entertainment, including a play area and a mini fun fair.
Admission Prices are R120 for adults and R80 for children under 14.
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