Belk To Serve as Presenting Sponsor for 2015 National Folk Festival

Free, 75th-anniversary event - making its first-ever stop in N.C. - will feature non-stop performances on seven stages in downtown Greensboro, September 11 - 13, 2015 "Greensboro, N.C., February 10, 2015 - Belk will serve as the Presenting Sponsor for the 2015  National Folk Festival, which will take place in Downtown Greensboro on September 11 - 13, 2015.   Making the announcement today at the Belk Home Store in Greensboro were Tom Philion, President and CEO of ArtsGreensboro, co-producer of the National Folk Festival; Linda Carlisle, National Folk Festival Honorary Chair and former Secretary - N.C. Department of Cultural Resources; and Greensboro Mayor Nancy Vaughan. They were joined on the podium by Belk Regional Manager and VP Michael Linsbeck and Belk - Friendly Center Store Manager Tami Wolfenden. "We are absolutely delighted to announce that Belk-known for its 'modern, Southern style' and its Southern Musician Showcase-is partnering with ArtsGreensboro and the National Council for the Traditional Arts to bring the National Folk Festival to downtown Greensboro in 2015," said Carlisle. "As a Charlotte-based company, Belk not only recognizes that the Festival will draw attendees from across the Southeast and around the country, but also understands how important this event is to Greensboro, the Piedmont, and North Carolina. We thank Belk for its incredible commitment." "At Belk, we love to celebrate the connections between music and style. And the National Folk Festival - a true national-destination event making its first-ever stop in North Carolina - is the perfect venue to highlight those connections," said Wolfenden. "We're looking forward to hosting more than 100,000 people in Downtown Greensboro in September." Co-produced by ArtsGreensboro and the National Council for the Traditional Arts (NCTA), the National Folk Festival is beginning its three-year residency in downtown Greensboro this year, when it will celebrate its 75th anniversary from September 11 - 13, 2015. The FREE, three-day event is America's longest-running festival of traditional arts; it will highlight both long-standing traditions and the heritage and culture of North Carolina's newest immigrant groups, and set the stage for a continuing and permanent North Carolina Folk Festival, beginning in 2018, after the "National" moves on. With downtown Greensboro as the backdrop, audiences will enjoy up to seven stages featuring continuous musical entertainment-from rockabilly to old-time to mariachi, and from funk to Cajun to jazz. Attendees will also be able to dance non-stop to a variety of musical genres at the dance pavilion; dine on regional and ethnic foods; experience folk art demonstrations and performances by N.C. artists; and share the fun of the Family Activities Area with their children." - A Press Release