International folklore festival in Veliky Novgorod

Sadko, an international festival of folklore and trades will take place in Veliky Novgorod (Russia's south-west) in late May. The Sadko festival will be held under UNESCO auspices, said Lyudmila Manina, the director of the Novgorod's House of Folk Art. About 500 amateur and professional folklore artists and ensembles from Russia, Belarus, Germany, Spain, Romania, Thailand, Finland and other countries will participate in the festival, Manina noted. The opening ceremony of the international festival will take place in the Novgorod academic drama theatre on May 31. On June 1 a theatrical procession will march past Veliky Novgorod's historic centre. On June 2 mass festive gatherings will take place in Vitoslavlitsy, the Novgorod's museum of wood architecture. Folklore ensembles are expected to give concerts both in Veliky Novgorod and the Novgorod region. A trades' fair will be held as part of the festival.