The H Street Festival is a yearly street
festival
A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...
held in the eastern blocks of
H Street in the
Near Northeast
Near Northeast is a neighborhood in Northeast Washington, D.C. It is bounded by North Capitol Street to the west, Florida Avenue to the north, F Street to the south, and 15th Street to the east.
History
Early history
It is believed that the g ...
neighborhood of
Washington, D.C.
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History
The H Street Festival was first organized by the
Community-Business Action Coalition (COMBAC). COMBAC was created by neighborhood residents and businesses after the
riots in 1968. The founders included Mr. Walter Ross, Mrs.
Loree Murray
Loree Murray (January 2, 1921 – 2009) was a community activist in Washington DC.
Career
Murray moved to DC in the early 1940s from Pinehurst, North Carolina.
She led street patrols, known as Orange Hat patrols, to help police document drug a ...
, Ms. Doris Clark, Ms. Betty Hart, Mr. Idus Holmes and many others. The H Street Merchants and Professionals Association (HSMA) took responsibility for the Festival in the 1980s.
2005 Festival
In 2005 the event was planned, organized and managed by volunteers Raphael Marshall
Kwasi Frye Education on the state of artists in DC during 2005 was provided exclusively by Elise Perry.
2006 Festival
For the 2006 festival, held on September 23, Raphael Marshall an
Kwasi Fryetook a professional approach to developing and retooling the festival.
2007 Festival
In 2007, The H Street Festival was repositioned with a new emphasis on the arts and humanities. To celebrate the designation of the community as the Atlas Arts District, Raphael Marshall an
Kwasi Fryeorganized the Festival for Saturday September, 15. The festival focused on the visual and performing arts, neighborhood history, and the art of ideas, music, design, and food. There were multiple stages featuring a variety of music, from rock to R&B, a DJ booth, and two performing arts stages featuring theater, dance, poetry, and the spoken word.
The 2007 festival included more than 30 music and dance performances, examples of shows from
DC Fashion Week
DC Fashion Week is a biennial event in the District of Columbia, United States, held by fashion designers who convene to dress local models who have auditioned for the event. Besides the preview, DCFW consists of four shows, each focusing on a di ...
, activities for children, and free health screens.
[{{cite web , title=H Street Festival - Washington, DC Music Festival & Bazaar , url=http://dc.about.com/od/specialevents/a/HStreetFestival.htm , accessdate=2007-08-03 ]
The purpose of making arts the foundation of the "H STREET MUSIC FESTIVAL & BAZAAR" was to focus attention on the developing arts and entertainment district at the eastern end of the H Street corridor, where well-received plays are performed at the H Street
Playhouse, funky arts events occur at DC Sanctuary, and the Atlas Theater has been restored as the
Atlas Performing Arts Center
The Atlas Performing Arts Center is a multiple space performing arts facility located on H Street in the Near Northeast neighborhood of Washington, DC. Housed in a renovated Art Deco movie house, the facility is home to several arts organizatio ...
with theater, dance, and multi-purpose performing spaces. The African Continuum Theatre Company will be resident at the Atlas and the Theater Alliance is the resident company at the H Street Playhouse. In addition, the Raphael Marshall an
Kwasi Fryewant to highlight the often neglected but abundantly rich art's community of Washington D.C. Kwasi Frye has also partnered with web design artist Jermaine Fanfair to design the website for next year's festival.
References
External links
Official Website
Festivals in Washington, D.C.