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San Diego Repertory Theatre Presents 29th Annual San Diego Kuumba Fest

The festival opens Friday, February 26th with the annual Night of Positive Images.

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San Diego Repertory Theatre Presents 29th Annual San Diego Kuumba Fest Image

San Diego Repertory Theatre, San Diego Urban Warriors Inc. and the African American Advisory Council of San Diego REP announced today the full schedule for the 29th Annual San Diego Kuumba Fest.

Curated by festival Artistic Director Dajahn Blevins, the 2021 Kuumba Fest will take place fully online February 26- 28, 2021. Each day of events is free (registration required) with a suggested donation of $15 per day. Registration is now open at sdrep.org/kuumba.

The festival opens Friday, February 26th with the annual Night of Positive Images honoring and celebrating Black ancestry and community. Saturday will present a Day of Positive Challenges, featuring play readings and dance performances, in addition to panel discussions surrounding challenges faced by the community. The festival concludes Sunday with a Day of Spiritual Celebration.

"This year's celebration of engineers for change is steeped in the annual opportunity and leadership for San Diego to embrace and experience African American culture through Black traditions, voices, art and expression," says Blevins. "We are honoring the journey and connecting to the future creatively together."

Founded in 1993 by Blevins, Kuumbafest is San Diego's longest running and premier celebration of African-American expression, culture and heritage. Kuumba (Swahili for "creativity") Fest brings together community leaders, local performers and celebrities for an annual audience of nearly 5,000. From gospel to hip-hop and theater to dance, San Diego's Kuumba Fest presents a wide showcase of arts that celebrate Black American culture in all its variety. Kuumbafest offers an annual three-day festival that includes educational workshops, hip-hop dance and speech competitions, performances of plays, Late Nite Live (San Diego's version of Late Night at the Apollo), and as always, a gospel concert finale. An African Market Place featuring arts and crafts for sale by local vendors, annually presented in the Lyceum Theatres lobbies, will this year be offered online.

A full schedule of this year's events and performances is listed below, along with dates and times. For more information, visit sdrep.org or call San Diego REP's box office at 619.544.1000.

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