Marrakech Popular Arts Festival

The Festival National des Arts Populaires has run in Marrakech since 1960 and its purpose was and is documentary as much as celebratory: bringing troupes from every region of Morocco to one place so that the ahidous of the Middle Atlas, the ahwash of the Souss, gnawa, aissawa, guedra from the desert, reggada from the north-east, and the Tissint dagger dance are all performed in the same week, in their own dress and to their own instruments. Performances are held in the ruined courtyard of the El Badi palace, which is the setting that matters, and on the Jemaa el-Fna and other open spaces, with a tbourida horse charge outside the walls. It has been interrupted and rescheduled repeatedly over the decades and the dates move, so it needs checking rather than planning around. When it runs it is the single best chance to see the range of Moroccan performance in a few days.

What you actually see

• Troupes from every region - ahidous, ahwash, gnawa, guedra and reggada in one week.
• The El Badi courtyard - performances in the ruined palace, the festival's main setting.
• A tbourida charge - horsemen firing in unison outside the walls.
• A 1960 foundation - documentary in intent as much as celebratory.

When to go

Summer; dates move and are announced late. Two to three days.

Honest expectations

Dates shift and the festival has been cancelled or postponed in some years - confirm before booking. Programme information is published late and mostly in Arabic and French. Accommodation prices rise in festival weeks. Some events are free and crowded.

Nearby

El Badi palace is the main venue; the Jemaa el-Fna is north.