Wontanara's 7th Annual Cultural Dance & Music Festival: Roots to the Future

Wontanara's 7th Annual Cultural Dance & Music Festival takes over the Southwest Arts Center from Friday, October 30, through Sunday, November 1. This year's edition is titled Roots to the Future, presented by Wontanara Institution Inc. and sponsored for the second year by the City of South Fulton Cultural Affairs. The festival runs across two spaces at the center: the concert hall and the outdoor Village 'Bara,' with a vendor marketplace called Le Marché - The Vendor Marketplace of the Diaspora running alongside the whole weekend.

The centerpiece is the Saturday night concert, The Awakening, which the organizers describe as the festival's full-scale live cultural ceremony, honoring the living traditions at the heart of Wontanara's work. The stage brings together Asase Yaa A.A Dance Theater, Egbe Ilu, Spelman's Ashietu - Sister's Chapel African Drum & Dance Ministry, Morehouse Band students, and the Wontanara Entertainment Group. It's a big, multi-generational lineup that pulls from across the city's HBCU community.

Beyond the music, there's a strong educational thread. Founder Abena Camara leads a free grant-writing workshop on Sunday morning from 10 AM to 11 AM, and that's followed by Hands of Heritage, a free elder panel from 11:10 AM to 12:10 PM. The festival opens on Friday with a free screening of Kirikou & The Sorceress at 3 PM. The organizers describe Wontanara as more than a festival—they call it a movement that brings people together through African and Afro-diasporic arts, culture, education, and innovation, with the goal of building pathways for education, economic empowerment, and community wellbeing.

If you're planning to drop in, the Southwest Arts Center is at 915 New Hope Rd SW in Atlanta. The festival kicks off Friday, October 30, at 3 PM; Saturday, October 31, starts at 9:30 AM; and Sunday, November 1, begins at 10 AM.