The 2018 edition of the global cultural movement Fair Saturday takes place this 24 November, and Bilbao, one of the movement’s official hubs, is once more participating with a full day of events.
Fair Saturday was created in 2014 by Jordi Albareda in response to the growing popularity in many countries of Black Friday, a day dedicated to shopping and special offers that started in the United States.
The aim of Fair Saturday is to highlight how essential the arts are for the construction of a better future and have a positive cultural impact.
It’s a festival in which thousands of artists and cultural organisations take part and support social causes.
The initiative began in Bilbao and the local area, as Albareda called on 17 local choirs to perform concerts in favour of different social projects that the musicians themselves chose.
The following year 45 cities in Spain celebrated Fair Saturday with over 200 cultural events and the movement has grown ever since.
This year, Bristol becomes the first English city to participate, while Barcelona and Madrid also host events and Malaga, Santander and Huelva are other official hubs.
In Bilbao, the range of activities on offer throughout the day includes exhibitions, craft workshops, music, dance and more; in total, over 100 different events are scheduled.
Plus there’s an inaugural event in the evening of 23 November at Bilbao Arena, featuring over 1,000 singers who perform music that includes ‘Carmina Burana’, ‘We are the World’ and ‘Il Trovatore’.
When: 24 November
Where: Various venues
More info: fairsaturday.org