North Charleston Arts Fest

Event Details

The North Charleston Arts Fest is proudly produced by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department. The annual five-day celebration of arts and culture highlights regional and local artists and performers in the areas of Dance, Music, Theatre, Visual Arts, and Literature. For more than 37 years, the festival has made quality arts programming affordable and accessible to the widest spectrum of the public, attracting residents and visitors to experience an array of free and modestly priced performances, workshops, exhibitions, and activities in a variety of venues, including libraries, community centers, schools, businesses, and parks. The event has matured into one of the most comprehensive arts festivals in the state of South Carolina with a schedule that offers something for everyone, including concerts, theatre presentations, children’s programs, lectures and readings, workshops and demonstrations, exhibitions, public art installations, and much more. In 2018, the Arts Fest was selected as a Top 20 Event by the Southeast Tourism Society (an honor also received in 2008).

History and Goals:
The North Charleston Arts Fest began in 1982 as a one-day community celebration in Park Circle with the goal of enhancing the quality of life of residents through showcasing the arts. As the annual event matured, the festival’s offerings began to appeal to visitors, prompting the addition of tourism development as a goal. In 1995, the Arts Fest moved from Park Circle to the North Charleston Coliseum and expanded to two days. By 2000, the opening of the Charleston Area Convention Center and the North Charleston Performing Arts Center provided the springboard for the festival to expand to nine full days of performances and activities for residents and visitors throughout the City. In 2008, the Arts Fest was recognized by the Southeast Tourism Society as a Top 20 Event. It was awarded this honor again in 2018. Now, entering its 38th year (again, due to the cancellation of the 2020 festival as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic), the festival continues to evolve with a solid five-day schedule that shifts the focus from quantity of events to quality of programming and patron experience. The Cultural Arts Department strives to produce an inclusive public celebration of the arts with a comprehensive, multi-discipline event schedule that exposes, engages, and inspires people of all ages and backgrounds.


Future Festival Dates:
May 4-8, 2022
May 3-7, 2023