2025 Living Traditions Festival preview 

• Tristan Sadler
• Dancers at the Living Traditions Festival

Over the past several months, "diversity" has been turned into something of a dirty word in certain corridors of power. But for Salt Lake City's Living Traditions Festival, it's intrinsic to what they are—and that's not about to be eliminated with the stroke of a pen.

"Diversity is a hot-button issue, and that's what this festival is all about," says Jeda Higgs, production lead for Living Traditions. "This is the foundational mission of the festival, and has been for 39 years, and we're not going to change it now."

Over those 39 years, local artists, creators and visitors have gotten to know an annual showcase of dozens of cultural traditions sharing their food, music, dance, crafts and more. The three-day event will feature more than 70 live performances representing Latin America, Africa, Asia, Europe, Pacific Islanders, Indigenous cultures and more, plus workshops, beer tasting, kids' activities and food booths and demonstrations—all for free admission.

It's a wonderful opportunity for people in the community to experience the range of cultures that call Utah home—and the "traditions" in the title can apply both to those who attend as spectators, and those who participate as part of the entertainment or as vendors. According to Higgs, it's not uncommon for performing arts groups to have been represented at the festival across generations. "We do have a lot of legacy folks who come back," Higgs notes. "A lot of these groups, you'll have a grandmother watching in the audience, and then you'll have her daughter performing with her granddaughter."

Yet it's also true that the festival isn't just the same people performing the same shows year after year. According to Living Traditions Marketing and Communications Lead Quinn Winter, "We do make sure that within our programming, we both have people who have been with the festival for years, and make room for new performing arts groups or bands, those who would benefit from the stage of Living Traditions. I think the other piece is that, while we have people who have been at the festival for years, ... you may see a group who has performed before, but they're bringing new material. As these groups and the people within them adjust and change and grow as artists, they inevitably bring that to Living Traditions."

Whether the artists are new or returning, however, they're all representing the idea that the Utah community is not culturally homogenous, at a time when it might feel challenging to celebrate that idea. That only makes its mission more vital, the staffers agree. "I think that it's always important for us to be aware of what our community's needs are," Winter says. "And in the current political climate, it's a little heightened right now. But I'd also say that a festival like Living Traditions ... has always been important, and something that Salt Lake has valued for years. Being intentional about providing opportunities for artists in communities that may be experiencing a bit more stress is important."

"What's been really enticing," Higgs adds, "is that we've had more applications [from groups wanting to participate in the festival] than ever. Nobody doesn't want to be out there because they're worried. With the focus that [Salt Lake City mayor Erin] Mendenhall and the city have put on being 'flag-forward,' I feel pretty sure that people are going to feel safe and welcome."

The notion of the festival's value certainly extends to the participants and performers, including Living Traditions advisory board member Haviar Hafoka, who performs with the Polynesian music and dance group Malialole. Hafoka has been performing for 17 years at Living Traditions, and believes the festival has been an important place for people to connect with cultures like those of Pacific Islanders, separate from stereotypes that might exist about those communities. "To me, it means representation," Hafoka says. "It means being seen. It means being celebrated. Dancing helps bridge those gaps, where talking doesn't necessarily do it. A spiritual sort of sharing of energy is better."

Hafoka especially notes the festival's workshops as events that allow people to connect on a more personal, individual level. Connections of that kind are part of what makes Living Traditions an event not just about noticing and accepting the diversity of the Utah community, but celebrating it as something that adds value to a place in innumerable ways.

"It's that exposure that really helps people to understand," Higgs says. "You're being exposed to, 'These people exist and they're in our community.' But they're not just another person you shop next to at Costco; they bring something unique."