WILLIAMSBURG—The Ampersand International Arts Festival will be returning to William & Mary campus as well as Merchant Square March 16-22 with over 50 programs throughout the week.
Formerly The W&M Global Film Festival, the Ampersand International Arts Festival says it has a variety of programming during its week-long run, including special guests, films, theater, music, dance, author talks, and professional workshops. The City of Williamsburg sponsors the event as part of their initiatives to foster a more vibrant community, diversify local tourism, and support town-gown initiatives.
“We try to get people lots of opportunities to connect with each other and with the guests, just to make those connections,” said Liz Sykes, the Owner & Producer at AVAdventure Productions, the organizers for this event. “Learn more about having careers in arts and entertainment, and also just learn more about the craft itself, even if they’re not interested in going into a career in arts and entertainment.”
Some of the highlights for this year includes a show, Humor Magazine Live, which features 5 writers from late-night comedy shows, Leslie David Baker who played Stanley on “The Office” will be having a moderated conversation. Another moderated conversation will be had with Cecily Strong who the festival says is best known for her time as a cast member on Saturday Night Live. There will also be a concert by Grammy winner Sarah Jarosz during the festivities.
There are also special guests and W&M alumni who will be returning for the event. One of the highlights includes Jenny Hegel, who currently works in comedy on “Late Night with Seth Meyers.” She has a show she’s doing called “Jenny Hagle Give Advice.” She will be doing a workshop about comedy writing.
Another highlight is Chelsea Morado, who is coming back to present her series “The Fastest Six Weeks in Sports.” Morado was an executive producer for the series, and as such, the series will receive a full screening during the event. She will also be doing a Q&A and a workshop on documentary production.
“It really is about bringing world class talent to Williamsburg for the community and to draw visitors. We’re just excited to give people an opportunity to see these artists and performances that perhaps they otherwise wouldn’t have a chance to,” says Sykes.
The Ampersand International Arts Festival has been ongoing for almost two decades in Williamsburg.
“It’s fun. [Alumni] will come back and say ‘I went to this as a student,’ and ‘it’s cool to come back and see it’s still going on.’ We’ve even had some alums come back to present a workshop at the festival who attended as students,” said Sykes. “It’s just really cool to kind of see how it has evolved over the years and hear people’s stories about how it inspired them to do an internship that they hadn’t thought about before, or it gave them a connection that helped them get their first job, that sort of thing.”
Many of the events for the festival are free on a first-come, first-served basis. However, select programs are ticketed and can be purchased on ampersandfestival.com. Additionally, all current William & Mary students may attend festival programs for free.
To learn more about the Ampersand International Arts Festival, visit ampersandfestival.com
