Apollonia park turns into art venue for one week

TIRANA, July 17 – Exhibitions, music and theatre performances will be staged in the Apollonia archeological park in week-long international festival. The Apollonia International Fest scheduled to be held in the country’s second largest archeological park from July 18 to 23 will bring together painters, singers, musicians and actors performing for one week.
After closing in Apolonia park, the festival will travel to Italy’s Apulian in July 28 and August 18, festival organizers say.
The festival targets promoting young artists who are finding it more and more difficult to launch their career considering the small financial support available.
This festival is an event that takes place during the summer months in Fier and Apollonia. It is a detailed program that includes concerts, theatre, opera, ballet, painting and photo exhibitions and cinema. Different artistic bands, orchestras and folk music groups from regional countries participate in this event.
The festival also serves to promote cultural heritage tourism in Albania.
Excavations in the Apollonia park began during World War I by Austrian archaeologists. The process continues as it is believed that most of the city is still deep below Apollonia’s hills. Established in the 7th century B.C., by Greek settlers, the ancient city of Apollonia is located 11 km to the west of the modern city of Fier.
Among the most interesting monuments worth visiting are the Bouleterion (city council), the library, the triumphal arch, the temple of Artemis, the Odeon built in the 2nd century B.C., the two-storey 77 m long Stoa, a theater with a capacity 10000 spectators, and the Nymphaeum, a monumental water fountain covering an area of 2000m2.
The Apollonia park also features a museum with some of the most important artifacts discovered in the park.
Closed down on safety grounds in the early 90s, the museum of Apollonia, the second biggest archeological park in Albania after Butrint, reopened its doors in December 2011 after 20 years. Restored under UN and UNESCO assistance, the reopened museum in the southwestern district of Fier, features 750 archeological items and ancient coin treasuries, displayed in a 1,000 m2 area, previously stored in the Archeology Institute of Tirana.