Tangerang to hold arts festival

TANGERANG: Tangerang municipality administration will hold its first-ever, three-day arts festival to commemorate its 11th anniversary, which falls on Feb. 28.

"The festival will be staged from Feb. 25 to Feb. 28 and will feature various arts and cultural performances," said Asep Ferry Bastian, a member of the organizing committee, on Wednesday.

The festival will include a book exhibition, monologue contest, theater parade, poetry-reading contest, painting and sculpture contest, talk show and traditional arts, including lenong (Betawi drama) and Betawi musical performances of tanjidor and gambang kromong.

"Tangerang has tended to be known only as an industrial town or a town with a prison and leprosy. Actually we are rich in culture," he said, adding that the festival would be held annually.

Tangerang Mayor Wahidin Halim will officially open the festival, which will commence with communal prayers. -- JP