Beyond Folklore: The Festival Interceltique de Lorient

Examining some elements from the Festival Interceltique de Lorient (FIL) offers a prism that can bring to light certain traits in the changing processes at work within Brittany’s traditional culture. The festival is held in a modern perspective in so far as it takes up some characteristic aspects from 20th century folk festivals. Other traits link FIL with post-modern recreational celebrations. Among them, asserting local political issues wrapped up in terms of belonging, along with a deliberate inscription in a globalized world, and obvious bonds with the industries of culture and aesthetic forms of show business. The paper shows that FIL is not only the place and time when a traditional culture may be revisited in its shaping and symbolical message, it is a moment when that very culture is being re-negotiated.