26/04/2013 00:00
TW
0

SOME thirty booths will be set up for Palma's 15th April Fair, which will open its doors on 30 April to offer a feast of music, dancing and food from Andalucia for a period of 10 days. Organised by the City Council in collaboration with the Andalucian Society of the Balearics, the fair was officially presented yesterday by the Mayor of Palma, Catalina Cirer; Maria José Frau, deputy for Citizen Culture and Entertainment; and Pedro Anaya, head of the Andalucian Society on the Islands. This year, 29 booths have been set up at the Fira del Ram (Easter Fair) exhibition area, occupying a surface area of 5'200 square metres.
Cirer announced that this year, emphasis will be placed on daytime activities “with live musical events on a daily basis”; it is hoped this daylight scheduling will mean a higher level of safety for attendees and a more restful night for people living in the immediate area. With this in mind, María José Frau affirmed that during the working week, the booths at the April Fair will be able to present music and dancing between the hours of 5pm and 2am. Half an hour after this deadline, the exhibition area will be required to shut down, while at weekends and public holidays, night-time entertainment will be allowed to continue to 4.30am. After the official opening of the Fair by the Mayor of Palma on 30 April at 9.30pm, members of the Mounted Police will provide an awe-inspiring display at the exhibition ground on 1 May; with two other horse spectaculars taking place on 2 & 8 May. Events at the Fair will draw to a close on 9 May with a festive Mass traditional in Andalucia, a horse-riding exhibition by the Mounted Police and a demonstration of the traditional way of serving sherry, poured from a height. Mayor Cirer said that the City Council's prime contribution to the April Fair will be the work of local police and firemen of Palma, as well as maintenance and cleaning operations carried out by Emaya, the city's water and rubbish collection company. Pedro Anaya explained that the poster announcing this year's April Fair in Palma had been created by Luis Maraver, a painter originally from Seville in Andalucia who is now living on Majorca. Anaya was keen for as many members of the public as possible to come and support the Fair where there will be a sevillanas (dancing) competition held between 3 and 8 May at the stand mounted by the Andalucian Society in the Balearics.