425th Anniversary of Roanoke Voyages

RIFP Brings Wide Range of Musical Entertainment to Pavilion Stage for Free Opening Ceremony of 425th Anniversary of Roanoke Voyages

Roanoke Island, NC -- Local musician, Mojo Collins, the band “Old Enough to Know Better” and the Renaissance Faire’s Musicians Royale will entertain guests at Roanoke Island Festival Park’s Opening Ceremony of the 425th Anniversary of the Roanoke Voyages celebration. Admission to the event is free and open to the public. Gates open at 6:00 p.m., and handicapped parking will be available at the park. The event is funded through the support of Dominion.

Mojo will premier several new songs including the ballad “Carolista Moon” and selections from “Devon to Dare.” He also will perform blues and jazz originals. He is an accomplished artist, and has won numerous honors including a Lifetime Achievement Award from Beat Magazine. He has played music festivals and conferences across the south, from the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Fest to headlining the International Slide Guitar Festival in Brevard in 2005. Before putting out records on his own label, Jomo, Mojo was signed to Fillmore Records out of San Francisco and was managed by Bill Graham.

The Renaissance Faire’s Musicians Royale will also take the stage that evening, performing 16th century and medieval music for visitors to enjoy. The group will sing common pub songs from the period, a lively pirate song or two, and a madrigal ballad. The Renaissance Faire 16th century historical interpreters and performers will join the Festival Park on the Outdoor Pavilion lawn for the rest of the week to commemorate the 425th Anniversary of the Roanoke Voyages.

The Opening Ceremony remembers and celebrates the 425th Anniversary of the Roanoke Voyages. In 1584, Queen Elizabeth I of England granted her devoted and stubborn subject, Sir Walter Raleigh, a patent to discover territory in the New World with the hope of establishing the first English colony there. The Roanoke Voyages—which Roanoke Island Festival Park commemorates with a week’s worth of programming beginning with the Opening Ceremony lasted three months. The Voyages finally ended when two ships from England led by Captains Philip Amadas and Arthur Barlowe landed on the shores of what is now known as Roanoke Island, North Carolina.

Join Roanoke Island Festival Park as it celebrates the historic Roanoke Voyages during the Opening Ceremony of the 425th Anniversary Celebration.

Date: July 13, 2009.

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The mission of Roanoke Island Festival Park is to involve residents and visitors, of all ages, in a creative and stimulating exploration of Roanoke Island’s historical, cultural and natural resources.

For more information about this event call (252) 475-1506 or visit us on-line at www.roanokeisland.com.