CHARLESTON — Brass instruments echoed down Broad Street at the opening ceremony for Spoleto Festival USA, the Holy City’s beloved international arts extravaganza.
Held in front of Charleston City Hall, the free public event drew residents, visitors, artists and civic leaders together to celebrate the start of 17 days of performances and cultural programming across the city.
“There is no escaping electricity in the air, that feeling of wonder and excitement as Spoleto and its varied variety of offerings fill Charleston with energy that has inspired us to celebrate together for close to half a century,” said Charleston City Councilmember Mike Seekings.
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The start to summer in Charleston means Spoleto Festival USA is in town 🥳 To kick of the 2026 season, the festival hosted their annual opening ceremony in downtown Charleston.
The gathering featured performances from student musicians from Burke High School’s High Stepping Marching Bulldog Band. The appearance marked the first time in more than a decade that the school’s band participated in the festival’s opening celebration. Student musicians from Charleston Jazz Academy also performed.
The annual ceremony, presented in partnership with the City of Charleston and Piccolo Spoleto, has long served as one of Charleston’s signature civic gatherings and a joyful opening for the new Spoleto season.
“Let me say plainly what we at Spoleto and in Charleston believe,” said Spoleto’s general director and CEO Mena Mark Hanna. “We believe that the arts are not ornamental to civic life, they are constitutive of it, that the arts are integral to a strong, safe, democratic society. They are how a community discovers what it believes, how it grieves, how it argues with itself and how it imagines forward.”
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Burke High School marching band performs during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Mena Mark Hanna, General Director and CEO of Spoleto Festival USA, delivers brief remarks during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Rochelle Riley (left), the Charleston’s director of cultural affairs, records the Burke High School marching band perform during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Festival goers watch from the sidewalk along Broad Street as the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA is held outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Burke High School marching band’s performance is recorded by onlookers during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Festival goers participate in the activities during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Confetti is wrapped around festival goers shoes during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Charleston City Councilman Mike Seekings welcomes the crowd during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Burke High School marching band performs during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Mena Mark Hanna, General Director and CEO of Spoleto Festival USA, delivers brief remarks during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Rochelle Riley (left), the Charleston’s director of cultural affairs, records the Burke High School marching band perform during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Festival goers watch from the sidewalk along Broad Street as the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA is held outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Burke High School marching band’s performance is recorded by onlookers during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Festival goers participate in the activities during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Confetti is wrapped around festival goers shoes during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Charleston City Councilman Mike Seekings welcomes the crowd during the opening event of the 50th Spoleto Festival USA outside Charleston City Hall, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Charleston.
Spoleto exists to bring people together from different walks of life, Hanna said.
This year’s Spoleto Festival features more than 110 performances spanning opera, theater, dance, jazz, chamber music and community-focused events, unified by the theme of freedom of expression and its role in shaping American cultural life.
Founded in 1977 by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Gian Carlo Menotti, Spoleto Festival USA has grown into one of the nation’s leading performing arts festivals, bringing together world-renowned performers and Charleston’s extraordinary talent. This year marks a milestone season for Spoleto as it coincides with America’s 250th anniversary.
