Kuldīga resident weighs in: Old Town Festival vs. legendary Kuldīga Feast
A Kuldīga local reflects on why today's Old Town Festival shouldn't be compared to the once-legendary Kuldīga Feast, arguing each was simply the best fit for its own era. He admits he once wanted the old name restored, but changed his mind.
Following this year's town festival in Kuldīga, the author of an opinion piece shares thoughts on a comparison he hears often — that the earlier Kuldīga Feast (Dzīres Kuldīgā) was a better celebration than today's Old Town Festival. Having grown up attending these festivities, first as a child and later as a parent, the author recalls that Kuldīga has repeatedly been a pioneer in festival organizing, first expanding the town festival into a bigger event, and later transforming it into the legendary Kuldīga Feast, which drew visitors from across Latvia and abroad.
After the pandemic, the festival was renamed the Old Town Festival. The author admits that at first he was among those who wanted the old name restored, but after experiencing the first full-scale Old Town Festival, he realized he had been wrong — the new format wasn't trying to recreate the past but had created something of its own.
Smaller budget, different character
The author notes that the festival's budget and scale today are no longer what they once were, but this doesn't mean the event has become worse — it has simply become different: more intimate, more personal, and closer to the Old Town itself. He appreciates that today's festival belongs more to Kuldīga's own residents, with local entrepreneurs, artists and groups getting involved, creating a sense that the whole town, not a single organizer, shapes the event.
The author stresses that when people compare today's festival to festivals of the past, they are often not comparing two events but two different periods of their own lives and memories of youth. In his view, today's Old Town Festival will likewise become a cherished memory for some child in the future — because a good festival isn't one that repeats the past, but one that becomes a beautiful memory later on.
