The Festival of Saudade made its debut. The doors opened at 5pm and, from that moment on, dozens of visitors came and went to the festival, which took place for the first time yesterday, August 15, in the city of Fátima.
To the sound of good Portuguese music, people ate, drank, danced, sang and, above all, smiled a lot. The first day of the Festival da Saudade, which took place for the first time this year, was a success and brought together families and friends at the Fátima Heliport. As well as being a great summer festival, the party took place in what is probably one of the most devout cities in Portugal. Not just those who are in Portuguese territory all year round, but especially the Portuguese who are emigrating around the world.
France, England, Brazil, Switzerland and even China – many were the countries from which revelers came to see their favorite artists.
The sunny afternoon began calmly, but always with a party. The stage was opened with a great concert by The Peorth, who sang internationally known rock hits. Then the artist Lorenzo came on stage with his dancers, leaving a trail of happiness and very Portuguese music in the air. In an interview with Ponto PT, the artist made it clear that he was “very happy” to be in “his” municipality of Ourém and knows that, as this is an area with many emigrants, he will feel a “special nostalgia” at the end of the concert. He dedicated one of his hits, the song “cadela” (bitch), to all his fans and closed the concert beautifully.
Portuguese comedian Herman José drew laughter from the audience and, as always, was a great success, putting everyone in a good mood.
As the day grew dark, a large red heart appeared on stage to symbolize nostalgia and, behind it, there was a countdown to Mickael Carreira’s performance, which, as always, won the hearts of the audience.
Among the many fans who occupied the front rows, a young woman was chosen to accompany the artist on stage. Vera Jesus, from Alto Alentejo, came alone to the Festival da Saudade with the great aim of seeing her idol Mickael and it was with great joy that she said: “I was very surprised to be asked to dance with Mickael on stage. I’m leaving fulfilled”.
The festival ended to the sound of Mariza, the great Portuguese fado singer. Covered in a sequined dress, she shone brighter than the starry sky we saw last summer night. The artist sang and enchanted at the Festival da Saudade and dedicated to everyone an as yet unreleased song entitled “Amar-te”, from the new album that “is still in the oven”.
Vitor and Helena were one of the most passionate couples in the audience while Mariza sang. The “lovebirds” danced in each other’s arms and didn’t let their feelings of love go unnoticed. They have been married for 27 years, and this week they came from far away, from São João da Madeira, at the invitation of their daughter, as an anniversary present. Extremely happy and moved by their surroundings, they say they have “a great desire for the festival to have more editions”.
There was no shortage of joy throughout the festival. The audience shouted and vibrated to the sound of each artist, but there was a taste of “wanting to come back” that will surely leave a lot of “nostalgia”.
The stories of Portuguese emigrants who feel the word “saudade” like no other
Manuela Silva was one of the first to arrive at the venue. As she is a “little girl”, she waited patiently in the front row of the stage for several hours during which various singers performed. Standing and accompanied by her husband, she watched The Peorth, Lorenzo and Herman José, Mickael Carreira and Mariza, who, according to her, were the artists who “really made her come to the festival”.
Manuela has emigrated to England and “took advantage” of her visit to Fátima to see her favorite artists. She says she’s been in England for 20 years, but has family in Portugal and comes to visit them every year. As far as she’s concerned, she thinks there were a lot of emigrants present, as this is a festival dedicated to them. Manuela Silva stood firm in the front row of the festival and, at the end, even managed to get a greeting from Mariza, who in her opinion is “the best Portuguese fado singer”. “I thought this festival was spectacular. It’s a great joy to be here, especially near Fátima. I’m delighted,” says Fernando Caminha. He has been an emigrant in France for over 50 years, returns every year to Portugal, the country of his heart, and wants to “return for good in retirement”. Despite having his children in France, he says that the whole family has a great desire to return to Portugal every vacation. “In Portugal, life is different. There are parties everywhere and I think this is the best way to spend time with friends. I have to say that Mariza’s show was immense. I loved her interaction with the audience,” Fernando ends with great joy. “We’re very happy that these festivals exist because we know well what nostalgia is,” Emília Marques and Manuel Alves.
There’s no shortage of love stories at the Festival da Saudade, even the most unlikely ones. Emília Marques and Manuel Alves are married, but even before they met, they had Portugal as their “land of longing” since they emigrated at a young age.
With their chairs set up and “very well settled”, they came to see Herman José, Mickael and Mariza and told us their story. Manuel emigrated to Paris, France in 1970 and his wife to France in 1958. They met while emigrating, got married, had two daughters and, after 11 years of the eldest’s life, returned to their “much-loved” Portugal, where they have remained for 36 years. “We love this kind of initiative and hope it will be repeated. We’re thrilled that there are festivals that are mostly dedicated to emigrants, because we’ve been there and we know what nostalgia is like. It’s hard,” they say, visibly moved.
Today, August 16, there is still a lot of joy and music to be enjoyed, accompanied by the beautiful voices of the Portuguese. Padre Borga, Joana Amendoeira and the greatest idol of all Portuguese in general, Tony Carreira, will fill the grounds of the Festival da Saudade and leave the city of Fátima with an even more Portuguese timbre.
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