Arts & Entertainment
Tifton is proud of its reputation as a city where cultural arts shine in a variety of beautiful venues.
Annual Events
Rhythm & Ribs Festival
Held during the first weekend of March in Fulwood Park, this festival has grown each year and has earned its place as one of the premier barbecue competitions in the state. Professional and backyard barbecue teams fill Fulwood Park with an enticing smoky aroma as well as thousands of visitors shopping with vendors, enjoying a variety of children’s activities and listening to a full day’s lineup of musical entertainment at the Syd Blackmarr Stage.
Hometown Holidays
Held during the first weekend of December, the festival gets area citizens and many visitors in the mood for the holiday season. The annual Christmas parade kicks off the celebration as it makes its way through downtown Tifton and is followed by the official lighting of the City of Tifton’s Christmas tree at City Hall. Thousands of families enjoy activities downtown throughout the night. Other activities such as the Holiday Tour of Homes, a 5K Run, Breakfast with Santa and a Family Holiday Movie Night at Brodie Field precede the big event Saturday night to make for a full weekend of holiday fun.
Arts in Black
Held each April at Fulwood Park, the festival celebrates African-American arts and culture with a full day of music, dancing exhibitions, and food. A talent show is also held at the Tift Theatre in downtown Tifton in conjunction with the festival, which originated over 30 years ago.
La Fiesta del Pueblo
Held on the last Saturday in September at Fulwood Park, La Fiesta celebrates Hispanic culture and promotes cultural awareness among residents in South Georgia. Entertainment takes place on the stages at the park throughout the day with many food vendors specializing in Hispanic fare. There are also free children’s activities, educational and health booths and the day is capped off with a street dance in the evening.
Omega Pepper Festival
Held on the second Saturday of September, the town of Omega is filled with visitors enjoying the Pepper Festival parade, dozens of food and arts and crafts vendors, and lots of musical entertainment.
Folk Life Festival & Quilt Show
Held on the first Saturday of April, visitors can take a trip back in time at the Georgia Museum of Agriculture. Music, food and even a ride on the steam train packs the museum grounds along with a beautiful collection of quilts which are on display throughout the day. The festival also serves as the opening of the seasonal Wiregrass Farmers Market, which is held on the grounds through the spring and into summer.
Independence Day Celebration
Held on July 3 at the Georgia Museum of Agriculture, visitors can take advantage of many attractions throughout the day at the museum and when the sun sets, a fantastic fireworks celebration, one of the largest in South Georgia, caps off the day’s activities.
Arts Affair
The festival will be held on November 3rd and 4th, 2023.
Venues
Fulwood Park
This 28-acre city park was originally donated to Tifton by its founder, Captain Henry Harding Tift under the condition that it remain a public park, free and available to the public. It was named after C.W. Fulwood, an early settler of Tift County and sports a large playground, picnic pavilions, fields and restrooms. Special events and concerts are held throughout the year on the outdoor Syd Blackmarr Stage and in 2017, it became home to a disc golf course. The park is located on the black surrounded by Tift Avenue, 8th Street, Old Ocilla Road and 12th Street.
Tift Theatre for Performing Arts
The Tift Theatre originally opened in 1937 as an Art Deco-style theatre and has been carefully renovated, featuring a Carrara glass façade embellished with neon lights. The 650- seat theatre is home to a variety of stage performances, concerts and pageants. The theatre is available for rental.
UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center
Located on the campus of the University of Georgia’s Tifton Campus, the conference center offers full conference and event services. With over 95,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, the UGA TCCC offers 17 conference rooms equipped with the latest audio/visual technology, ballroom and banquet facilities, the 2,035-seat John Hunt Auditorium and a smaller 350-seat auditorium.
Georgia Museum of Agriculture & Historic Village
Part of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, the museum takes visitors back to the 19th century as staff members share the history as they perform daily active duties whether in the farmhouses, fields, sawmills, turpentine still, blacksmith’s shop, classroom or grist mill. The museum opened as the Georgia Agrirama in 1976 and over 35 structures have been relocated to the 95-acre site and faithfully restored or preserved.
The Syd Blackmarr Art Center
Housed in a 110-year-old architectural treasure that was originally the First Methodist Church, the museum was the first brick church built in the community and it brought a refined elegance at the turn of the century to the growing town. It serves as a cultural anchor for downtown Tifton and provides regular arts, education and cultural programming to people of all ages and interests. It is also frequently rented for weddings, receptions and a variety of social and civic events.
