For 17 days and nights each spring, Spoleto Festival USA fills Charleston’s historic theatres, churches and outdoor spaces with over 120 performances by renowned artists and emerging performers in disciplines ranging from opera, theater, music theater, dance, and chamber, symphonic, choral, and jazz music, as well as the visual arts.

Spoleto Festival USA has firmly established itself as one of the world’s major arts festivals, presenting 100 world premieres and 93 American premieres since its inception in 1977. One of the Festival’s tenets is to provide young performers the opportunity to work with veteran directors, designers and performers.

The 32nd season of Spoleto Festival USA will take place May 23-June 8. During this time, artists and ensembles from around the world will perform over 45 productions in a spectacular program of some 140 performances. In addition, the newly renovated Memminger Auditorium will finally take its place as one of Charleston’s premier venues.

This year, the Spoleto Festival will feature two major operas: A new production of the Anthony Davis landmark opera Amistad in a revised version and presented in the new Memminger Auditorium, and Gioachino Rossini’s La Cenerentola.

Amistad first premiered at the Chicago Lyric Opera a decade ago and has not been produced since. At the time of its premiere, a lot of critics said the opera was too large. Festival Music Director Emmanuel Villaume and General Director Nigel Redden asked Anthony Davis to revise the piece for a new production this year so that the important story of Amistad could come alive in the theatre once again. The festival has also planned numerous events linked to Amistad including performances of other works by Davis, artist talks and roundtables at the Avery Center, a walking tour of sites related to African American history in Charleston, and screenings of related films at the Charleston Public Library.

Other theatre offerings this year include a musical theatre production of Monkey: Journey to the West, an event that boasts a score that blends western popular music with Chinese instrumentation, a cast of singers, martial artists and acrobats from China, a director steeped in western and eastern forms, and a designer whose credits include comic books and video games, and The Be(a)st of Taylor Mac by activist Taylor Mac who brings to Charleston his acclaimed New York presence offering up a blend of stream-of-consciousness dialogue and original songs accompanied by a ukulele, all while clad in drag!

The Festival’s 2008 Carolina First Dance Series zig-zags across continents and traditions, providing audiences with a remarkable opportunity to view work from some of today’s most impressive dance makers. The dance series starts with the dancers of the Boston Ballet in an imaginative program that showcases both their charm and high level of technical skill. Later, the Ballet du Grant Theâtre de Genève will make its Spoleto Festival USA debut under the direction of Philippe Cohen in a triple bill showcasing three international choreographers.

The Spoleto Festival USA Orchestra will command center stage at the annual Festival Finale at Middleton Place Plantation. The gates of Middleton Place will open at 3:30pm that day, and patrons are encouraged to arrive early to picnic or explore the gardens and grounds before descending to the Butterfly Lakes for a twilight concert followed by a spectacular fireworks display over the Ashley River.

Ticket prices range from $10 to $150. To purchase tickets or see a complete list of performances and venues, please visit www.spoletousa.org, or call 843-579-3100.