What can you expect at Tbilisoba 2015?

Summer may be on its way out but don't fear; it's almost time to celebrate Georgia’s annual festival that brings forward the diversity and history of its capital city.

On October 17 and 18, the streets of Old Tbilisi will come alive in the 35th annual Tbilisoba Festival, which was named in honour of Georgia’s capital city Tbilisi.

The event is marked as a public holiday in Georgia and the occasion will feature a number of events on the streets of Tbilisi.

The streets of Tbilisi exhibit Georgian fruit during the Tbilisoba celebration. Photo by N.Alavidze/Agenda.ge. 

However this year a number of changes are being made to the Festival's program, compiled by Tbilisi City Hall.

The winner of a public competition to rejuvenate the Festival has been revealed, and her ideas will see more cultural events be part of the Festival, not just drinking in the streets. First place winner Nino Lelashvili will have her ideas featured in this year’s Festival after she was chosen by the Tbilisi City Hall commission and online voting. By winning the top prize she also received 14,000 GEL.

I always associated Tbilisoba with a drinking feast on the streets. It’s my goal to transform it into something more interesting with creative activities,” said Lelashvili.

Lelashvili recently finished a Master’s degree in Marketing Management at the Rotterdam School of Management at Erasmus University in the Netherlands and has since returned to Georgia.

While announcing the winner a Tbilisi City Hall representative said: "The Tbilisi City Hall Municipal Department of Culture will combine the ideas of the three finalists and plan the Tbilisoba events according to their concepts.”

Earlier it was revealed Lelashvili was one of three short-listed citizen-submitted projects vying for the chance to rejuvenate the annual Tbilisoba event.

On September 3 Tbilisi City Hall announced said projects by Lelashvili, Paata Tsikolia and Studio 1 2 3 had been chosen from 21 entries submitted during a two-week application period. Each proposal was tasked with outlining their vision for the festival, noting how it should be organised, what stalls and activities could be included and more.

PDF files of the three shortlisted projects were uploaded to the Tbilisi City Hall website so the public could learn about their idea and vote for their favourite.

Lelashvili was imaginative with her ideas and thought it would be original to have memorable activities on the streets of Tbilisi. It included placing photobooths in different corners of the city, where people will have the opportunity to catch their memories on film.

Incorporating 3D street art was another idea of hers. She believed it was a form of communication between people and would bring forward the main themes of the annual Tbilisoba festival.

Meanwhile the second place winner was Studio 123, whose proposal wished to revive the areas of Old Tbilisi, especially Abanotubani district, the area known for its sulphur baths.

Tbilisi City Hall noted this idea might be incorporated into this year’s theme and a performance will be staged at the area with the support of Pantomime actors and actresses showing the characters and life of Old Tbilisi.

One concept in Studio 123's proposal involved video-art. Photo from Studio 123's PDF submission. 

Studio 123 also hoped to use some kind of video-art in the Tbilisoba Festival. Installations of theatrical caravans will be projected on the walls from Baratashvili Bridge down to Rike Park in the old town.

The proposal of third place winner Paata Tsikolia involved some sort of sporting activities along with a music festival and other events.

Although it is unknown whether all of these ideas will be taken into consideration during Tbilisoba 2015, the public is hoping for a celebration that will unite everyone and leave them pleased.