Total Festum au Pont-de-Montvert

Occitan culture at the foot of Mont Lozère

Total Festum au Pont-de-Montvert is part of the regional festival Total Festum, initiated by the Occitanie / Pyrénées-Méditerranée Region to celebrate Occitan and Catalan languages and cultures around the summer solstice each year. In Pont-de-Montvert-Sud-Mont-Lozère, a historic Cévennes village crossed by the Tarn river, the event takes on a particularly authentic dimension, rooted in a territory where the Occitan language and traditions remain alive.

The ADOC Lozère association, guardian of Occitan culture

The event is organized by ADOC Lozère, an association dedicated to the promotion and transmission of the Occitan language and culture in the Lozère department. Thanks to its network of passionate volunteers and committed artists, ADOC Lozère makes Total Festum au Pont-de-Montvert a special moment of intergenerational sharing around the intangible heritage of the Cévennes.

A rich program of discoveries

The festival unfolds over two days, Friday and Saturday, with a varied program that invites discovery and participation:

• Friday afternoon: Children's storytelling, children's dance on the quay
• Friday evening: Musical performance at Ferme Albaric with Occitan artists such as the show “Veici Vèn”
• Saturday morning: Thematic Occitan café on béals and people, introductory workshop to traditional Occitan singing led by Elsa Levy, open to all
• Saturday afternoon: Ethnology conference with specialized speakers such as Josiane Ubaud (ethnobotany) or Claude Alranq, street entertainment by Branka Bodegaires on the quays
• Saturday evening: Storytelling by the Tarn river by Florant Mercadier, followed by the grand Saint-Jean bonfire with traditional dances and the lighting by the Atubaires

The Saint-Jean bonfire: a moment of communion

The highlight of the festival is undoubtedly the Saint-Jean bonfire, an ancestral tradition celebrated on the banks of the Tarn. After the storytelling and dances animated by the Branka Bodegaires, the large bonfire is lit in a magical atmosphere, between the old stones of the village and the murmur of the river. This centuries-old ritual, which marks the summer solstice, takes on a special resonance in this historic village.

Craft and itinerant toy library workshops

Throughout Saturday, the quays of Pont-de-Montvert host traditional craft workshops, an itinerant toy library Avanta'Jeux offering traditional wooden games, and stands for local products. These participatory activities allow families to discover the ancestral know-how of the region while having fun, in a spirit of transmission and conviviality.

An exceptional village

The choice of Pont-de-Montvert as the location for Total Festum is no accident. This Cévennes village, the starting point of the Camisard revolt in 1702, is a major site of Protestant and Occitan history. Located at the confluence of the Tarn and Rieumalet rivers, at the foot of Mont Lozère and in the heart of the Cévennes National Park, it offers an exceptional natural and heritage setting to celebrate the living culture of Occitania.