Staff reports  |  Eleven days of fun, exciting events ranging from dance, music and theatre that celebrate African-American and Caribbean arts are about to take off.

The 35th annual MOJA Arts Festival launches Thursday and will run through Oct. 7 with a rich variety of traditional favorites that make the festival continue as one of the Southeast Tourism Society’s 20 top events of the year.  Even better:  Nearly half of MOJA’s events are admission-free, and the remainder are offered at  modest ticket prices.

“Moja,” a Swahili word meaning “one,” is the appropriate name for this festival celebration of harmony among all people in our community, according to the festival’s website.