Excitement surges around Spoleto

CHARLESTON -- Downtown Charleston was bustling Sunday afternoon as tourists, locals and those attending the first weekend of this year's Spoleto Festival gave evidence of a rebounding economy.

The mood was upbeat at Gaillard Auditorium, where the Sunday afternoon performance of Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, the all-male classical troupe dressed as ballerinas, nearly sold out.

Spoleto ticket sales won't be tabulated until after the festival, and festival Director Nigel Redden could not be reached for an update Sunday.

Piccolo Spoleto Executive Director Ellen Dressler Moryl was enthusiastic.

"Ticket sales are going well," she said. "I'm extremely pleased. It's still early, but I would predict sales are better than last year."

Outdoor events such as Saturday's Children's Festival in Marion Square have been particularly successful, she said.

Marion Square was also busy Sunday afternoon, as crowds checked out the annual art show and sale.

"There's a lot more happening this year," said Sabine Guiot Avcalade, an artist who has been involved for 13 years. "People seem more comfortable."

There's no doubt that Spoleto draws thousands to Charleston each year, but many of the visitors downtown Sunday were simply there to see the town. For instance, at the Holiday Inn across from Marion Square, a tour bus was unloading passengers. A woman who was with the group said they were from the United Kingdom and were touring the East Coast, and she was not familiar with Spoleto.

Whatever the reason, business was good at hotels and restaurants surveyed. All the rooms were booked at the Mills House Hotel. At Slightly North of Broad, a nearby restaurant, business was about 10 percent better than this time last year, a manager said.

The recently renovated City Market was also crowded Sunday afternoon, although the wider aisles made it easier for people to walk around.

Charlie Shelton has been selling prints of his wife Susan's pressed flowers there for 20 years. He said they usually don't get business from those attending Spoleto, but he sold a few prints to passengers of the Carnival Fantasy cruise ship that spent the day at the terminal.