Columbia, Md (Map, News) - It’s a banner year for Columbia.

Not only are the residents honoring the area’s 40th year as a premier planned community in Howard County, but the Columbia Festival of the Arts is celebrating its 20th anniversary, as well.

“A lot of things are coming together in this monumental year,” said Nichole Hickey, the festival’s executive director. “We’re bringing world-class acts right to your backyard. Nowhere else in the region will you be able to see that.”

The Columbia Festival of the Arts, which began in 1987, is a celebration of music, dance, theater, comedy and art. The event lasts for two weeks in June, and incorporates a variety of local, national and international artists.

Hickey said that one of the facets of this year’s celebration is the pairing of the best local groups with national and international performers.

“We’ll be celebrating through many various activities at the lakefront,” Columbia Association President Maggie Brown said. “There will be lots of hoopla and excitement. There will be quite a bit going on.”

One of the events Hickey is most excited about seeing is the performance from the Hampton Rock String Quartet, four musicians who play contemporary rock music in a classically arranged composition.

“They play everything from the Beatles, Led Zeppelin and Rolling Stones,” she said. “They are absolutely marvelous. I love this event. It crosses generations.”

The Columbia Pro Cantare, paired with the Minnesota Dance Company, will play live onstage while the company performs Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana” on June 15.

Barrage, a high-energy fiddling troupe, will take over the Rouse Theatre on June 18. “Barrage is really exciting. They dance, they jump, they fiddle. It’s just amazing,” Hickey said. “It’s jump-out-of-your-seat energy.”

Brown said that Jim Rouse, Columbia’s creator and developer, would be proud of what Columbia’s birthday celebration has become.

“He always told me that [Columbia] was the only community that he knew of that celebrated its birthday every year,” she said. “He would be so pleased to see that not only are we celebrating our birthday, but we are doing it in such a grandiose style. Columbia is a special place to have fun.”

For a full listing of events, visit columbiafestival.com.

ecampbell@baltimoreexaminer.com