Patrons at next weekend’s 40th anniversary Folklore Festival are in for an Afro-Caribbean treat next weekend.
The two cultures will be front-and-centre on display at the annual Fort William Gardens event that celebrates all things global, from food and dance to music and traditions.
Jeanetty Jumah, the event chairwoman of sponsorship and marketing, said it’s a pretty special year for the Folklore Festival, and organizers are pulling out all the stops. “We’re going to make Thunder Bay become really hot in May,” Jumah said Saturday at Intercity Shopping Centre, where a sneak peak of some of the acts was put on display. “What we’re going to do is have an Afro-Caribbean Folklore Festival, with everything you can imagine – hot Caribbean food, hot Caribbean and African dancers, crafts in the free children’s area. We’re going to bring it all and have The Sattalites, the top Canadian reggae band, to Thunder Bay so we can enjoy our 40th anniversary Folklore Festival.”
The event has been a gathering place for decades, a kick-off to summer that in 2013 is a welcome departure from the snow and cold temperatures that have lingered on far too long.
Jumah said the people of Thunder Bay are a showcase of all different people from around the world, which is why Folklore remains so popular, despite its early Trudeau-era roots. “We have the Aboriginal cultures in our community. We have people from Italy, from Egypt, from all over the world, South America. At Folklore, what we do is celebrate how different we are, because every difference is an asset and it has helped to make Canada one of the richest and greatest nations on the planet. “We all work together and we build a wonderful country. We’re tolerant. We appreciate others and we see things as they should be in this world, a place where everybody can get along.”
Folklore is scheduled to begin Saturday at 12:20 p.m. when the Aplini Choir hits the stage to officially open the two-day festival.
Between then and the 7 p.m. closing ceremony on Sunday, dozens of acts will entertain, ranging from the Lakehead Chinese Folk Music Group to the Portuguese Folklore Dancers. Other highlights include the Pipes and Drums of Thunder Bay, the Zorya Ukrainian Dance Association and the Filipino Canadian Association of Thunder Bay.
Of course, while music and dance draw people to the Gardens, it’s the food that convinces them to stick around even longer.
There will be plenty to choose from in 2013. The Masala Grille is offering up Treasures of India, while Salweek, featuring traditional Burmese food, will make its Folklore debut. Ukrainian, Greek, Lebanese and Mexican are some of the other culinary treats on display.
For the more adventurous, the always popular beer and wine tent is back, and there will be plenty of workshops the entire family can enjoy.
As an added bonus, participants can also enter a free draw for airfare for two to anywhere Porter Airlines flies.
Tickets are $5 for adults, $3 for seniors and students, $1 for kids 11 and under and free for kids younger than three.
More information is available at www.folklorefestival.ca.
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