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Polynesia, Japan to perform at Int’l Fest tomorrow
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Posted on Sep 09 2016
For the first time this year, the communities of Japan and Polynesia will take the stage at the 2016 International Festival of Cultures tomorrow, Sept. 10, joining a growing list of cultures that have performed at the free event each week.
Children of the Samoa/Fiji/Tonga community pose with a festival-goer at the International Festival of Cultures on Sept. 3, 2016. (Contributed Photo)
This Saturday’s festival kicks off the stage entertainment with the Japanese community at 5:45pm, followed by the Chamorro community at 6pm, the Carolinian community at 6:30pm and 9:30pm, Chuukese community at 7pm and 8pm, the Filipino community at 7:30pm, and the Korean community at 8:15pm. The highly anticipated Fiji/Tonga/Samoa community performs at 8:45pm, followed by the Tahiti/Marquesas/Cook Islands performance at 9pm.
Other cultures participating the festival include Marshall Islands, Bangladesh, Korea, and the Federated States of Micronesia. The festival is held every Saturday in September from 5pm to 10pm at Paseo de Marianas in Garapan.
“The festival just keeps getting more exciting each week,” said MVA Community Projects Specialist and event coordinator Ryan Calvo. “People can sample the roast pig cooked on site, learn coconut frond-weaving, watch pandanas mat-weaving, try ethnic dances, and last week, beat the Korean drum. That doesn’t include all the delicious food the various cultures are serving up.
This year, the MVA and participating cultures are putting equal emphasis on stage entertainment and hands-on experiences. The festival also includes arts and crafts and ethnic cuisine.
The festival is sponsored by PDM Promoters, Team PDI, Div. of Parks & Recreations, Dept. of Public Safety, Dept. of Public Works, Commonwealth Council for Arts and Culture, KKMP, Best Sunshine International, Ltd., and Power 99. (PR)
