A series of workshops including Appalachian mountain clogging, kung fu and writing your name in ancient Egyptian will be part of the National Multicultural Festival next year.
These workshops will be available for the first time to mark the 25th anniversary of the festival when it returns on February 17 to 19, 2023.
It follows cancellations for the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
More than 260 stallholders and 96 local groups have been offered a place at Canberra's iconic festival, including community food vendors, multicultural and information stalls, commercial operators and diplomatic missions.
The ACT government has doubled the festival grant funding from $90,000 to 180,000 for the return of the event.
The additional funding is set to go towards a larger festival, which will be expanded into Glebe Park, and ensuring a COVID-safe environment.
Multicultural minister Tara Cheyne said the 2023 event had received the highest number of applications ever, "showing the multicultural communities of Canberra are ready for the festival to return".
The grants will also help with costs such as costumes and musical instruments - as well as host cultural performance showcases.
For he first time the event will feature an Afghan showcase, adding to well-loved favourites like the Latin Carnivale and Pacific Islands showcase.
Canberra Afghan Committee vice president Faisal Pirzad said his community will "address the event with great pride to contribute to the blaze of this vivid festival".
"Afghan poet, Rumi Balki once said 'everything that is made beautiful, fair and lovely is for the eye of one who sees.'"
Other cultural workshops on offer will include:
- How to wear an Indian sari or Korean hanbok
- Kung fu and tai chi
- Bush dancing
- Appalachian mountain clogging
- Tongan language greetings
- How to write your name using the Ancient Egyptian Coptic alphabet
Silver Soles Cloggers president Louise Frodyma said the group is excited to bring a clogging workshop to festival.
"We are looking forward to giving people the chance to come and try clogging for themselves and also learn a bit about the vast and colourful history of the dance style," she said.
More information about how to join the workshops will be available on the festival website closer to the event date.
Organisers are also seeking volunteers to support the event.
"The festival is a great event on the Canberra calendar, fostering cross-cultural awareness, promoting understanding and respect, and celebrating our cultural and language diversity. Many of us have attended the festival over the years. Joining the festival as a volunteer - even for a brief time - gives a whole new perspective and experience," Ms Cheyne said.
Each year, more than 500 volunteers play a crucial role in bringing the festival to life and include information assistants, emcees and stage managers.
Visit www.multiculturalfestival.com.au for more information.
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