Staff at the YMCA Mt Albert Community Centre are putting the finishing touches on the centre’s biggest event of the year, the Eden/Albert Schools Cultural Festival, to be held on Saturday 27th November 2010. The centre is run by YMCA Auckland, one of the oldest organisations in the country and leading provider of fitness, recreation, childcare, accommodation and sports.
Organisers are expecting 7000 people in attendance on the day, watching up to 40 different cultural performances from 11 local schools. Performances as diverse as Kapa Haka, Indian, Tongan, Japanese, Polynesian, Philipino, Cook Islands, Samoan, Niuean and more will share indoor and outdoor stages at the Mt Albert War Memorial Reserve, commonly known as Rocket Park.
“The festival began over 10 years ago, hosted by local schools, and became so successful that four years ago Auckland City Council asked YMCA Mt Albert to run the event,” says YMCA Mt Albert Community Centre Manager and festival organiser Robyn Brady. “It’s an enormous undertaking – we spend a full year planning and organising it. Ten YMCA staff members and a large group of volunteers work tirelessly to make the event happen on the day and we have the much needed support of funders like Auckland City Council, Community Boards of Eden Albert and Roskill, as well as local business sponsors,” she says. Apart from supporting the lineup of cultural performances, the team will also offer YMCA activities including Y-Kids games, youth programmes and amusement rides.
Brady says that the hard work is all worth it. “For me, the best part of the day is seeing children from so many different cultures sharing their experiences with one another. A child who was learning Irish dance last week may be learning Indian dance this week. Kids from Indonesia are learning the Haka. The children build confidence and character through learning, creating, practicing then performing for their families and for other schools. The benefits of the festival extend far beyond just one day.”
This celebration of diversity has a positive effect on not only the children involved, says Brady, but also on the wider communities of Mt Albert, Mt Eden and Mt Roskill. “So many of the parents involved are new immigrants, or second and third generation kiwis from a wonderful mix of different cultures,” she says. “It’s heartening to see everyone standing side by side, watching their children perform. The festival brings the community together and it has become a community in and of itself.”
Youth participation is central to the festival. The Raise Up N Represent crew volunteer to help run the event, acting as stage managers for the festival’s two stages. “Raise Up N Represent, our youth development programme, is a youth crew made up of young people from across all the schools in the area,” says YMCA Auckland’s OSCAR and Youth Programmes Manager Kev Carter. “The programme is run for youth, by youth.” Raise Up N Represent will provide a space for 13 to 18 year olds to relax and watch the show, and will also run a Tip Top ice cream caravan to help raise money for their ongoing programmes.
“It’s just a blast,” says Brady. “With stalls, food, excitement, and a bit of controlled chaos, this year’s festival promises to be an incredible day.”
The Eden/Albert Schools Cultural Festival opens with a pohwiri at 9 in the morning on the 27th of November, and continues through to 4 in the afternoon.