Culture jamming is back in Pickering with Culture Fusion at Esplanade Park

The party celebrating Pickering’s melting pot of cultures is returning to Esplanade Park Saturday, with a full day of culture jamming in the city’s downtown.

Culture Fusion, which was a hit last year in the inaugural presentation, is an international cultural event celebrated around the world, with a dynamic array of dance, music, food, and storytelling on the itineraries.

The party will include performers on the Gazebo Concert Stage and throughout the park, plus an artisan market, a fashion show and parade and Culturalicious, with culinary delights from around the world and right in Pickering’s backyard.

Donations at the free event and will be used to create a sculpture on site.  All food donations will be provided to St. Paul’s on the Hill Food Bank.

Performances at the event include an Indigenous drum and jingle dress dance, Canada’s National Lion Dance team, the West Indian Fusion dancers; as well as youth spoken word poetry, Chinese and Middle Eastern dancers and a sitar show, among many others.

Elexicon Energy Stage

11:10 am – Mayor Kevin Ashe & City of Pickering Recreation Socacize Dance with Amanda
11:30 am – Kylie Soundy & Maxwell Soundy with Rielle Lantaigne, Indigenous Drum and Jingle Dress Dance
11:45 am – Mariah Miigwans, Indigenous Hoop Dance
Noon        – Mariachi Gallos Canada
12:30 pm – Wushu Project – Canada’s National Lion Dance Team
1 pm –       Pan Fantasy
1:30 pm – West Indian Fusion Dance Center
1:45 pm – A.F.I.Y.U. Enterprise, Youth Spoken Word Poetry
2 pm –      Pickering Palestinian Association
2:15 pm – Gita Youth Musical Group
2:30 pm – Litmus Chinese Dance Association
2:45 pm – Sam Dema, Empty Your Backpack Tour
3 pm –     STCC Dance Academy
3:10 pm – Zahra’s School of Middle Eastern Dance
4 pm –     SOS – The Abba Experience

Community Performance Stage

1 pm       – Durham Tamil Association
1:15 pm – Mimi Batho & Friends, Indonesian Cultural Dance
1:45 pm – Zahra’s School of Middle Eastern Dance
2:15 pm – Tanya Hariharan, Sitar Performance
2:45 pm – West Indian Fusion Dance Center, Bollywood Fusion
3 pm       – Litmus Chinese Dance Association
3:15 pm – Pickering Palestinian Association, Palestinian Dabkeh Arabic Folk Dance
3:30 pm – STCC Dance Academy, Bollywood Fusion
3:45 pm – Fellowship Centre Church

The Culturalicious side of the party will introduce people to authentic Spanish paella and churros (Top Paellas Canada), Jamaican patties and jerk chicken (Pickering Caribbean Canadian Cultural Association), traditional, smoked meat, and vegetarian samosas (Smoking Samosas), Portuguese and Italian baked artisan goods (Sweet Bites Bakery), Halal hotdogs, beef burgers, veggie burgers, veggie hotdogs, and gyros (Sunny Hotdogs), soft ice cream and frozen treats (Donkey Kone) and smoothies (Booster Juice).

There will be an Artisan Market with a couple of dozen vendors including:

• Aboot Canada Eh
• Ana’s Fizz+
• Artistebyyums
• AW Crafty Creations
• Bittythings and Beasts
• Breckon Arts
• Bunny’s Burrow Crochet
• Changing Sky Designs
• Crafts by Sherine
• Crochet Craft by Shabi
• Curry People Candle Co.
• Daveenah
• Daysky Flowers
• Elegant Flowers
• Fereysol
• FLOWERCHILD
• Harsh Raghav
• Ikigai Artsy
• Jamm Designs
• JM Couture Crafts
• JT Productions
• Co
• Lago-Of-All
• Lippy Natural Products
• Little Wiggly Art
• Mac Ceramics
• Maggie Clough Fine Art
• Miigwans Creations
• Burt’s Essentials
• Sally’s Baubles
• NH Label
• Reshma Panchal
• Sandra Brown Collection
• Sharon Ridge
• Soul Scribe Jewellery
• Sue’s Gnomes
• Sugar and Crumbs Sweey House
• Sweet Bites Bakery
• SwirlzTwirlz Designs
• Taylor Creations
• The Spirit Lands
• Tulk Creations and More
• Twist and Twine Designs
• Unique Sprit Creations and
• Vicky the Real Artist

Community Groups:

• Girls Inc. of Durham
• Women’s Multicultural Resource and Counselling Centre
• F.I.Y.U. Enterprise
• Wyndam Manor Dental Care
• ONDP
• Young Singers
• Canadian Organization for Hindu Heritage Education
• Pickering Palestinian Association
• Zarha’s School of Middle Eastern Dance
• Welcome Centre Immigrant Services and
• Durham Region Unemployment Help Centre

The Pickering Public Library will also be there with a reading garden and a maker’s space.

To watch a video of last year’s Culture Fusion, check out https://youtu.be/TZToEJkXEHk