WINNIPEG – In Folklorama’s 40th year, pavilions showed an average attendance increase of six percent and the organizers are happy according to Folklorama’s executive director Ron Gauthier.

The inclement weather during the first two weeks of August made pavilion hopping a challenge to many Folklorama enthusiasts but in spite of the rain and the three fewer pavilions, the organizers counted 442,000 visits to the 41 pavilions.

Gauthier also noted a record number of group tours that celebrated Folklorama’s 40th year.

The two Philippine Pavilions, Pearl of the Orient (Aug. 2 - 8) and Nayong Pilipino (Aug. 9 - 15), also experienced very good attendance numbers and received outstanding reviews from the audience and from the media.

“The visitors enjoyed watching the dancers perform the upbeat folk dances and … and they also relished tasting our traditional Filipino cuisine… I also talked to many tourists from the Philippines and other parts of the world who visited the two Philippine pavilions,” said Lito Taruc, president of the Philippine Association of Manitoba and coordinator of the Nayong Pilipino Philippine Pavilion at the Tec Voc School.

On Saturday, August 15, Folklorama concluded its 40th festival on a positive note. The annual multicultural fiesta has established a solid reputation of being the longest-running well-attended festival of its kind in the world.

See our Folklorama 2009 Photo Gallery.

Have a comment on this article? Send us your feedback