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More Than 60 Nations to be Represented
at July 24-25 Event in Tower Grove Park
(ST. LOUIS--) July 9, 2004----Become a
world traveler in one weekend without ever
leaving St. Louis at the International Institute's
annual "Festival of Nations."
The event will be held Saturday and Sunday,
July 24-25 in beautiful Tower Grove Park
on St. Louis' Near South Side. The St. Louis
area's foreign-born residents will share
the traditions of their native lands at
this lively, colorful outdoor festival,
which showcases ethnic foods, music, dance,
arts and crafts and the cultures of newcomers
from around the world who now call St. Louis
home.
Festival hours are 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.
on Saturday, July 24, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
on Sunday, July 25. The festival will be
held in the southeast corner of Tower Grove
Park, near the corner of Grand and Arsenal
avenues.
By tradition, the festival will kick off
with the vibrant "Parade of Nations,"
beginning at 10 a.m. on Saturday. This colorful
parade, which features local ethnic groups
and neighborhood organizations as well as
spirited dancers, musicians and street performers,
steps off at Grand and Utah Street (at St.
Pius V Church), proceeds north on Grand
and ends at the main (east) entrance to
Tower Grove Park.
 This
year's Festival of Nations includes several
new features such as the Village Green,
where festival-goers can join in on informal,
free dance lessons including Spanish Flamenco,
popular Indian dancing and the Mexican Hat
Dance. Also debuting will be the World Music
Stage, where visitors can enjoy, among others,
local world music favorites Farshid Etniko,
Chia Band, Clave Sol and new sensation,
Africa's Voice in the World.
More than 60 food and gift booths, ethnic
craft and cultural demonstrations, and two
stages of non-stop dance and musical entertainment
will highlight this year's Festival of Nations.
In addition, a wide range of children's
activities, including arts and crafts, face-painting
and an international petting zoo, will be
on site. Foods, beverages and authentic
hand-made gift items will be available for
purchase.
"The Festival of Nations is the perfect
opportunity for people of all ages to experience
and celebrate the surprising international
diversity that exists here in St. Louis,"
said Anna Crosslin, president of the International
Institute of St. Louis, the not-for-profit
agency that organizes and sponsors the event.
"Best of all, there is no admission
charge. All music and dance performances
and even the children's activities are free."
Crosslin added that the Festival of Nations
holds particular importance this year due
to the cancellation, for budgetary and production
reasons, of the Institute's popular International
Folkfest in October. "Though we've
sponsored the smaller Folkfest for the past
12 years, the Festival of Nations has grown
exponentially," she explained. "With
limited energy and production funding, it
made eminent sense to merge the two festivals,
which feature many of the same organizations,
in order to generate greater impact in the
community."
Festival of Nations is made possible with
the generous support of the Regional Arts
Commission, Missouri Arts Council, Emmis
Communications and KMOV-TV. Additional support
is being provided by Willert Home Products,
Western Union, The Boeing Company, Coldwell
Banker Gundaker, Starbucks, Commerce Bank
and Webster University.
Since 1919, the International Institute
has been providing adjustment services to
new Americans in St. Louis, helping them
become productive citizens, and promoting
public awareness of the important contribution
ethnic diversity makes to the St. Louis
area economy and quality of life. In 2004,
some 8,000 refugees and immigrants of 85
ethnicities will benefit from English classes,
job placement services and mental health
and economic development programs at the
Institute. For more information, log on
to www.iistl.org. |
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