Folkfest 2019 (Folkfest/submitted)
Diverse cultures from all over the globe will be right here in Saskatoon during a three-day multicultural festival.
The Saskatoon Folkfest kicks off Thursday and will feature 17 pavilions that can be found throughout the city, according to the festival’s executive director, Terresa Strohan.
This year the event is bringing in a new culture at the Iranian pavilion.
Visitors can immerse themselves in the heritage through traditional musical instruments, displays, dancing and foods like kebabs and saffron desserts.
The festival has five separate locations for locals to visit such as the Friendship Centre downtown for the Indian and Metis pavilion, and the Irish pavilion at the Nutana Curling Club.
Prairieland, and International Place, also known as Merlis Belsher Place, will also be home to several more pavilions.
Diverse food is a key component to the festival, Strohan explained, noting that favourites such as Scottish haggis, Ukrainian perogies, Filipino pancit, and Cameroon puff puffs will be making a return this year.
“The entertainment is going to be lively cultural performances,” she added, noting that many local ethnocultural performers have been practising all year, and much of the entertainment integrates traditional and contemporary music that’s reflective of the cultures.
The Saskatoon Folkfest began in 1980 with 12 pavilions, and since then, the festival has celebrated more than 50 different cultural backgrounds, Strohan explained.
Last year, Folkfest introduced its online ticketing system which will return this year. Tickets provide access to all pavilions and the festival’s transportation buses between them.
Saskatoon Folkfest runs from 5 p.m. to midnight Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Details and locations of all the pavilions can be found on the festival’s website.