Dances from Around the World Featured at the PLANO INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL

For Immediate Release    October 9, 2009

Contact:
Linda Adler, VP, Publicity, PIFC
Plano International Festival Corp.
214-244-9560, Linda-adler@hotmail.com

TANGO to the HULA, Dances from Around the World Featured at the PLANO INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL

This Saturday, October 10, downtown Plano’s Haggard Park will come alive with the sights and sounds of the world as local cultural groups take to the stage in colorful costumes to share their music and dance traditions. Feathered Aztec headdresses, German dirndls, Scottish kilts, and Indian saris will be among the many cultural costumes on display from 11:00am – 5:00pm. See below for a complete listing of performances.

The festival will begin with a Parade of Nations featuring over 80 international flags. Then up to 75 people will be sworn in as new citizens in a Naturalization Ceremony, with Plano Mayor Phil Dyer, Mrs. International Armaiti Shahidi, and UTD School of Management Dean Hasan Pirkul addressing the candidates. The Dallas Black Dance Theater Academy will then kick off the continuous multicultural performances, which will also include the Scottish Highland Dancers, Oksana Cobb’s Tango & ChaCha Studio, and Hawaiian dancing with Keola’s Hula Halau.

Festival visitors can browse cultural displays and shop for treasures from around the globe in the cultural booth area. Kids can explore the world in the Children’s Workshop area, featuring a unique mix of nearly 30 free hands-on craft projects and demonstrations. Kids can explore a Nigerian village, test musical instruments, paint Turkish tiles, learn Tae Kwon Do moves, try soccer kicks, and create craft projects from South Africa, France, China and Latin America. All receive a Festival Passport to get stamped at various country booths.

Attendees can stroll across Avenue H to the Courtyard Theater, where the Festival’s second International Art Exhibit is on display. It features a collection of works in oil, acrylic, ceramic, pastel and watercolor. The artists, all residents of Plano and surrounding communities, are from the US, Asia, Europe and Latin America. The exhibit is open daily through October 30 and is being held in conjunction with the Plano Art Association.

Rounding out the fun, the international food court will offer cuisine from eight cultures—Pakistan, Thailand, the Mediterranean, Puerto Rico, the US, Mexico, Poland and India.

The Festival will again be a green event—all attendees will be asked to sort their trash into organic, recyclable and regular trash bins. The Festival is providing all food court vendors with 100% biodegradable plates, bowls and utensils. The plates and bowls are made from sugarcane fibers and decompose more quickly even that uncoated paper plates. The utensils, called “spudware”, are made from potato starch, and will completely decompose. At the 2008 festival, over 50% of all waste generated was either composted or recycled due to this program. The Festival won the City of Plano’s Environmental Star of Excellence award for its efforts.

Event Program – All performances will take place at the Gazebo Stage
11:00 Parade of Nations
11:15 Opening Ceremony — Remarks by Plano Mayor Phil Dyer, Festival President Graciela Katzer and MCOR Co-Chair Dr. Christopher A. Parr
Naturalization Ceremony — Special remarks by Hasan Pirkul, Dean, School of Management, University of Texas at Dallas
Special Guests — Mrs. International 2009, Armaiti Shahidi Fitzgerald, and young prodigy saxophonist Matthew Babineaux
11:50 Dallas Black Dance Theater Academy
12:05 Latin Dancing with Oksana Cobb’s Tango & ChaCha Studio
12:15 Indian Dance with TKG Academy
12:25 Dr. O’s Medicine Show — Americana
12:35 International Fashion Show
1:15 Sa’diyya & the Art of Belly Dance
1:30 Argentinean Dances with the Argentine Cultural Foundation
1:40 Music from South Africa with Boitumelo
1:50 Plano Senior High German Folk Dancers
2:00 Ollin Tonalzin Aztec Dancers
2:15 Action Martial Arts
2:25 Chinese Dances with the Jasmines
2:35 Hawaiian Dancing with Keola’s Hula Halau
2:50 Scottish Dancing with The Dallas Highland Dancers
3:00 Turkish Dances with the Raindrop Foundation
3:10 “I Piccoli Colori” with the Italian Club of Dallas
3:20 Korean Multicultural Dance Team
3:30 Party Time featuring DJ Adam and the PIFC Rockers!

Email: info@PlanoInternationalFestival.org • Website: www.PlanoInternationalFestival.org

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