A Whole Celebration of Being

A WHOLE CELEBRATION OF

BEING AUSTRALIAN

AUSTRALIA DAY DANDENONG STYLE, COMPLETE WITH BEACH, INFLATABLE TOYS AND A GIANT SAND SCULPTURE

WORDS AGNES DE ROMAS, FESTIVALS AND EVENTS OFFICER, CITY OF GREATER DANDENONG

Recognised as Victoria’s Event of the Year at the 2020 PLA Awards of Excellence, the 2020 Dandenong Australia Day Festival was held on a warm, sunny day in Dandenong Park with 12,000 people in attendance. Across the afternoon and into the evening, families and friends enjoyed a fun-fi lled day of rides, food trucks, free workshops and activities, exciting performances and a fi rework show to conclude the event. To bring it to a whole new level of national pride this year,

Greater Dandenong Council also brought the beach to the middle of Dandenong

Park, complete with a sandpit, infl atable beach toys and a giant sand sculpture.

Australia Day Festival is a signifi cant celebration for the Greater Dandenong community, the most culturally diverse city in Australia. With residents from more than 150 diff erent nations — many of whom are fi rst-generation Australians and from non-English speaking backgrounds — it is a unifying celebration.

The Australia Day Festival was created with the aim of celebrating diff erent communities and bringing them together in an event that honours and celebrates those similarities and diff erences. This year’s event was able to do this successfully in four ways: an exciting new beach theme, the Australia Day Awards, community-focus, and a culturally diverse program.

For the 2020 Australia Day Festival, City of Greater Dandenong’s Festivals and Events team sought a new way for the community to celebrate being Australian. The theme of Bringing the Beach to Dandenong, in a landlocked suburb, brought a novel and enjoyable element to the day. A key beach attraction was the sand-play area built by Council’s Operations team the day prior to the festival. The dimensions of the sand-play area allowed for the easy installation of pop-up marquees that provided children with shade as they played. The marquees’ blue and yellow colours evoked the beach, as did the colourful deckchairs surrounding the play area.

The event also featured the live build of a giant koala-themed sand sculpture by Peter from Sandstorm Events. The sculpture acknowledged the Australian native wildlife and habitat lost during the bushfi re season of 2019-2020. Attendees saw a koala and its baby come to life before their eyes with the word “Hope” engraved at the base. This popular art installation was a highlight for many, and further engendered pride in Australia.

Each year, the Greater Dandenong Australia Day Awards ceremony is held as part of the Australia Day Festival. It is a highlight of the event program, recognising outstanding local people who contribute to the welfare of their city and betterment of their peers. The program awards eff orts in areas such as volunteering and charity work, and encourages and inspires others to make a diff erence in the community.

A key attraction of the Australia Day Festival is its exciting multicultural entertainment program. The Melbourne Djembe troupe kicked off the festivities, treating the crowds to lively West African drumming. Hustle Dance Crew also had people moving along to many K-Pop dances. With a style reminiscent of the suave, swinging sounds of Serge Gainsbourg and the French Yéyé genre of the 60s, Moogy and Ash Davies delivered musical performances in both French and English. Finally, before the fi reworks show that ended the night, the Wadaiko Rindo group energised the whole audience with visual displays of stamina, strength and humour from their unique blend of Australian and Japanese drumming.

The Australia Day Festival provides an opportunity for many diverse communities to come together and engage in the one space while enjoying a diverse program, diff erent free activities and food. The event organisers worked closely with