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Mabuhay! Filipino celebration returns this weekend to Victoria

Centennial Square will be filled with music, food, and arts Saturday and Sunday
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Live music accompanied the dance performances at Mabuhay Day in downtown Victoria in 2019. The annual celebration of Filipino culture returns to Centennial Square this weekend, June 11 and 12. (Black Press Media file photo)

Greater Victoria residents will have a chance to get a taste of Filipino culture Saturday and Sunday as the annual Mabuhay! Celebrating Philippine Culture event returns to Centennial Square.

From 11 a.m to 6 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, the free in-person event will feature performances from individual performers, Sampaguita Dance, and the newly established Choral Group of the Bayanihan Creative Collective.

Co-organized by the Victoria Filipino-Canadian Association and the Bayanihan Cultural and Housing Society, the event will also feature food, art and craft vendors, and games.

“This year’s Mabuhay! Celebrating Philippine Culture is special in many ways. Firstly, the event is now a two-day event which is a commemoration of the declaration of June as the Philippine Heritage Month in Canada as well as the Philippine Independence Day celebrated every June 12 in the Philippines,” the event organizers said in a news release.

“Secondly, 2021 marked the 20th anniversary of the BCHS, a milestone that is worthy of recognition but which was not properly celebrated due to the pandemic. This year would be its 21st anniversary, and celebrations, albeit delayed, are in order. Looking back at those two years and honoring the contributions of every member of the community, this year’s Mabuhay event is anchored on the theme ‘Rising from the Pandemic: A Celebration of Unity, Cooperation, and Resilience.’”

READ MORE: Folktoria brings multicultural experience to downtown Victoria


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