More than 30,000 people will descend on Swangard Stadium on Aug. 6 for the 15th annual Korean Cultural Heritage Festival.
From Korean art exhibitions and traditional cuisine, visitors are guaranteed to get a real taste of the culture.
Organizers tell the NOW the event has significantly grown the last little while, especially since they brought it back to Burnaby. The first festival in 2001 was held here, but it was then moved to Coquitlam until it came back in 2014 as a result of a $15,000 grant from the city.
“Before, it was a festival organized by Koreans for Koreans,” says Mike Suk, executive director of the Korean Cultural Heritage Society. “Our national unity is made up of our diverse cultures. We basically opened up the festival to the mainstream. We said, ‘You know what? This shouldn’t be for Koreans, but for all our neighbours and fellow citizens to come out.’
“This festival by name is called the Korean festival, but it belongs to everybody in our community. It’s very much about the Canadian story and celebrating multiculturalism.”
Suk adds, before organizers implemented their “new vision” three years ago, the festival attracted only a couple thousand people.
While the gathering sheds light on a lot of the culture’s traditions and history – like a re-enactment of an old battle scene featuring more than 200 volunteers on the field – it will also showcase its modernity.
“For example, South Korea is famous for break dancing. At our opening ceremony, there will be a professional break dance group led by a Korean champion, and they’ll be doing a set,” says Suk.
Meanwhile, one of the events that has grown in popularity since 2014 has been the Korean pop (or K-pop as it’s widely known) concert and contest. The performance will see 20 solo artists and groups go head-to-head in front of a Korean pop music producer and a panel of entertainment experts. The winner will take home $1,000 in cash, followed by $500 for second place and $300 for third.
Suk says the society received more K-pop applications this year than ever before. Out of 40 submissions, the Korean Cultural Heritage Society could only choose 20 semi-finalists to appear before the crowd on Saturday.
“They’re so talented and they’re not all Korean. You have Caucasians, Indo-Canadians, Chinese-Canadians. It’s really a testament to multiculturalism in Burnaby and in B.C.,” he says.
The festival kicks off at 10 a.m. with the opening ceremony at 11 a.m. Dignitaries will be in attendance, including Peter Fassbender, Minister of Community Sport and Cultural Development, who will make a provincial proclamation, announcing Aug. 8 as Taekwondo Kukkiwon Day.
Admission to the festival, which wraps up at 8 p.m., is free. Swangard Stadium is at the corner of Boundary Road and Kingsway Avenue.
