The festival will have live performances, such as lion dances. Photo: Leeton Moon Fest.
Leeton Moon Fest will be returning to add to the Riverina’s diverse and multicultural tapestry following a successful celebration last year.
The Moon Festival, to be held on Sunday 5 October between 4 and 8 pm at Mountford Park, will be a free event with live performances including the dragon dance and classical musical artists from the Chinese Classical Art Centre, activities such as mask making, lantern competitions, riddle hunting and a hunt for the ‘Wandering Merchant’.
Organiser and Leeton Rainbow Pride Collective’s Abd Faez (Fay) had the idea to put on his own moon festival as the closest one would have been in Canberra or Bendigo.
Having grown up in Malaysia where big celebrations for different cultural festivals were the norm, he wanted something more “niche” than multicultural festivals, which saw different cultures and traditions come together.
“Don’t get me wrong, those are amazing, but we feel like maybe we need something more culturally focused,” he said.
“We recognize that the Moon Festival is a great festival to bring people together, and it’s also unique in its own way, especially in the Murrumbidgee region.”
He hopes the festival will highlight different cultures.
“I feel like it’ll be a great idea to have those bridges for the immigrants to have something from home to celebrate, and for the locals to see [and enjoy] the culture,” he said.
Leeton Moon Fest returns for a second year. Photo: Leeton Moon Fest.
Different countries observe the Moon Festival, or Mid-Autumn Festival differently. It’s mainly a harvest celebration that honours the full moon and traditionally takes place on the 15th day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar, which usually falls in September or October.
It’s an international celebration of culture and family around the world, primarily celebrated in China, Taiwan and other East Asian communities, where families and loved ones gather to appreciate the moon while eating mooncakes and drinking tea.
A mooncake is a traditional pastry that is round and usually filled with a sweet or savoury filling such as lotus seed paste, red bean paste or salted egg yolk.
A mooncake is a traditional pastry filled with sweet or savoury fillings. Photo: Wee Keat Chin.
Fay was expecting a crowd of around 500 last year, but was pleasantly shocked when more than 2000 people turned up.
He said getting the festival up and running was a big challenge, but support from local businesses and the community made it possible.
“Especially financially, those performers I mentioned – like the lion dancers and classical musical performers – are really expensive,” he said.
“Hopefully people can come, enjoy, make friends. Overall, it’s been really, really heartwarming so far.”
Leeton Moon Fest will take place on 5 October (Sunday) at Mountford Park in Leeton from 4 to 8 pm. The festival is a safe and inclusive space for the LGBT community.
Entry is free, but games will require tickets from a $10 package. Stamps can be collected after finishing each game, and a commemorative festival key chain will be given for a full collection.
For more information, visit the Leeton Moon Fest events page or Facebook.
