By Marcella Gallace
This October Croydon Park will host its first festival in 10 years. The Experience Croydon Park! Festival will showcase local talents, artists and businesses but with a twist.
Unlike the routine festival where a main road is closed off or a local field is used, Croydon Park has thought outside the box.
Activities and stalls will be positioned on the pavement strip, and inside participating shops located on Georges River Road as council restrictions do not allow a main road to be closed off.
Expect to see a range of musicians situated along this strip, from Gypsy music and saxophone players to violinists and trumpet players.
You may even have a street theatre actor tap you on the shoulder, as masked performers from Impromptu Theatre will be roaming the street and engaging with the public.
The purpose of the event is to prompt local and home businesses to connect with one another, and with the wider public.
Croydon Park hopes that these businesses can reach out to immediate suburbs and those further away, such as Marrickville, Newtown, Concord and Leichhardt.
The festival has been organised by the Croydon Park Business Chamber, a local committee made up of volunteers.
The Chamber even won the award for Local Chamber of the Year by the NSW Business Chamber for 2014.
“Winning the award has only revived our enthusiasm to keep up the great work and make Croydon Park vibrant,” Chamber President, Toni Franze` says.
The Chamber have pushed for a variety of stall holders, aiming strongly at small home based businesses to join the event, as this is an excellent opportunity for such businesses to promote themselves on a high scale.
The festival is a day of activities, crafts and fun, with many hands-on interactive workshops scheduled.
There will be pizza making classes for kids, an origami workshop, painting and craft stalls as well as activities to get the blood pumping such as mini tennis, a Scouts Obstacle Course, pet and owner training sessions and a Bocce competition.
McDonald’s Croydon Park is one of the event’s major sponsors, and is allowing their underground car park to be transformed into an underground pop up gallery for the day. Local artists will be able to exhibit their art in the venue, as well as have the opportunity to sell artworks.
If you have a sweet tooth for gelato, then there’s good news. The Experience Corydon Park! Festival will coincide will Pure Gelato’s Annual 10/10 Children’s Cancer Fundraising event so you have the opportunity to visit both on the same day.
The Croydon Park Business Chamber is calling out to any volunteers or potential sponsors to contact them on info@croydonparkbusiness.com.au if you would like to be a part of the event.
The Experience Croydon Park! Festival will be on October 11, 2014 from 10pm to 4pm.
