KUCHING: The World Harvest Festival (WHF) will continue its role in presenting the state’s culture and tradition, apart from award-winning performances to everyone.
According to Assistant Minister for Arts and Culture Datuk John Sikie Tayai, the annual event serves as a prelude to the Gawai Dayak celebration on June 1.
This year, the WHF will be running from April 28 to 30 at Sarawak Cultural Village (SCV).
“The WHF aims to celebrate the diversity of the different ethnic groups in Sarawak and also to help enhance the understanding of the culture among locals and foreigners alike.
“Thus, it is an ideal place for people of different backgrounds to meet, discuss and compare notes on traditional cultures through the exchange of ideas, as well as the portrayal of the dances, music, crafts and arts. This enables the participants to discover something new and at the same time, appreciate their own cultural heritage,” he said at a press conference cum promotional event for WHF 2017 at a hotel here yesterday.
The WHF 2017 is being organised by SCV with supported from both state and federal ministries of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Sarawak Economic Development Corporation (SEDC) and Sarawak Tourism Board.
The highlight of the festival will be a special play themed ‘Tra Tra Land – Where Honey Sparkles’. Other exciting programmes at the festival will be the ‘Miss Cultural Harvest Festival 2017’, ‘Ironman Challenge World Harvest Festival 2017’, ‘Sape World Concert and Workshop’ and ‘Sarawak Kitchen’.
On the special play, SCV general manager Jane Lian Labang said it would be based on a Bidayuh legend.
“It relates the story of Jurai, a Bidayuh lad who learned to harvest honey through a special song after his missing grandmother taught him in a dream. With this ability, Jurai managed to get the mystical honey that could only be found deep in the jungle of ‘Tra Tra Land’ and used it to cure Raja Manggeng’s only princess, who was suffering from a mysterious illness.
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