Saskatoon’s Folkfest remains one of the city’s flagship summer events, welcoming people of all cultures to experience new food, music, and traditions across the city.
This year, attendees will notice the festival undergo a new look with the same rich experiences. A now two-day event taking place on Aug. 15 and 16 from 3 p.m. to midnight, the festival will now run out of one central location at Prairieland Park, a move away from pavilions scattered throughout the city.
“Before COVID at some point, we were close to 25 pavilions,” said Folkfest director Kishore Gali. “Post-COVID, there was a big drop in the number of pavilions.”
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Only nine pavilions will be taking part in this year’s festival, including India, Latin America, Iran and Ghana. The Scottish pavilion, which took last year off, has confirmed its return for this year.
Some big names will not be participating this year, however. The Ukrainian pavilion will be absent for the second straight year, while the Philippines will be pausing their participation.
“We need to re-evaluate our focus, so we decided to take a pause for this year.” said Filipino Canadian Association of Saskatchewan co-president Janine Lazaro.
She says the current layout of the festival does not align with the community’s needs, adding it was a difficult decision to make.
“We were emotional, the rest of the board, when we did the decision.”
The pavilion remains a member of the festival and hopes to return next year.
While conversations with the Philippines and other members continue, Gali says this year will encompass a smaller, but incredibly diverse, group of cultural communities in Saskatoon for many to discover.
“The Folkfest audience can still expect the international experience and the experience of the world cultures, food and traditions.”
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