Aotearoa Cuban Festival brings schedule packed with passion and energy

Greydis Montero Liranza during an Aotearoa Cuban Festival class. Photo / Supplied

The Aotearoa Cuban Festival begins today, and has a jam-packed three-day schedule planned full of flavour, passion, and energy.

A warm-up party is being held tonight, with a range of workshops being held during the day tomorrow. Another party will have people dancing the night away tomorrow and Sunday will feature more workshops.

There will also be a free kids salsa class tomorrow for children aged 5 to 13 years with Camila Leal Rossi introducing them to Latin Rhythms. It is being held at Lakes Performing Arts Centre from 1.30pm to 2.30pm.

Trustee and creative director Greydis Montero Liranza said there were close to 15 hours of workshops on offer during the weekend, with a range of Cuban dance styles.

She said people would take home memories and have fun learning the different dances. The venue for the workshops is Lakes Performing Arts Centre.

Liranza said the Aotearoa Cuban Festival had been going since 2014.

“The last one we had was in 2020 just before the pandemic, so we are very excited to be able to host it once again.”

She said she had been the festival’s creative director since it started, and this was an event she always looked forward to.

Liranza said she enjoyed bringing the festival to the community because it was an opportunity to show the diversity of culture we had in this beautiful town.

“Dance is therapy and brings joy and excitement. I believe anyone can dance, it is just a matter of trying it.”

She said dance could be a way to leave the stress of the day behind, and that the festival was a way to bring the community together.

Thanks to funding, they had been able to bring artists from around New Zealand for the festival - dancers and instrumentalists, she said.

Liranza said there would be a chance for participants to perform and showcase what they had been working on.

“It is a great opportunity. You don’t need any experience, just need to turn up. It is an opportunity to do something different and experience the beauty of Cuban culture.”

- Ticket and event information is available at www.nzcubanfestival.co.nz or www.eventfinda.co.nz.