Festival to focus on cassowaries
CASSOWARIES of all shapes, sizes and textures will be on display at a special festival held in the animal’s honour.
The Mission Beach Community Cassowary Festival will be held on Sunday, June 4.
Festival committee member Liz Gallie said there would be fancy dress parades, art displays, cassowary chocolates and even a flying cassowary.
“A beachside marquee and stage will host nature displays, guest speakers, live music and a community open mic giving the public an opportunity to join the stage and perform their best cassowary imitation, song or dance,” she said.
Over the weekend local businesses will be competing for the best-dressed shopfront. In the meantime Cassowary Coast residents are busy sculpting life-size animals for the Drumming of Cassowaries parade to open and close the festival.
Mission Beach State School students are designing temporary roadside sides promoting cassowary awareness.
“Everyone is invited to take part in the fun and creativity celebrating nature and we are excited to see so many great ideas come out of the community,” Ms Gallie said.
“It will be lots of fun. Mission Beach has a very creative and resourceful community that is passionate about cassowaries.”
The festival also marks the beginning of the peak tourist season for the region.
Organisers hope the event will further Mission Beach’s reputation as an international tourism destination where the community helps to protect the natural environment.
There are also hopes the festival will become an annual event with benefits for the local arts and business communities.
More details are available at www.cassowaryfestival.com