Hapa-palooza Festival welcomes our 2017 artists and innovators!

Featuring Desirée Dawson Leanne Dunic Carleigh Baker Mercedes Eng Jónína Kirton
Dr. Michelle La Flamme Vanessa Richards J Peachy Michael Ouchi Jocelyn Pettit Kaya Kurz Debra Sparrow…and more

Awards to Joël Watanabe Ann Marie Fleming & Wayde Compton

 

Hapa-palooza Festival
September 22-24, 2017
Vancouver, BC

 

Festival-At-A-Glance
- September 22nd: Hip Hapa Hooray Gala, we kick off celebrations with hapa-tizers and drinks to honour members of the Hapa community;
- September 23rd: Hapa Family Day in the Park, free, family-friendly community afternoon of music, dancing, balloon art, and face painting which welcomes all heritages and ages;
- September 24th: Hapa-palooza Festival at WORD Vancouver, a free literary event open to all, celebrating unique voices coming together!

Join our mailing list for programming updates, and check out more details on the fest below!

FRIDAY, September 22nd, 2017

Hip Hapa Hooray Awards Gala

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7:00pm-9:30pm CBC Studio 700 (map)
Doors Open at 6:30pm

Hip Hapa Hooray: An evening of celebration to kick off our 2017 festival! Guests will enjoy delicious “hapa-tizers" and drinks, as well as live music by Desiree Dawson, CBC's 2016 Television Searchlight talent contest winner and a keynote presentation by noted performer, activist and educator Michelle La Flamme. At our awards presentation, MC'ed by Vanessa Richards, inspiring community members of mixed heritage will be recognized. This year’s recipients include the Trailblazer Award presented to Joël Watanabe (award-winning chef and restaurateur, Bao Bei and Kissa Tanto), the Innovation Award presented to Ann Marie Fleming (award-winning filmmaker, Window Horses), and the Community Builder Award presented to Wayde Compton (award-winning activist, poet and author).

The evening will also feature a visual art display, silent auction, and much more!  

Admission is free, but registration is required. 
Donations are much appreciated and directly support Hapa-palooza Festival efforts. Register for Hip Hapa Hooray here.

Thank you to Eclipse Awards for sponsoring our beautiful sustainable handcrafted awards.

Also thank you to Hapa Izakaya, La Mezcaleria, The Naam, Skoah, Nikkei National Museum and Cultural Centre, dutil. Denim Shop and Scandinazn for contributing to our silent auction. More to be announced soon!

Talent and awardee bios here!

 

SATURDAY September 23rd
Hapa Family Day in the Park

 

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1:00-4:00pm Granville Island Picnic Pavilion at 267 Old Bridge Walk, adjacent to Cat’s Social House and waterpark. Free public event!

Family Day is a Hapa-palooza Festival Favourite year after year!

Come join this vibrant family-friendly event welcoming all people from all walks of life to celebrate mixed heritage. The event includes family-friendly fun including live music, dance, comedy, balloon art, face painting, our popular photo-booth and more!

Masters of Ceremony are Koru and Timo Joseph who will also open and welcome people to unceded Coast Salish Territory.

Confirmed Artists include:
Desirée Dawson, Musician, CBC Search Light Winner 2016
Jay Peachy, Family Comedy and Music

Jocelyn Pettit, Musician / Dancers
Kaya Kurz, Musician
Michael Ouchi, Balloon Artist
Melanie Dawn, Facepaint Artist
Jasmine Cambon, Henna Artist

 

SUNDAY, September 24th, 2017
Hapa-palooza Education Day at Word Vancouver

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Hapa-palooza partners with Word Vancouver in the largest celebration of literacy and reading.  Two free events will be held at VPL Central Branch co-hosted by the Hapa-palooza Festival.


11:00am Writer's Panel: "Mixed Voices Raised"
1:00pm Writing Workshop: "Feeling a Little Mixed - or - Do I have a Story to Tell You?"

Author bios here!
Vancouver Public Library Central Branch, Peter Kaye and Alice MacKay Room

11:00 am Mixed Voices Raised
Perspective Point (Peter Kaye Room)
More and more, we live in a society of hybridized, mixed, or blended identities. What is it like to write and read from within or beyond the hyphen or transnational identities? What creative opportunities does hybridity present? Join authors Leanne DunicMercedes Eng, and Carleigh Baker in a reading and discussion of writing in fluid identity contexts. Moderated by Hapa-palooza Festival co-founder Anna Ling Kaye.

1:00 pm Feeling a Little Mixed—or—Do I Have a Story to Tell You? with Jónína Kirton
Port of View (Alice MacKay Room)
There are gifts and challenges that come with hybrid identities. We may feel that life would have been simpler if we had only one culture or group to be responsible to. And yet we see the possibilities in the weaving. Our stories are enriched by the willingness to embrace it all. Together we will write. All persons of between welcome. Jónína Kirton, a prairie born mixed-blood Métis/Icelandic poet, just released her second collection of poetry, An Honest Woman, with Talonbooks.