With only 2 DAYS TO GO until one of the most colourful events of the year, we are happy to release the Melbourne Russian Festival Program. 
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CONCERT PROGRAM 
Part I (Stage 1 - Jones Park)
11:00 AM - Zabava Folk Theatre
12:00 PM - Official opening of the festival
12:15 PM - Solovushki Childrens' Vocal Group
12:35 PM - Lira Childrens' Choir
12:50 PM - Nadia Filinovskaya
1:00 PM - Rada Tochalna
1:10 PM - Tatiana Lobas
1:20 PM - Vladimir Mogilin
1:30 PM - Carousel Folk Band
2:00 PM - Break
2:45 PM - Trali-Vali Band
3:30 PM - Break
4:00 PM - 32 Maya Band

Part 2 (Stage 2 - Pokrov Church front yard)
1:00 PM - Inspiration Children's Talent School and Unicorns Children's Character Dance Studio 
2:00 PM - RUS' Russian Dance Ensemble and Souvenir Russian Dance Company
2:45 PM - Kalinka Russian Dance Company and Soudarushka Russian Dance Company 
3:30 PM - Rusichi Russian Dance Ensemle and YATI
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FOOD STALLS
Russian cuisine has its own unique character thanks to the vast and multi-ethnic expanse of Russia. Take your time and be ready for a delicious journey through the Russian food heritage. We will have a plenty of #Blini, #Pelmeni, #PotatoPancakes and much more, even #VodkaIceCream.
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BEER GARDEN
As the Festival day promises to be very busy, there will be no better way to chill out than with a pint of cold beer or a glass of local wine at our BEER GARDEN! The Beer Garden is going to be a fun place to hang out with your old friends and make the new ones! Come down and check it out.
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ARTS & CRAFTS
Visit our Art and Craft stalls to have a look and buy some of the Russian iconic #souvenirs, #Tshirts, #gifts, #books, #sweets or traditional #shawls. Our talented exhibitors will showcase a wide range of original handmade artwork and craft in many categories.
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CHILDREN’S VILLAGE
10:30 AM – 3:30 PM – Animal farm, $5
11:00 AM – 3:00 PM – Free play zone
11:00 AM – 2:00 PM – Face painting, $5
From 11:00 AM – Make your own kokoshnik, $5
From 11:00 AM till 2:00 PM – Russian Hair Braids, $5 and $10 depending on the style
Photo zone – free, all day
For free activities, gold coin donation is welcome. All proceeds from the Children's Village will go the Little Cloud Foundation charity that helps orphaned and disadvantaged children of CIS countries.
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RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH & DEANERY RUSSIAN SCHOOL – OPEN DAY AND ACTIVITIES
10:45 AM – 11:00 AM – Russian Orthodox Church Guided Tour
12:30 PM – 12:45 PM – Russian Orthodox Church Guided Tour
Other times are self – guided
Location - Pokrov Church
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM – Russian Matryoshka Painting Masterclass, free to attend 
Masterclass for children from 6 to 10 years old, organised by Deanery Russian School
Location – Church Hall (Masterclass 2 on the map)
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM – Deanery Russian School Tour.
The tour provides the opportunity to learn more about the school, visit classrooms and the library. You will also get a chance to meet and ask the staff any questions you might have about the school and its programs.
Location – Church Hall (Masterclass 2 on the map)
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM – The Golden Sun Masterclass, free to attend 
Masterclass for children from 5 to 9 years old.
During the masterclass children will learn more about Maslenitsa and its traditions. The children will create their own sun using the template and various colourful threads. 
Location – Church Hall (Masterclass 2 on the map)
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM – Deanery Russian School Tour
The tour provides the opportunity to learn more about the school, visit classrooms and the library. You will also get a chance to meet and ask the staff any questions you might have about the school and its programs.
Location – Church Hall (Masterclass 2 on the map)
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MASTERCLASSES
From 10:00 AM – Scouts Masterclasses. Get ready to roll up your sleeves to take part in a variety of exciting outdoor activities – free 
Location – Jones Park
11:00 AM – 12:30 PM – Flower Crown made of fresh local flowers, $10 for kids, $15 for adults small, $25 for adults big 
Location – Church Hall (Masterclass 2 on the map)
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM – Khokholma Masterclass, limited availability, $15 
Location – Jones Park, (Masterclass 1 on the map)
12:15 PM – 12:45 PM – Lapbook Masterclass, organised by Pushkin Lyceum, $7
Lap book is a creative & fun learning tool that helps children remember things that they create, and lapbooking reinforces the content of their studies. Suitable for age group: 6 to 11 years old. 
Location – Jones Park, (Masterclass 1 on the map)
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM – Khokhloma Masterclass (sold out)
Location – Jones Park, (Masterclass 1 on the map)
1:00 PM – 2.30 PM – Flower Crown made of fresh local flowers, $10 for kids, $15 for adults small, $25 for adults big
Location – Church Hall (Masterclass 2 on the map)
1.30 PM – 2.00 PM – Lapbook Masterclass, organised by Pushkin Lyceum, $7
Lap book is a creative & fun learning tool that helps children remember things that they create, and lapbooking reinforces the content of their studies. Suitable for age group: 6 to 11 years old.
Location – Jones Park, (Masterclass 1 on the map)
2:00 PM – 2:45 PM – Masterclass ‘Russian Alphabet in 20 minutes’, organised by Pushkin Lyceum, free to attend.
Location – Jones Park, (Masterclass 1 on the map)
3:00 PM – 3:30 PM – Masterclass ‘Golden rules of success in raising bilingual children’, organised by Pushkin Lyceum, free to attend.
Location – Jones Park, (Masterclass 1 on the map)
3:00 PM – 4:00 PM – Khokhloma Masterclass (sold out)
Location – Jones Park, (Masterclass 1 on the map)
5.00 PM – FESTIVAL CLOSE

‘Dob-ro po-zha-lo-vat’ or Welcome to the annual Melbourne Russian Festival, a celebration of all the richness and diversity of the Russian culture. This year’s festival will take place in Jones Park, Brunswick East, and at the adjacent beautiful Russian Orthodox Cathedral.

The festival will showcase traditional Russian culture in a lively, exciting atmosphere. It will include Russian dancing, music and entertainment, food stalls with authentic cuisine and a beer garden, beautiful arts and crafts, colourful Russian decorations and costumes, interactive activities and games, a children’s village with fun activities for the whole family, and unique masterclasses, featuring some of the well-known traditional folk crafts, many of which are centuries old and cannot be found elsewhere.

The unique feature of this year’s festival is that it is preceding Maslenitsa or Pancake Week, a very famous Eastern Slavic folk holiday, celebrated during the last week before Great Lent. A tradition of Maslenitsa is to share pancakes, also known as blini, with family, friends, and acquaintances. So, make sure you will try this amazing dish. It also has a unique mascot in the form of a beautifully clothed straw figure known as Lady Maslenitsa, not to be missed! ​

We look forward to seeing everyone once again!

Event organisers:
Russian Ethnic Representative Council of Victoria: www.rerc.org.au 
Pokrov Melbourne Parish: https://www.pokrov.com.au/ 

The event has been supported by Arts Moreland’s Activation Grant.

​For more information, see the Facebook page. 

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