104 Reasons to Dance Along on Canberra’s Birthday

The celebration of Canberra’s 104^th birthday was the best excuse for a large crowd to gather by Stage 88 in Commonwealth Park for an afternoon of music and festivities on March 13.

Headlining the event were the youthful remixed beats and dance troupe of DJ Havana Brown, while the well-known Australian classic rock of the Hoodoo Gurus kept the thousands of young-at-heart Canberrans dancing into the evening.

The event kicked off at 2pm, with Canberra’s kids enjoying Dreamworks’ Trolls, and Shaun the Sheep, as the first entertainment for the day.

Local flavour was then added to the event, with Canberra bands String Elephants, and Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers putting on their best demonstration of the young, home-grown musical talent that Canberra can offer.

In what was an event for the whole family to enjoy, there were a range of fairground rides, face painting and games available for all patrons, while the food stalls provided street food from a variety of cultures.

The free nature of the event made it easy for Canberrans to attend, with Minister for the Arts and Community Events, Gordon Ramsay, encouraging all citizens to seize the opportunity to enjoy themselves on the ACT Government.

“Canberra Day is for everyone in the local Canberra community, their families and friends to celebrate our great city.”

Locals also recognised the fun nature of the music performances. Young father David, of Kambah, saw the day as a perfect community event.

“It’s just great to come out with the family and enjoy the music before Canberra gets cold for another year,” he said.

And perhaps the only dampener on the day was Canberra’s temperamental weather, with rain and wind in the morning limiting a crowd that Events ACT had expected to peak at around 10,000 people.

However, by the time the show had wrapped up at 7pm, those who were feasting and following along with the music had made the most of their day off work and school, and went home satisfied.

Words, Photos, and Video by Tom Storey