African and Indigenous Australian storytelling will be coming to life these school holidays at Werribee Open Range Zoo with a huge 16-day event!
Roaming performers will be using song, dances and ceremonies, to tell a range of animal-related and culturally-inspired stories at Zoo Tales, which is a free festival of stories, including immersing activities such as African stone carving, Indigenous Australian straw animal making and traditional face painting.
This event is open to visitors of all ages, where you will be given the chance to explore two very distinct and ancient cultural backgrounds. Week One will focus on a variety of African cultures, and Week Two will highlight the Indigenous Australian culture from the Kulin nation. Zoo Tales invites you to explore relationships within Werribee Zoo’s animals, their natural environment and the cultures they come from.
You will get the opportunity to watch Zebra performers and hear the story of how the Lion got its roar. In Week One, you can enjoy an Ethiopian coffee ceremony with African storytellers, and then during Week Two, you will learn how to cook damper, make clapsticks and see the Indigenous Australian dance performances.
Within all of this excitement, you will be able to get up close with rhinos and giraffes on a safari tour or visit the kangaroos and emus on the recently improved Australian Journey walk. The Zoo’s knowledgeable keepers will be getting on board with the immersive theme, sharing their amazing animal tales during the keeper talks that happen throughout the zoo every day.
Werribee Open Range Zoo director Glen Holland said Zoo Tales is a new way for visitors to connect to wildlife by celebrating the art of storytelling and the relationship different cultures have with nature. “Whether it’s African or Indigenous Australian, the appreciation, spiritual values and connections other cultures have with their environment is something we can all learn a lot from,” he said.
Zoo Tales reflects the zoo’s ongoing dedication to celebrating different cultures and its direct connection to them. Werribee Open Range Zoo is situated on the confluence of three Aboriginal tribal areas, and 10 per cent of the local community is of African descent.
With the chance to sing, dance, create and connect, Zoo Tales is the perfect opportunity for the whole family to learn and play these school holidays.
What: A two-week Festival of Stories
celebrating African and Indigenous Australian culture
When: September 22nd to October 7th
Cost: The event is free with a General Admission ticket to Werribee Open Range Zoo
For more details available here.
Written by Chloe Cicero