DiverCity Festival kicks off busy summer with event in Charlottetown

The DiverCity Festival kicked off a busy summer with an event at Charlottetown waterfront on Sunday.

There are seven events planned. The next event will be in Alberton.

In an interview early Sunday, Dean Constable, the executive director of the Immigrant and Refugee Services Association and the co-host of the Charlottetown event, said the event was jam-packed.

"We've got performers from all sorts of cultural backgrounds who are newcomers. Some performers who are working with newcomers and doing some joint cross cultural adventures as well," he said.

"People that have been coming and performing at DiverCity for many years, and people that this is their first time on the stage, maybe here in Canada."

Lotte Zhang. 17, performed a Chinese dragon dance.

"It's like an experience I've never really had before," Zhang said.

Zhang was No. 5 in the lineup of nine people performing as the dragon.

"We all get to hold up the dragon, and move it around and follow the leader, so the head of the dragon," he said.

"And he's the one doing most of the, like, waving and whatever, and then we just follow along with him."

Zhang said this event is a way for all people to showcase their culture.

"I think it's great that we get so much diversity here. It's wonderful that everyone gets to show off, like, their own culture."

Diana Castro performed performed cultural music with Tropicala.

"It's good to see that people are encouraging you to be your true self through art," she said.