Photos from the REAL Australia

Laura Aboriginal Dance Festival

Aboriginal culture is still strong in Northern Queensland and a Dance and Cultural Festival, held every two years 15 kilometres from the outback town of Laura, 300 kilometres north of Cairns in the south of Cape York Peninsula, is a wonderful celebration of this. The communities participating come mainly from the Cape York region, from Cairns to the Torres Strait. Palm Island, near Townsville and Mornington Island, in the south of the Gulf of Carpentaria and even groups from the Northern Territory are also represented.

The biannual festival began in the early 1980s when communities in the Cape York region decided to reunite for a weekend of song, dance and celebration. Primarily a community event, it has also become a focus for reconciliation between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians, aimed to create a greater awareness of the need for all people of this region to work together to make a better future. The future lies with our children and it is therefore wonderful to see so many children perform so enthusiastically and taking charge of their heritage.

The Festival is held at the Ang-gnarra Festival Grounds, on the site of the traditional "Bora" grounds where the local Kuku Yalanji Aboriginal people have congregated for time immemorial. It is a three day celebration, held every two years in the third week of June and is now the largest Indigenous Cultural Festival in Queensland. The programme includes more than 25 Aboriginal communities performing traditional dance and song, Art and Craft workshops, the Cape York Art Awards Exhibition, evening concerts, a didjeridu competition, boomerang and spear throwing.

For more information visit the official Laura Festival Website.

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Napranum Kids Group	Fire Bird Dance	Dance from Bwgcolman	Kids from Lockhart River	Lockhart River Dance Group
Lockhart River Dance Group	Girls from Lockhart River	Lockhart River Group	Gimuy Wallaburra Yidinydji	Mornington Island dancers
Boys from Hope Vale	Hope Vale Dancers	Boys' dance from Hope Vale	Boys from Yarrabah	Children from Mona Mona
Honey Tree Dance	Mona Mona Mayi Wunba	Boy dance from Mona Mona	Mayi Wunba boy dance	Boys from Kuranda
Coen children's group	Girls from Coen	Bamanga Bubu Nagimunku	Boys from Injinoo	Injinoo dance
Injinoo Children	Dancers from Cairns	Painting up	Dancers from Woorabinda	Dance from Saibai
Townsvile girls	Mayi Wunba from Kuranda	Hunters with spears	Lockhart River group	Kawanji ceremonial dance
Spirit Dance	Girls from Hope Vale	Spear fishing	Dance with nets	Hope Vale Dance
Yarrabah dance group	Two Yarrabah dancers	Junior Yarrabah group	Traditional shield	Star Dance
Dance from Cairns	Cairns dancers pose	Djarragun Aboriginal dancers	Top Western dancers	The Paddle Dance
Young dancer	Torres Strait dancers	Yarrabah performance	Yarrabah dancers	Lockhart River dancers
Elder from Lockhart River	Lockhart River performance	Dance from Lockhart River	Women's dance	Traditional story
Pormpuraaw dancers	Dance from Pormpuraaw	Pormpuraaw tradition	Boy from Aurukun	Dance from Aurukun
Aurukun dance	Dancer from Aurukun	The Aurukun Dancers	Mornington Island Dancers	Mornington Island dance
Dancer from Mornington	Boy from Coen	Waiting for their turn	Songman from Coen	Dance from Coen

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