The Let’s Go Greek Festival is showing no signs of slowing down after its 12 edition once again saw Hellenism overrun Parramatta with tens of thousands of people from all cultural backgrounds turning up to the heart of Western Sydney.
The Parramatta festival, organised by the Greek Orthodox Parish and Community of St John the Forerunner, took place on Sunday 13 September all day at George Street, with various food and market stalls as well as entertainment.
The area began to fill out from early in the morning after the Divine Liturgy that took place as presided over by Bishop Christophoros of Kerasounta, who also attended the Festival and conveyed the best wishes of Archbishop Makarios of Australia.
Greek music blasted throughout the day with numerous dance groups and other artists taking the main stage, with a DJ also on hand to keep the music going.
The entertainment continued into the evening with the headline act, that being a live performance from Greek singer Giorgos Tsalikis and his accompanying band.
Tsalikis capped off the full-on Greek celebration that featured spectators of all ages and all cultural backgrounds, which has become a regular sight at the event.
The event notably featured a visit in the afternoon from the NSW Premier, Chris Minns, who was accompanied by NSW Minister Steve Kamper and State Member for Parramatta Donna Davis.
It marked Minns’ first visit to the festival since becoming Premier.
The official program took place in the afternoon with numerous official guests speaking to mark the occasion, among which were Consul General of Greece in Sydney Georgios Skemperis, NSW Minister Sophie Cotsis, Deputy High Commissioner of the Repbulic of Cyprus Nikos Varellas, NSW Shadow Minister for Multiculturalism Mark Coure, and President of the Local Parish and Community Kosmas Demetriou.
The Consul General expressed his sincere pleasure in attending the event.
“It is a great pleasure for me to be here for the second time. It is, if not the best, certainly one of the best Greek festivals in Sydney,” he said, praising the organisers for their efforts in organising the event over its 12 editions.
Also in attendance was the Mayor of Parramatta Council Martin Zaitar, along with a number of representatives and members from community organisations.
The Master of Ceremonies for the festival was 2GB radio host Spiro Christopoulos.
