BRADFORD, Pa. – The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford’s annual cultural festival will take place Saturday, Feb. 25, in the Frame-Westerberg Commons and, for the first time since 2019, the public is invited to take part in person.

            The theme of this year’s festival, which will be held from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., is “Celebrating Linguistic Diversity.” Internationally inspired appetizers, desserts and drinks will be available without charge throughout the festival.

            An international buffet dinner is available in the KOA Dining Room for an additional $7.50.

            The evening will feature two performances from the Haudenosaunee (h oh-D EE-n oh-SH oh-n ee) culture. Haudenosaunee people were known to the French as the Iroquois and include the nearby Seneca Nation.

The White Pine Singers and Dancers will return to campus after a popular interactive performance in November. The group sings and dances in the Iroquois style, engaging the audience in the Seneca culture.

Members will explain what social dances are, their meanings and instruments used. Singers and dancers will explain their traditional clothing, demonstrate dance steps and invite the audience to participate in some dances.

            In keeping with the theme, Perry Ground, a Haudenosaunee storyteller, also will return to campus by popular demand.

            Ground tells traditional stories in a contemporary and engaging way, acting out parts of the story. The stories have been told for hundreds of years by the Haudenosaunee to teach Indigenous history, values and ways to behave as well as entertain. 

            Local performers include the Pitt-Bradford Diamond Steppers and Bollywood Club; Studio B “Queen Bs,” which will perform a jazz dance; and Kids Got Talent dance group, which will perform a Bollywood mashup.

            Activities will include basket weaving, henna designs and tattoos and folding origami cranes for the Sadako Sasaki Hiroshima memorial. Visitors also can try their hand at trivia, play a phonics decoding game or Hebrew letter bingo. Welcome buttons will be available in the more than 23 languages spoken on campus.

They can learn about studying abroad, languages spoken on campus, Korean calligraphy, the history and meaning of lacrosse to the Haudenosaunee people, African proverbs, writing with natural inks, pronouns and identities in other cultures, the history of the Pennsylvania Dutch and Wonders of the World.

             Wearing a face mask on campus remains optional as long as the CDC Community Level for McKean County is either medium or low. Wearing a mask on campus will be required if the county’s transmission level moves to high. However, anyone is welcome to wear a mask at any time on campus.

For disability needs related to the festival, contact the Office of Disability Resources and Services at (814)362-7609 or clh71@pitt.edu.