ENTERTAINMENT
I
PS
HO
C
FILIPINO-
Canadian
entertainer
Andree ‘AC’
Bonifacio is coming
to Australia this
month for the first time.
AC will join creative
genius Parris Goebel, K-Pop
choreographer Kiel Tutin and
Michael Jackson's hip-hop dance
mentor Buddha Stretch at the hip-
hop World Supremacy Battlegrounds
Festival in Bankstown on Thursday-Sunday,
October 5-8.
The talented social media darling, singer,
dancer, choreographer and actress is only 14
years of age but she has already achieved so many
accolades.
AC appeared in the movie ‘Step Up’, created
YouTube dance videos with Matt Steffanina that attracted
more than seven million views and caught the eye of Simon
Fuller at a Hollywood boot camp.
Born and raised in Vancouver, Canada, AC started dancing
when she was three-years old.
She was discovered on YouTube as a member of dynamic duo
Lucky Aces. They appeared together on the Ellen DeGeneres Show,
then got invited to perform alongside Ariana Grande in concert.
When she's not hanging out with celebrities, AC was busily mining
gold at international dance competitions as a member of a hip-hop crew
Freshh.
AC and her parents decided to bring her talents to the Philippines two years
ago to pursue her dreams.
In her first foray in Manila, AC was crowned the first grand champion of reality
show Dance Kids, and was a finalist in another show, Your Face Sounds Familiar.
It was only a matter of time before ABS-CBN would come knocking.
AC is now a contracted artist for Star Magic and a regular cast member in television
sitcom Wansapanatym.
Simon Fuller, creator of American Idol, recently selected AC as a finalist to vie for a slot in the
upcoming global pop group Now United.
She joined 46 other finalists from around the world, including fellow Team Philippines
members Ylona Garcia, Jane De Leon and Bailey May.
AC is slated to conduct an exclusive dance workshop during the World Supremacy Battlegrounds. n
Celebrating children
MORE than a thousand children
and their families flocked to
Paul Keating Park in Bankstown
on Sunday, September 17, 2017
for the annual Multicultural
Children’s Festival.
It was the 19th festival organised by
Thuat Nguyen who announced at the
official opening: “This is a fun day for
families because it is a wonderful time to
share different cultural experiences, to be
together and to have fun in harmony.”
The MP for Holsworthy Melanie
Gibbons, representing the Minister
for Multiculturalism Ray Williams said:
“Festivals like this break down barriers
between communities and allow us to
enjoy the vibrancy of music, dance and
entertainment that exists right here in our
community”.
The Shadow Minister for
Multiculturalism, Sophie Cotsis, said: “What
you saw in the parade today was young
children promoting their language, their
www.kalatas.com.au
culture, their heritage and their ethnicity.
The MP for Bankstown, Tania Mihailuk,
said: ”We are very fortunate to live in such a
diverse multicultural society. We speak sixty
languages and practice one hundred and
fifty cultures in this Bankstown region and it
is festivals like this that help highlight why
we are such a blessed community”,
Children of different backgrounds
performed traditional dances and songs
along with modern hip-hop and jazz
numbers in both community-specific
groups and in mixed background groups.
They engaged in kite-making, face-
painting and a host of other fun activities.
The spectacular children’s parade
displayed the costumes of many traditions
including Aboriginal, Arabic, Russian,
Filipino, Bosnian, Indonesian, Macedonian,
Chinese, Vietnamese, Indian, Nepalese and
Scottish traditions.
Children in their Scouting uniforms
joined in.
The MP for Lakemba and Shadow
Minister for Education, Jihad Dib, spoke
of the need to acknowledge and respect
children “because they are a perfect symbol
of what Australia really is - a country where
every single person is valued, every single
person is special and every single person
brings something unique that enriches our
nation”.
Children of many different backgrounds
featured in the list of winners of the poster
competition on the theme ‘Water is Life’ run
in conjunction with the festival.
Mr Thuat, founder and president
of the Children’s Festival organisation,
thanked Canterbury Bankstown Council,
Multicultural NSW, and many local sponsors
who made the festival a big success. n
* Catherine Tiatco and Sharlene Gamo, of
Fil-Oz Liverpool, performing at the children’s
festival.
AK NewsMagazine, Vol 8 No 1 | OCTOBER 2017
11