IRENE SINO-CRUZ
The DUWA Cebu Children’s Festival not only provides kids with wild and wonderful experiences, this event also aims to instill creativity in them.
The event, which will be held on two succeeding weekends, August 13-14 and August 20-21, at the Oakridge Business Park, is among the activities of the Mandaue Business Month organized by the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
“Creativity is important, as adults, we see AI replace people in the workplace. However, there’s one thing AI can’t replicate and that’s creativity. So it’s important to immerse children in creative activities and instill the importance of this value,” said Mark Anthony Ynoc, Mandaue Business Month Chairperson.
It can be noted that the World Economic Forum identified creativity as the third-most-important skill for employees.
Duwa Cebu Children’s Festival is also a fun-filled activity as children, having been cooped up because of the pandemic, now look forward to finally socialize with other kids.
Allen Tan and Mark Deutsch, organizers of this event, urged parents to give their kids an experience of a lifetime through their participation in the DUWA Cebu Children’s Festival. By joining this event, young minds can harness their innate curiosity and creativity and push the boundaries of what they can be.
“DUWA Cebu Children’s Festival recognizes that it is through play that children first grasp the world around them. By providing weird, wild, and wonderful experiences, the festival hopes to enrich the local landscape with things kids can do,” Tan explained.
With the popularity of the Internet, many children no longer get a chance to play outside their homes and partake in Filipino games that their lolo and lola once enjoyed. This time, they can try tubig-tubig, buwan-buwan, jackstone, takyan, bato-lata, and many more for free every 2-3pm on all Festival days.
“Over the pandemic, children have been cooped up, and it has been limiting their social skills. So we wanted to do something that fosters interaction and enhances their sense of wonder and play,” said Deutsch.
They can also broaden their artistic perspectives by watching free performances of the Cebu Centre for Dance Ballet and Sistemang Pilipino and by attending the musical storytelling by Little Boy Productions.
The more reserved ones can do other activities such as drawing, play sungka, do some origami, or simply read their favorite story books.
For those who desire to enhance their skills, the Festival has lined up numerous workshops for only P650 per child, per workshop, including a snack pack. Each workshop can accommodate five to 10 children.
They can pick among the following activities: Ballet Workshop with Cebu Centre for Dance, Hip Hop Dance with Mr. Quelo, Theatre Workshop with Penelop Ong, Young Inventors Workshop with the University of the Philippines Fabrication Lab, Express Yourself through Watercolor with Marianne Guinto, and Draw Your Heart Out with Little Boy Productions,
Learn more about DUWA and how to register for the workshops by visiting https://duwachildrensfestival.com/.
