Dancing in Hollywood style made the night!
Published on 22 July 2019
Hindmarsh Shire Youth Council hosted a FreeZa event last Friday, 19 July, at the Nhill Memorial Community Centre. Great music, a happy atmosphere, and bright Hollywood stars made the night at the first Hollywood Karaoke night.
Youth from Rainbow, Kaniva, Jeparit, Dimboola, and Nhill attended the event and enjoyed a night full of fun and a variety of music.
The event was sponsored by the Victorian Government through its FReeZa program and the Hindmarsh Shire Council. The FReeZA program provides opportunities for young Victorians aged 12-25 to enjoy live band gigs, dance parties, and other cultural, recreational and artistic events.
The Hollywood Karaoke night was an initiative of the Hindmarsh Shire Youth Councillors and as with every FReeZa activity this was a fully supervised, alcohol, drug and smoke-free event.
Youth from across Hindmarsh Shire and Kaniva in West Wimmera Shire selected their favourite songs and even the occasionally slower paced music didn’t leave the partygoers sitting too long, with the girls brave enough to venture back to the dance floor. They were seen having a good time and singing along to popular songs from various genres including retro hits such as YMCA and The Nutbush.
Brandon Farley, a young entrepreneur, and ex-FReeZa participant was in charge of the amazing music and sound system, as well as other cool DJs from Horsham who had the dance floor burning. Matthew Dooling did a great job supervising the event.
The night closed at 9:30pm with Youth Councillor, Nicholas Roll thanking all who attended and the organisations and people that made the event possible. “We want to give a big thanks to the FReeZa program; Hindmarsh Shire Council and Leah Davies from West Wimmera Shire and the kids from Kaniva for making the effort to come, and to anyone else who made this night possible. It was a very fun and exciting night for all,” said Roll.
Hindmarsh Shire Council Mayor, Cr Ron Ismay said, “Attendance for this event was very positive, defying a wider trend of dwindling participation at youth events. It was very pleasing to see and it is hoped that attendance figures will continue to grow to ensure the sustainability of future events such as this.”
FReeZa funding supports young people by providing them with the opportunity to plan, promote and deliver their own events – by young people for young people. It also broadens their networks within the community by connecting with local businesses, schools, and other organizations.
If you are interested in being part of this program, please contact, Gaby Castro, Community Development Officer at Hindmarsh Shire Council on (03) 5391 4444 or gcastro@hindmarsh.vic.gov.au
Greg Wood
Chief Executive Officer