TAMWORTH'S Bicentennial Park is set to come to life on Sunday as part of a national movement.
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The National Dance will bring communities from across Australia simultaneously to dance for a shared cause.
Locally, communities such as Gunnedah, Narrabri and Boggabilla will take part in the event at the same time as communities as far away as Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
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Gomeroi Dance Academy co-director Marc Sutherland said this year's event in Tamworth would be very special.
"The National Dance is a movement that encourages people from all different parts of the continent to join in and dance at the same time," Mr Sutherland told the Leader.
"At the moment, there's around 60 or 70 locations across Australia that will be hosting their own dance as part of the movement.
"The Gomeroi Dance Academy regularly organises dance events, but this is the first time we are taking part in simultaneous, nation-wide dance.
"It's pretty exciting."
Each community will have it's own unique message behind its dance, with some in support of drought-stricken areas and others in support of communities affected by bushfires.
"Our message is pretty strong, we want to give back as much positive energy to country as possible," Mr Sutherland said.
"We call it Gunima and it essentially means mother earth.
"The positive energy we can give back through dance is very special, especially in times of bushfire and drought.
"Gunima is a big part of all of our stories and she provides everything for us.
"Everything comes from Gunima and we have a responsibility to care for her.
"So from 12pm on Sunday, we dance for our people, we dance for Gunima."
Mr Sutherland said the event would encourage "the entire community to get involved".
"This movement is all about focusing back our attention to looking after country and that connection to country," he said.
"At the moment, we have seen the affects and the devastation from issues such as drought and bushfires, so this is really an attempt to unify the country.
"I believe this message spreads beyond the Aboriginal community and we need to all work together to look after country."
Sunday's festivities begin at 12pm, with a dance tutorial and traditional smoke ceremony.
"The focus for us, The Gomeroi Dance Company, is to provide a space for the entire community to be able to connect to this message," Mr Sutherland said.
"We will be leading the way with the songs, dances, materials such as traditional paint and clothes and really focusing on the message.
"As I said, this message isn't just restricted to Indigenous people, so we'd love to see the whole community come on down and get involved."
Billy Jupp
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
