Myrtleford ready to kick up its heels and celebrate 18 years of La Fiera

Final preparations are underway as Myrtleford is set to mark 18 years of its iconic Italian festival: La Fiera this weekend. Celebrations will be held from Thursday 14 to Monday 18 May; including special tours, classes, games and programs from local businesses, with of course, La Festa (the party) on Saturday and Il Mercato (the market) on Sunday; filling the town's central Piazza in turn. La Fiera was first held in 2009, as Noel Stone, then president of the Myrtleford Chamber of Commerce, began the festival as an economic driver for the town. The 2009 program comprised many events such as a food and wine expo, film festival, art exhibition, mass for St Anthony of Padua, choral festival, heritage display, motor rally, soccer and bocce challenge, cooking classes, a living chess match and more. The purpose of the festival was to showcase Myrtleford and put it on the 'map': 18 years on and the festival has retained many of the original events within the program, some tweaked and adapted to remain a sustainable and relevant. "While Myrtleford’s La Fiera is very much about celebrating the contributions of the Italian generations to the region, it is also about community," Myrtleford Chamber of Commerce secretary, Kerry Murphy said. "Our local Italian Circoli: currently Trentini, Trevisani and Vicentini (and previously Calabrese), play an integral part in the festivities, promote the Italian culture and their regional cuisine, which is showcased at Saturday's La Festa. "Over 2000 tickets have already been pre-sold to La Festa, one week out. "An investment of over $100,000 is required by the chamber to run the festival in 2026, with a spend over the weekend of over $2.6m reported last year, (CommBank Data). "The festival is fortunate to have financial support from Visit Victoria, Alpine Shire, Bright Community Bank (Bendigo Bank), Floridia Cheese, Blacklocks Motorcycles, Michelini Wines, Club Savoy, McPhersons Earthmoving and paying patrons to Saturday's La Festa." La Fiera remains a true celebration of heritage and culture and has put Myrtleford on the map as a destination to attend on the weekend after Mother's Day each May. For more information, visit: https://lafiera.com.au/

Myrtleford ready to kick up its heels and celebrate 18 years of La Fiera

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