50 years of A World A’Fair: A Southwest Ohio event culture across the globe | DAYTON EVENTS: Latest events in the Dayton area

Kyla Brandenburg is proud to say she’s grown up at A World A’Fair.

Since the age of 3, she’s been dancing onstage, first as a representative of Czechoslovakia and later, after the single state became two independent countries, as a representative of the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Her grandmother, mother, brother and sister have also danced for decades and the family has been baking traditional cookies for the festival for decades.

Now, at 25, Brandenburg is looking forward to the annual three-day event that over the years has earned her the titles of Miss Junior World A’Fair and Miss World A’Fair. Her association with the event has also resulted in close friendships and a deep appreciation of other cultures.

The popular festival, marking its 50th anniversary this year, will take place May 1-3 when the Greene County Fairgrounds will be transformed into a vibrant global village. Twenty-nine nations will be represented this year, showing off not just native food and entertainment, but cultural displays of artifacts and a wide variety of items for sale. Last year, 11,000 people attended.

Brandenburg, who lives in Huber Heights, said one of her favorite parts of the weekend has always been the Children’s Passport program. Kids are given a little booklet that contains a page for each country; in order to get each page stamped, they must visit the various booths and learn the answer to a specific question based on the festival theme. This year it is “50 Years of Unity Through Diversity.” By the time the passport has been stamped by nations around the world, the youngsters have seen and learned a lot.

A mammoth undertaking

You can imagine how many volunteers it takes to stage an event of this magnitude.

One of those dedicated volunteers is Wendy Middleton, Secretary of the umbrella organization Dayton International Festival, Inc. (DIFI) and also President of the Dayton French Club. Middleton, who lives in Kettering, has been performing the high-energy French Cancan at A World A’Fair since 2000. For her, the stage is a place of joy and continuity.

“It’s about sharing the spirit of France with our neighbors,” Middleton said. “My journey from dancer to festival leader mirrors the path of many volunteers who have dedicated their lives to keeping these cultural flames alive.”

Middleton said while the festival honors its long-standing participants, it also continues to expand, this year adding Samoa which will introduce visitors to the rich traditions of the Pacific Islands.

A major move

Bette Kelley has been involved with the festival since 1987 and, like many volunteers, has done everything from dancing and baking to making costumes and organizing the cultural displays. She believes the move from the Dayton Convention Center to the Xenia location in 2023 has been a good one.

“One major improvement is that the interactive stage is now outside under a big tent.” Kelley said. “It’s so much easier to see everyone performing and then do some dancing yourself. The formal stage is inside. Booths are divided among four buildings with plenty of maps available.”

Kelley said she’s very excited about this year’s new addition, Samoa.

“It is Olohana’s Polynesian Dance Group. They are awesome and their past performances encompass a number of Polynesian cultures! They’ve performed in the past as invited guests.”

Brandenburg agrees that the new location has been terrific for the festival.

“It provides bigger space for more countries and for more participation. We can have more guests and more room to breathe.”

Organizers emphasize that the festival’s mission is more critical today than ever before, in a world often divided,

“The 50th anniversary isn’t just about how long we’ve been here,” said Middleton. “It’s about the strength of our community. Seeing different cultures come together to celebrate each other — that is the true heart of Dayton. A World A’Fair serves as a powerful reminder of the friendship and mutual respect shared by the various cultures that call the Miami Valley home.