Illawarra dance and performance troupe Steampunk Vagabonds has been enlisted for the South Coast's inaugural Viking Festival.
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The family-friendly event will run on Saturday, June 12 around Sussex Inlet and includes a traditional viking village with swords, magic, (faux) dragons and fortune tellers.
A viking beer garden, fire breathers and wooden boat display will be part of the event, along with live music and a Kids Zone.
Kylie Morrison, director of the Steampunk Vagabonds, said her group has been inspired by "Norse warrior women" for the festival.
"Our troupe actually primarily steampunk and fantasy based work, but the good thing abour the genre is ... it allows us to do some time travelling," she said. "The vagabonds name gives us no fixed address so it allows us to move around and explore a lot of different things.
"The women in Norse history .. played a much larger role especially when it came to battle. So we decided to take on that archetype for the [festival]."
She was excited for events like these because they provided a platform for "escapism and play" for kids and big kids.
"As adults we live lives that are so mundane and we can tend to get too seroius," Ms Morrison said. "The dressing up and having fun and being someone else for a while is a really positive way to channel energy."
The Viking Festival was concocted by the local Chamber of Commerce who wanted to celebrate the region's Scandiavian heritage, plus boost tourism and business during the quieter months for the coast.
"We have a very strong Danish heritage in Sussex Inlet because of the Ellmoos family who came here and settled in 1870," Chamber president Sandra Gray said. "We are very traditional fishing village, not unlike a lot of the villages in Denmark, so we thought it was really worth highlighting that linkage.
"It's also important we have an event that helps the community recover from COVID and raises our profile. It's a community event with lots of activities, and all the communities behind it - we have so many organisations who are going to benefit."
The Chamber also thought it important to incorporate the region's Indigenous heritage as well, as their local people worked closely with the founder of Sussex Inlet.
Galamban will be hosting basket weaving, storytelling and selling Indigenous food.
Other activities include medieval market stalls, Scandiavian food, canal tours, circus shows, FABBA tribute band, fishing workshops, build a viking boat competition from Lego, best dressed competitions.
Tickets for the Viking Festival are on sale now for Saturday, June 12. For more details visit: www.vikingfestival.com.au
Gates open 9.30am and festival finishes 7.30pm; Ellmoos Reserve in front of RSL.