Bringing cultures together through magic & laughter

Dear Friends and Travellers of Time,

Welcome aboard…let us take a flight back to the future…

We started in 2011 with 12 strangers, and we are now one big family where everyone is happy, enthusiastic, united and supportive of each other. Our journey is a memorable one. We did many things together learning and sharing of new knowledge and experiences. We learned about different cultures through food, art, music, dance, magic and laughter.

Our members are open-minded and willing to step out of their comfort zone to try new experiences. For example, our Chinese team entered into a Debating Event on Generational Gap against the Sydney University Debating Team at Lower Town Hall in 2014. Due to sheer determination and dedication, our seniors’ team won the debate! We were elated and stunned. We are not professional performers, but we have performed at three Living in Harmony events, twice at Customs House and once at Lower Town Hall. Our Group received the Seniors Achievement Award at Parliament House in 2014.

Little Frog is a certified Laugher Yoga leader, tai chi practitioner, magic choreographer and performer, active community leader, etc.  In 2015, we experimented with laugher and magic with our activities to break down language, cultural and social barriers. It achieved resounding results. After 20 sessions, we evolved into our own brand of multi-dimensional and multi-cultural laughter workout encompassing language, music, singing, body movement, social interaction, culture and mindfulness practice all into one happy hour!! We took our laughter workouts to various community centres, social events, and the Living in Harmony events at Customs House.

Our 2016 events & activity include:

  • I LOVE AUSTRALIA Celebration & Exhibition on 30/1/16 at Ultimo Community Centre, and
  • Voice of Sydney Australia on 12/3/16 at Customs House
  • Weekly fusion tai chi and language (survival English & Mandarin) programs
  • Monthly fusion laughter workout & magic training
  • Quarterly educational field trips – Art galleries, Parliament House, Museums…
  • Special occasion cultural events –  Chinese New Year, Easter, Mid-Autumn Festival, Christmas…

Join us for some fun, friendship and self-improvement.  We look forward to sharing with you our secret to happiness and to feel young again.

Have a safe journey to your destination.

Yours in magic and laughter,

Little Frog

Welcome to our new happy-vibe website!

This is the new happy-vibe website of Fusion Culture Group, a community organisation based in Sydney, Australia.

Fusion Culture Group is Little Frog‘s baby, who was born in 2011 in Ultimo into a volunteer family. Little Frog is a passionate and engaging community leader. She has special powers in connecting people and bringing cultures together through interactive learning activities, laughter and magic.

With much nurturing and dedication by Little Frog, Fusion Culture Group is gradually growing-up. It is now a self-assured, empowered, responsible and united entity.  We are welcomed and supported by local community centres where we learn, play, share and grow.

In the coming year, Little Frog plans to boost the growth of Fusion Culture Group by expanding into new communities and providing body & mind health maintenance programs for corporations while continuing to offer free community activities, including survival English and Mandarin classes, Fusion Tai Chi, laughter workouts, magic training and performances, cultural and social events…

We cannot wait to see what the future holds for our little organisation, but we hope you’ll come along for the crazy fun ride!

Written by Sylvia

I LOVE AUSTRALIA Celebration & Exhibition

FREE Event for the whole family…

Date:  Saturday, 30 January 2016

Time:  11:30 am – 3:30 pm

Venue: Ultimo Community Centre, 40 William Henry Street, Ultimo

What:  A fun and interactive family day with FREE BBQ, ethnic snack sampling, magic & laughter shows, dance & singing performances,  interactive shows a& music creation, table tennis lessons, children sports games, heart-to-heart painting, many lucky draw prizes and lots more to delight everyone.

Booking:  http://iloveaustralia.eventbrite.com.au

Enquiries:  fcgsydney@gmail.com

DO YOU KNOW WHAT PEOPLE LOVE ABOUT AUSTRALIA? 

Is it the food, freedom, friendly people, diversity of cultures, the weather…..

Interactive Activities   

who's better....    9.0

To collect relevant data, we randomly  invited over 1000 people from different cultural backgrounds and age groups (4 to 80+)  to participate in the I LOVE AUSTRALIA online Survey.  An overwhelming number of  people responded generously sharing their Australian life experiences and stories

To encourage active participation, we invite everyone to submit entries, in any shape or form, expressing what people love about Australia.  All submissions will be shown at the I LOVE AUSTRALIA Exhibition on 30/1/16 and the selected entries will receive generous award prizes and may be exhibited again at Customs House on 12/3/16.

To take part in the I LOVE AUSTRALIA event, book online for free tickets

 

Fusion Magic

Creating magical moments to brighten people’s lives is an enchanting and exhilarating experience !!!

 

Fusion Magic Club was formed in June inspired by the 2015 Living in Harmony Festival “Conjuring Cultures through Magic” training program.  Since April, our multinational team performed on five occasions entertaining different cultural and community groups.  The most recent one was at Lord Mayor’s luncheon at Lower Town Hall which was attended by over 500 volunteer guests.  Our acts captured everyone’s imagination and several enquiries were received about joining our team.

Fusion Magic Club     The Box of Death Show   Snowstorm Tai Chi

The Bull Fight Show

Under the leadership of master magician, Thor, our team is becoming one happy family of magicians.  We meet whenever we can to learn, practice, and help each other out to perfect our acts. We have come a long way in a short of time.  We enjoy the camaraderie, the showmanship and seeing the surprise and intrigue of the audiences…

Who can apply?  Anyone

  • with a strong command of English and another language/s
  • with performance experience or a desire to become a performer
  • 18 years and over
  • can commit the time to attend semi-monthly for magic training meetings, and deliver performances on special occasions throughout the year

For further information, please contact Sylvia 0411 487 821 or send us an email.

Fusion Tai Chi

 

Fusion Tai Chi  is a non-traditional, easy to learn and fun workout for the body and mind.  The forms and moves are based on the ancient Chinese philosophy of Tai Chi 太極 (complementary opposites) and yin-yang 陰陽  (balance and harmony) with a focus on internal “chi” 氣 (energy) and “yi” 意 (mindfulness).

Little Frog founded Fusion Tai Chi to address the health maintenance needs of people in today’s environment.  It is a combination of traditional Tai Chi and ancient animal forms with new moves she created which are weaved together by energy healing breathing and ligament stretching moves handed down by ancient Chinese masters of Chinese qigong氣功.  In addition to the traditional 10 and 24 Tai Chi Forms 太極拳, below are some of the Fusion Tai Chi forms

  • Five Element Ta Chi
  • Twelve Animal Play
  • Yin-Yang Fist & Fan
  • Power Animal Workout
Fusion Fan Dance
Fusion Fan

Power Animal Play

Power Animal Workout

The tempo or speed of the moves can be tailored to the learners’ needs depending on age and health conditions.  Tai Chi, if practiced regularly, improves posture, balance, flexibility, core muscle strength and stability.

  • WHEN         Tuesdays 10:30 – 11:30 am
  • WHERE      Harris Community Centre, 97 Quarry Street, Ultimo
  • COST           $2 per session – gold coin donation to the Centre
  • What to wear:  loose fitting clothes and comfortable shoes with no heels

Enquiry or Registration:  (02) 9552 1140 or osanchez@uniting.org;  Little Frog: 0411 487 821

Off-site group sessions can be arranged with a minimum of eight people and eight sessions.

Fusion Laughter

 

Fusion Laughter Workout started in January 2015 by Little Frog who a qualified Laughter Yoga Leader/Facilitator.

Laughter is an excellent body-mind-heart Workout.

Laughing helps to

  • Relieve pain and stress
  • Boots our immune system
  • Bring vitality and happiness
  • Make people feel young again
  • Break down language, cultural and social barriers

Central Sydney News - 4 Mar 2015

Central Sydney News – 4 Mar 2015

 

2016 Laughter Workout Schedule

WHEN     First Wednesday of each month starting 2 March 2016

TIME       2:00-3:00 pm

WHERE   Ultimo Community Centre, 40 William Henry Street, Ultimo

COST        FREE

Enquiry & Registration:  Little Frog 0411 487 821 or fcgsydney@gmail.com

We look forward to our Happy Hour together!!!

Fusion English & Mandarin & Culture

English & Mandarin are the top two most spoken languages in world.

Our sessions are conducted in both English and Mandarin, which is suitable for beginners in both languages.  We do not use textbooks, and we learn words and phrases that are useful in our daily lives. We incorporate culture, tradition, eastern/western etiquette into the program.  We organize educational field trips and provide live social environment for members to practice what they have learned to enhance their learning process.

Learning English through artLearning through music appreciation.

Learning through art, music appreciation, role play…

role playA cultural lesson on Rugby

A lesson on Rugby…

WHEN     Wednesday

TIME        1:00-3:00 pm

WHERE  Ultimo Community Centre, 97 Quarry Street, Ultimo

COST       FREE

Enquiry & Registation:    Ultimo Community Centre (02) 9298 3103 or Sylvia fcgsydney@gmail.com

  • Trainee teachers are welcome to join us to practice your teaching skills in English.
  • Anyone wishing to practice their Mandarin are welcome to drop in anytime.

Little Frog welcomes you to our patch of happiness & togetherness!

153 Little Frog

We believe that learning must be fun and engaging.  We constantly search for creative ways to connect people and bridge cultures.   Between 2015 we started laughter workouts and ventured into magic.   In 2016, we ventured into drama and created our own shows.  In 2017,  we introduced gestures exploration combined with laughter and music making..  Over the years, we participated in numerous public performances to meet new people and to build up members’ confidence and camaraderie spirit.  All the activities proved to be effective and fun ways to break down language, cultural and social barriers.  They gave  members a sense of belonging and pride.  Our friends and members are now one big happy family…

I love Australia 2014

With the support of City of Sydney and the nurturing environment at Harris Community Centre and  Ultimo Community, our members are gradually “growing-up” and maturing into responsive, responsible and contributing citizens of the community.   Below are some of the tiny steps we have made…and they will become giant steps one day as we march into the new horizon.

18 jpg6

  • Name Recognition:  We have made a name for ourselves as the group of happy vibes…we bring vitality, sound, laughter and energy to the party wherever we go.    We constantly receive invitations to various community events  either as an entertainment team or as guests.

LR Sylvia Photos library module (152 of 231)  Entertainment by laughter @ Rockdale Town Hall

  • Free Laughter Workouts:  Twenty one-hour sessions were conducted  between January-November.  Over 500 people from various cultural backgrounds attended.   Due to popular demand, we will continue to run laughter workouts starting February

Laughter Dragon Dance   LR Sylvia Photos library module (22 of 231)

  • Free Magic Shows:  Five shows were delivered to a total of 800+people between April and November.   The audiences were impressed by our acts and many were inspired to enquire about becoming a magician.

The Bull Fight Show  LR Sylvia Photos library module (36 of 231)

  • Fusion Brain & Body Workout” at Customs House was  part of the 2015  Living in Harmony festival.  It  was a sold out event with 200+  spectators attending and 60 volunteers involved.  Fusion Culture Group was the organizer working in partnership with the Brain Foundation

3.1 5 jpg31 (2)Fusio Fiesta Event @ Customs House.- LiH.Apr2013

  • I LOVE AUSTRALIA project, supported by City of Sydney through a matching grant,  took off with a bang in June.  This is a ten-month project and it is anticipated that we would have touched the lives of over 2000 people from online surveys to entry submissions, from volunteers to performers, from sponsors to event partners, etc.

Aussie Day BBQ. Jan2014

  • New Partnership collaborations brought new community and business groups together through our I LOVE AUSTRALIA project.  The project partners include Bendigo Bank Community Bank (Pyrmont), Macquarie University, Navitas English,  Spanish Community Care Assoc.

    11jpg6LR Sylvia Photos library module (15 of 231)

What people say about us…

Daniel Denford, Manager, Ultimo Community Centre:  Awesome… it’s great to hear your members are enjoying their experiences.  It is our pleasure to keep working with you and supporting you.   Without your commitment our community would definitely be worse off.  Thanks, Dan (3/12/15)

29 jpg31

Krys J of SydneySings:  I just wanted to say how I really felt quite honoured to perform with you guys and entertain your community group. I was overwhelmed with their wonderful response and I just love their enthusiasm for taking on all sorts of projects… Thank you so much for allowing me to be involved involved. You do a fabulous job…(3/12/15)

Power Animal Play

Alan Koit, Cliff Noble Community Centre, Alexandria:   The shows were really great today. The food were yummy, people were positive in spirit and the atmosphere was vibrant with +ve energy. I saw in you today a director, show performer as well as a photographer. You are full of energy! Wonder where you harvest it? Anyway well done Sylvia!   I enjoy the party and the company of the FCG and look forward to associate more with them. Thanks again for inviting me to this gathering… (2. 12.15)

24.1 jpg15    15    Happy Dumpling Team

Didi Rowlatt, Ultimo Community Centre…..We could see that it’s a wonderful workshop as it brings all cultures together which is especially good for older people. It was extremely impressive how you conducted the workshop in two languages. I really admire your skill and your energy as it takes a lot to do something like that.  What a wonderful person you are to do such a good thing for so many people….  (7.8.15)

LR Sylvia Photos library module (21 of 231)     Parlilament House Art work appreciation.Jul2013

Aqueo Amada  from Brarzil, member of Harris Community Centre:  It was very nice to meet you and to see you frequently. 😉  I loved the Fusion Laughter workout.  It was fantastic, funny and relaxing!  Hope I can continue to participate. Aqueo Amada …(9.9.15)

LR Sylvia Photos library module (85 of 231)  Fusion Language Program   Very good, very good, yeah!

Sally, Volunteer – Harris Community Centre:  When I had your Laughter class today, I think you are an energetic and passionate Madam. When I had English class, I also think you are a knowledgeable person. I think I can learn from you by working with you for this project.  It is very impressive that you wrote down the syllable (vowel and consonant) to teach English words to your student.   (2.9.15)

2.1 Seniors Laughters celebrating Chinese New Year  80 Very good, very good, yeah!

We are on course and look forward to another adventurous and rewarding year with renewed energy, pride and empowerment .

Some of our past and upcoming events and activities include::

2016

  • Jan       I LOVE AUSTRALIA Celebration & Exhibition at Ultimo Community Centre – to share the findings of what people love about Australia based on a survey conducted by our group
  • Mar     “Voice of Sydney, Australia”  – a variety show including a cultural magic food show @ Customs House – to showcase the diversity of Australian culture and what makes Australia Australia
  • Nov     “Unlocking  Suitcases” show at Lord Mayor’s Christmas Luncheon @ Sydney Lower Town Hall 

2017

  • Feb      Chinese New Year live show @ Customs House 
  • Mar     “Breaking Barriers” a participant-directed, produced and performed theatre experience @ Customs House
  • Jul – Dec   Gestures Exploration Workshops to connect people people of all ages and from different backgrounds without words
    • Jul    Debut of Gestures Explorations – 150 people participated over 3 workshops
    • Nov   “Animals Gestures” with students from Wernona School
    • Dec   
      • “We are Family” with a group of university international students @ Sydney Town Hall House
      •  “Gift of Laugh” with inmates of an all-male maximum security drug treatment & correctional centre.
  • Sept     “Under the Umbrella”  an outdoor performance on R.U.OK Day at Martin Place, Sydney
  • Oct      National Laughter Conference – showcased members’ English capability and conducted a Laughter Gestures Exploration Workshop with laughter leaders.
  • Dec      Fusion Christmas @ Ultimo Community Centre celebrating friendship and cultural appreciation

2018

  • Feb       Chinese New Year Celebration @ Ultimo Community Centre with our own God of Wealth, junior Lion Dance, and lots of food, laughter and “home-made” music
  • Mar     
    • Story of Clay Doll performance – sharing Chinese cultures and friendship in a film project of the Biennale of Sydney Art Exhibition.
    • “Music, Song & Kungfu Dance” Day of Diversity Celebration with the Spanish Community Care 
    • Street magic at Central Train Station and film production in celebration of Seniors Week
  • May
    • “Festival of Unlikely Conversations” – Living in Harmony Festival 
      •  Mask Workshop on 2/5 @ Ultimo Community Centre
      • Movement Workshop on 9/5  @ Harris Community Centre
      • Storytelling Workshop on 9/5 @ Cliff Noble Community Centre
      • Show Time on 19/5 @ Customs House 
  • Jun – Dec    FREE on-going Activities 
    • Fusion Movement of Qi 
    • Fusion Friendship English 
    • Fusion Gestures Exploration
    • Fusion Laughter Workshop
    • Fusion Magic & Drama 

Hope to see you at some of our fun and engaging  events and physical and emotional health focused activities which guarantee to delight and intrigue you.

LR Sylvia Photos library module (24 of 231)  Sr of Year Award.Parliament House.Mar2014.      LR Sylvia Photos library module (194 of 231)     LR Sylvia Photos library module (229 of 231)

LR Sylvia Photos library module (142 of 231)   17 jpf7.7_1180198

If the animals could talk, they will probably say, “Very good, very good, yeah…..” LR Sylvia Photos library module (227 of 231)

Hello!

This is the new website for Fusion Culture Group, a community organisation based in Sydney, Australia. Check us out on any of our links above, and keep your eyes peeled for future posts!