By: Amanda Simmons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTMUh2sEDmc
Saturday’s Oktoberfest celebration was a historic celebration. Not only was it the first time the city of Fayetteville hosted the event, but the university’s German Department took part in spreading the language as well.
Student members of the German Club performed the classic fairy tale, Little Red Riding Hood, both in English and German. Parents and children were able to watch and get a small taste of the foreign language.
“I think it really enhances Oktoberfest because it gives- it’s a place where people can bring their children because everyone thinks of Oktoberfest as more of an adult centric thing and so this is a way to give parents and children a way to come out and do something together and just have a fun time,” said James Russell, president of the German club.
Getting involved was a “no-brainer” for Russell who says, “The department is happy to help the community in any way.”
The performance was held in Nightbird Books, and store owner Lisa Sharp said she was enthusiastic about the partnership.
“I do feel like a lot of times there is stuff going on with the university and there’s stuff going on in town, so the more that we can work together I think that’s great because there is resources in both places and it’s nice to have them work together.”
There were two performances in the afternoon, and Pierce Gaithe, vice president of the German club, said he hopes that children will be impacted by their performance.
“We wanted to impart the German language a little bit on campus, maybe give them a little taste, so like in fifteen years, they’ll want to study it at the university or in high school or something.”
The German Department also hosts events for German language learning at the Fayetteville public library. For more information their website is german.uark.edu.