WeHo’s Mishka Festival Marks 25 Years of Community, Culture and Pride

The Mishka bear’s been at the festival since nearly the beginning. I learned it hasn’t missed but maybe one appearance out of twenty-five.

The 25th annual WEHO Mishka Festival ran Sunday, May 17th at Plummer Park, drawing a crowd of residents, vendors, and performers for a full day of music, food, fun, and dance. The all-day event went until 7 p.m. It was mine and Steve’s first time attending and we loved it. Steve is part Ukrainian. He said it felt great to see the City embrace his culture in such a big way. “It felt like a ‘Pride’ celebration for the Russian and Ukrainian communities,” he said.

The City’s been hosting the event alongside its Russian-Speaking Advisory Board for a generation now, since 2001, as part of Russian-Speaking Community Cultural Heritage Month.

There was so much to do. You had a large kids section with all kinds of fun happening: magicians, face painting, and bounce houses. There was the traditional vendors row with Russian food, crafts, and small business services. I was told a lot of the vendors are based here in WeHo. Community members apply each year to take part as vendors or performers.

The concert ran from 4 to 6 p.m. and featured performer Rustam Shtar and c’mon now – Kristine W.! For the gays and the grown ups in the group – you’ll know her as one of the OG queens of dance music, along with performers across multiple genres. One of our fav moments was watching the kids do traditional dance.

Running alongside the festival was the Bridging Through Colors art exhibit, which used color and visual storytelling to connect residents across cultures and generations. The exhibit was designed to support the City’s immigrant and multicultural communities and ran Thursdays through Sundays from 1 to 5 p.m., closing Sunday alongside the festival.

A City employee who works on Russian-speaking community programs took us on a tour. She said she’s done this her whole life. “I grew up in West Hollywood, I performed here when I was a kid,” she said. “I’ve attended, every year, and now I get to work here. It’s the best feeling.”

The festival wasn’t always called Mishka. It’s the Russian word for bear. The event was formerly known as the Russian Arts and Culture Festival before the name changed. West Hollywood’s Russian-speaking community isn’t a single group. It spans more than 100 ethnic groups with origins across the 15 former Soviet republics, among them Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. About 11 percent of City residents identify a former region of the Soviet Union as their primary ancestry. Many settled in West Hollywood in the early 1970s after leaving to escape antisemitism and discrimination.

They were here when West Hollywood incorporated in 1984. Russian-speaking Jewish residents were a key part of the cityhood coalition, alongside gay residents and renters. Many were elderly, living on fixed incomes, and saw the rent control that cityhood promised as a lifeline. Their votes helped put incorporation over the top. The City they helped build has been holding this festival in their honor for 25 years.

Sunday’s festival was the centerpiece of a monthlong series of events. Victory in Europe Day was marked May 3. The month closes with the 20th Annual Russian-Speaking Community Awards Ceremony and the 9th Annual Classical Night in May Concert on Saturday, May 23, starting at 5:30 p.m. at the City’s Council Chambers at 625 N. San Vicente Boulevard. Admission’s free. Donations will benefit Casa De Luz shelter. More information’s available at WeHoRusEvents@weho.org or by calling (323) 848-6501.

Outside of Steve’s Ukrainian roots, much of this was new to us. Didn’t matter, it was still great to attend. You don’t need to hold the heritage to have a good time. I highly recommend it. Among the good feelings you get from learning about and appreciating another’s culture, it was just a lot of fun. We left feeling great about West Hollywood once again making space for and supporting celebrations of its many different cultures.

We’ll be back next year – hope to see you there.