SYDNEY: Over 1,600 guests attended Hamazkaine Armenian Sydney Dance Company's (ASDC) 10th Anniversary Cultural Extravaganza of music and dance at the glitzy Lyric Theatre, Star City Casino in Sydney.

Master of Ceremonies and Network Ten (Melbourne) news anchor George Donikian officially opened proceedings, paving the way for over 30 acts performed by over 240 local dancers and guest musical performers from Sydney, the United States of America and Armenia.

Leyla Saribekyan, Hayko Hakobyan, Anahit Simonyan, Armen Hovhanessyan, Kamo Seyranyan, Andranik Mouradian and Armen Movsessian delighted the record audience along with the dancers, who were aged between 4 and 40, with the majority in their teens.

In a special moment, Chairman of ASDC Harmick Hacobian was presented with a prestigious Hamazkaine medal of honour, sent from Hamazkaine's global headquarters for his decades of service to the organisation through ASDC and Galstaun College.

At the event's conclusion, Archbishop Aghan Baliozian captured the mood of the event by addressing the various political guests in attendance.

His Eminence stated: "When Armenians were going through the tortures of the Armenian Genocide in 1915, Australians from most states came to our ancestors' assistance by providing aid and shelter to the surviving orphans."

He added: "Today, with this show, we thank Australia and express our sincere gratitude."

Links to images and footage will be made available by Armenia Online in coming weeks...