The Lado Croatian Folkloric Ensemble of Western Australia was established in 1980. The aims of the ensemble include the preservation of Croatian folkloric traditions, the presentation of these traditions to the broader community and the encouragement of all Australian people to engage with and participate in, the performance of music, dance and song from Croatia.
The name LADO was adopted from the National Professional Folk Dance Ensemble in Zagreb in recognition of their outstanding work as the premier folkloric company of Croatia. Over its 40-year history, LADO has had over 300 members and the ensemble is now enjoying a resurgence of interest, as members revive and expand past and new repertoire.
LADO has enjoyed critical acclaim at the Shell Folkloric Concerts in the 1980s and the Oz Concerts of the 1990s and 2000s, has performed at concerts in Sydney and Canberra, regional areas of Western Australia and on three occasions toured Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Perhaps one of LADO’s greatest achievements was to represent Australia in 1988, during its bicentennial celebrations, at the prestigious Smotra Folklora in Zagreb, where they also proudly performed at the Vatroslav Lisinski Concert Hall.
In 2019, LADO pioneered and organised the very first event under the banner of the Croatian Folkloric Arts Festival Australia, which was held in Perth. This inaugural folkloric extravaganza was created to unify groups from across the nation through our shared love of Croatian folkloric tradition and to showcase our wonderful culture to the wider community.
LADO is proud to share with you our rich history, our bond to the past, to our present and to our future generations.