newy.com.au – Free sunset concerts at Newcastle Ocean Baths and the Newcastle debut of Circa’s acrobatic production Wolf will feature in the closing weekend of New Annual, the city’s 10 day arts festival.
SOAK’s final two free sessions will feature Gomeroi hip hop artist Kobie Dee and Pasifika act 92WRLD on Friday, followed by Karen Lee Andrews on Saturday. Andrews’ music draws on soul, blues, gospel and rock.
“The return of SOAK to the Newcastle Ocean Baths smashed all our expectations, with more than 5,000 people getting into the vibe with Hermitude and Claire O’Brien on its opening night,” festival director Tory Loudon said.
“We’ve also had eight events totally sell out and have extended the run of Damien Frost’s Night Flowers exhibition at Watt Space Gallery to meet demand.”
Much of the remaining program is centred on the civic precinct. Wolf will bring 10 performers to the Civic Theatre stage on Friday night and Saturday afternoon. Journalists Annabel Crabb and Leigh Sales will bring their podcast Chat 10, Looks 3 to the same venue on Saturday night for a live, unscripted show.
At City Hall on Friday night, All In will bring together Dance Makers Collective and three local dance groups. Audience members will be invited to dance after the performance.
The Playhouse will host re:group performance collective’s AUTO-TUNE, a rock opera drawing on Silverchair fandom and millennial culture through original music. Local bands will play free gigs after the show each night.
Tantrum Youth Arts will also mark its 50th anniversary at The Playhouse with Press Play, an interactive production for young audiences. Nearby, University House will host the debut of the locally produced Triceratop, which combines cabaret, science fiction and storytelling.
City of Newcastle, which delivers the festival, is directing audiences to the New Annual website for details of the remaining program.
