It is our intention as an organisation to provide greater accessibility to the Festival as a whole.
As we learn and grow our knowledge in this space, our programme continues to expand to be more inclusive to different needs – as does the way we deliver our events.
This year, we are thrilled to host three New Zealand Sign Language Interpreted events at the Theatre Royal – huge shoutout to our collaborators from Platform Interpreting New Zealand for their mahi, knowledge and support for these amazing events:
The most outstanding theatre experience of the year, The Savage Coloniser Show, plus comedy excellence in Hayley Sproull’s Ailments, and an inspiring kōrero with the incredible Dr Emma Espiner in There’s A Cure for This.
Also in the Access Programme are three audio described events/experiences, in addition to a Touch Tour and a recorded Audio Described tour of Bailee Lobb’s exhibition at the Refinery ArtSpace, SENSORY SELF PORTRAITS.
You can search our events via their accessibility code on our All Events page, or find the NZSL interpreted and the audio described events listed HERE.
You can book your tickets for the NZSL interpreted events via our website, or if you have any questions, please reach out to our Access Coordinator Olivia: access@nelsonartsfestival.nz
Follow in the footsteps of our 2022 recipients: Te Oro Hā and Alvaro Moreno, and become our 2023 By Whakatū Residency Artist!
We want to support local artists through time and resources, help them meet new audiences, and to tell local stories to the community (and the world!).
We’re proud to again gift a paid residency to an incredible artist from our region, to progress their mahi or trial new ideas as part of the By Whakatū Residency Programme 2023. This will culminate in a sharing at the end of the Festival – to talk to what you’ve been playing with, share a work in progress or workshop ideas live with an audience.
KEY DETAILS
- A budget of up to $2,000 NZD (ex. GST)
- Curatorial and producing support from Nelson Arts Festival team (if requested)
- A facilitated sharing/showing at the Suter Theatre with technical support at the conclusion of the residency
- An artist pass for Nelson Arts Festival 2023
Sound like you?
Please fill out the form below if you want to be our 2023 artist.
We’ve tried to keep it simple, but please reach out to artists@nelsonartsfestival.nz if you need any further information on how to answer any of the questions, or if you’d like to submit in a different format (video, audio, or other).
We particularly invite submissions from artists who identify as mana whenua, tangata whenua, pasifika, black, indigenous, people of colour, disabled, neurodivergent, d/Deaf, culturally diverse, of marginalised gender or LGBTQIA+.
Please note this opportunity is only available for people who live in or whakapapa to Te Tauihu (Top of the South Island).
Key Dates for 2023:
- 4 September: Expressions of Interest (EOIs) open
- 18 September, 11pm: EOIs close
- 21 September: Successful applicant notified
- 29 October, 12:30pm: Sharing from residency as part of Nelson Arts Festival
You can find more information about the sharing space and technical support offered by the Festival here.
We can’t wait to engage with your ideas!
The big day is finally here – we are so excited to share our 2023 Festival Programme with you all!
From inflatable sculptures to doppelgängers, Irish Music legends to literary heroes, poetry coming alive on stage to dancers roaming our streets, we are so proud of all the incredible artists and events coming to Whakatū this October.
Without much further ado – here it is, take a look, grab your tickets, let us know what you are most excited about:
He Toi Whakairo, He Mana Tangata. Where there is artistic excellence, there is human dignity.
– Dr Piri Sciascia (1946-2020)
We are proud to host a wonderful line-up of Māori artistic excellence across our whole programme – before we can share them all with you, please give a warm welcome to these very special artists: break-out musical talent Theia, and the incomparable Witi Ihimaera with whom we will spend a very special event celebrating his career and contribution to Aotearoa literature.
WITI & FRIENDS GALA NIGHT
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Witi Ihimaera’s Tangi, the first novel written by a Māori author to be published in New Zealand. Join Witi and six fellow Māori writers at this special gala event to celebrate Aotearoa storytelling: Emma Espiner (MC), Vaughan Rapatahana, Ruby Solly, Donna McLeod, Arihia Latham and Airana Ngarewa.
Truly a very special night to remember.
Theatre Royal | Sunday 22 October | 7pm
All our 2023 Pukapuka Talks events are presented by Go Media.
GIRL, IN A SAVAGE WORLD | Theia x Te Kaahu
Celebrated singer-songwriter Theia presents re-imagined songs from her critically acclaimed alt-pop catalogue alongside dreamy waiata from her award-winning reo Māori project Te Kaahu.
Theia’s lyrics are often raw and confrontational, while Te Kaahu explores cultural identity, environment and spirituality. Bringing together both projects for this Aotearoa premiere tour, this powerful songwriter presents music of soaring heights and devastating depths.
Theatre Royal | Saturday 28 October | 6.30pm
GIRL, IN A SAVAGE WORLD is supported by Tohu Wines.
Celebrated singer-songwriter Theia presents re-imagined songs from her critically acclaimed alt-pop catalogue alongside dreamy waiata from her award-winning reo Māori project Te Kaahu.
Theia’s lyrics are often raw and confrontational, while Te Kaahu explores cultural identity, environment and spirituality. Bringing together both projects for this Aotearoa premiere tour, this powerful songwriter presents music of soaring heights and devastating depths.
Theatre Royal | Saturday 28 October | 6.30pm
GIRL, IN A SAVAGE WORLD is supported by Tohu Wines.
We’re thrilled to make a couple of early announcements for our 2023 contemporary music programme.
Drum roll, please, as we welcome Irish Music legends Gráda to Neudorf Vineyards, and the incredible KITA to our Deville Music Hub!
Gráda
From Sydney Opera House and Ireland’s National Concert Hall to the Upper Moutere: Irish music heroes Gráda reunite to tour their homelands – Ireland and Aotearoa. With over 1,000 cities in 30 countries over 10 years under their belt, Gráda are “to Irish music what Arcade Fire is to Indie – informal, prodigious and full of spirit” (The Washington Post). This will be the perfect way to spend your Sunday and get your boogie on!
Neudorf Vineyards | Sunday 29 October | Doors from 12pm, concert starts 2pm.
GRÁDA are supported by Neudorf Vineyards and Avoca Web Design.
KITA
Despite the overwhelming news of the everyday, remember: Love Lives Here! Pōneke-based KITA meshes folk-soul, guitar and storytelling with thick lush sounds and barking psychedelic drums to bring you a must-see live experience. Off the back of Splore and WOMAD, Nikita 雅涵 Tu-Bryant, Ed Zuccollo (ZUKE) and Rick Cranson (Little Bushman) will blow you away “with [their] massive sound”.
Get ready to forget what you thought you knew about a three-piece band!
Deville Music Hub | Saturday 21 October | Doors from 8pm, Support Act 8.30pm, Main Act 9.30pm
All our 2023 Deville Music Hub gigs are supported by Savage & Savage.
Both gigs will be Pay What You Can ticketing (PWYC) – tickets will be on sale from Friday 1 September 2023.
We can’t wait to see you on the dance floor, Whakatū!
We are delighted to share one of our big Visual Arts events with you already.
The Refinery ArtSpace will be taken over by some colourful, textile sculptures this October thanks to a very special artist from Te-Whanganui-a-Tara: Bailee Lobb and her exhibition, ‘Sensory Self Portraits’.
Think big soft sculptures that you can experience both from the outside and inside as well as soft props to touch and experience soothing support, transforming the gallery into a joyous pool of colours and textures.
‘Sensory Self Portraits’ is an exhibition of playful textile installations exploring the pursuit of self-regulation and sensory support that go with this for autistic artist Bailee.
For our 2023 festival, Bailee will present works from her colour-bathing series, ‘In Bathing, Bask’ alongside a brand new performance and installation work, ‘How do you sleep at night?’ which explores the use of sensory supports for sleep, and working with light, weight, and posture to develop non-pharmaceutical sleep aids.
We are so proud to bring these works to Whakatū.
Sensory Self Portaits | Bailee Lobb | 19 – 29 October 2023 | The Refinery ArtSpace
We are thrilled to announce the return of a much-loved event for the 2023 Nelson Arts Festival:
The MASK CARNIVALE will transform our inner-city streets into a colourful explosion of joy, community and creativity on
Friday 27 October 2023
In 2023, as we journey together around the sun, we find ourselves 8 billion strong and 8 billion divided. And so we look to be part of the momentum – rewilding, regenerating, rebalancing, reinvigorating.
Let’s embrace and celebrate this momentum, with our theme for this year’s Mask Carnivale:
REWILD. REGENERATE.
From reusing waste materials, using natural processes, Where the Wild Things Are or generat(ions) – interpret the theme however speaks to you and help us bring vigour, creativity and wonder
to our newly (re)born Mask Carnivale.
We can’t wait to see what creative masks and costumes you will come up with!
If you’re keen to be part of the Parade or perform during the Carnivale, please register via the button below by 30 September 2023.
Our team and Board have been busy dreaming and planning for this year’s Nelson Arts Festival. And while we can’t share all the amazing events we’re working on for a few months, please mark our Festival dates in your calendars already:
19 – 29 October 2023
More details on our big community events and how you can be part of this year’s Festival to come soon – until then, spread the word, invite those friends from out of town to come visit Whakatū this October and experience how our town comes alive with creativity!
The Nelson Festivals Trust exists because we love the arts and see the power it brings to support the wellbeing of our whole community.
As we step bravely in 2023, we are looking for two new Trust members to help deliver on our strategy and support the festival team to stage a festival of unmissable arts that will enrich the people of our region. The Nelson Arts Festival is the longest-running regional arts festival in Aotearoa, taking place annually in October across the Nelson region.
This an unpaid voluntary, governance role. Board members are not required to be involved with the delivery of the festival but to bring their governance skills to the table.
We meet monthly as a board and also have working groups aligned to our strategy. These working groups meet as required between board meetings.
We’d love to hear from you if you have:
- A passion for the arts
- Governance experience
- An understanding of Tikanga Māori
- Strategic planning skills
- A strong understanding of financial governance and commercial experience
- Have strong community connections in the Nelson/Tasman region
We are particularly keen to encourage applications from tangata whenua, younger members of the community and from the diverse communities in the Nelson/Tasman region.
Applications close on December 16, 2022.
Please contact Ali Boswijk for questions or to apply: info@nelsonartsfestival.nz
As we’re slowly coming out of the post-festival haze, we can’t quite believe our 11 days of unmissable arts experiences are really over for this year!
Thank you so very much for your support and enthusiasm Whakatū, we feel immensely grateful to have shared these amazing events with you all. To see our community out and about – at events and roaming our streets and galleries – and welcoming artists with such care has truly made our hearts jump for joy.
We’ve done a few things differently this year and there are always big learnings, so we’d greatly appreciate if you could fill out our 2022 Festival survey below – we want to hear what your experience was! Find the survey here.
This should only take a few minutes of your time and to sweeten the deal, you can go into the draw to win an amazing selection of books from our 2022 Pukapuka Talks programme AND two double-passes to 2023 event/s of your choice, all wrapped up in one of our limited edition Carry the Arts bags!
Please complete the survey by Friday 25 November – huge thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts!
Kia ora e te whānau,
As you may be aware already, there has been an increase in Covid-infections in our community over the last couple of days. We are monitoring the situation closely so that we can make decisions regarding our events and their safety where needed.
Keeping our community, artists, team and crew safe and well is our #1 priority, and we are doing all we can to ensure this.
We would therefore like to recommend you wear a mask inside our Festival venues and when in close proximity to our team members and crew – this includes our artists, front of house staff, box office crew, technicians and all staff in our Festival venues.
This may feel like an inconvenience to some, but we trust that wearing a mask around others is an easy and effective measure to keep yourself and others safe during these uncertain times. As long as we all stay healthy, we can share our wonderful arts experiences and events with you!
If you are unwell, please stay at home. We have some amazing online events for you to enjoy even if you cannot come to our in-person events while you look after your health. As a thank you for keeping our community safe, we can offer you a refund on your ticket – please contact us a minimum of two hours ahead of the event via the Theatre Royal Box Office if you are unwell and would like a refund of your ticket: 03 548 3840 or boxoffice@theatreroyalnelson.co.nz
If you have any other pātai, we can be reached via info@nelsonartsfestival.nz (just bear with us if we cannot respond immediately – we’re all hands on deck running the Festival so emails may take a bit longer to be responded to).
Thank you for your understanding and support, arts lovers.
Stay safe and well and enjoy the final five days of our 2022 Festival – so much goodness still to come!
Ngā mihi maioha,
Your Nelson Arts Festival team
All of the incredible things on offer to our younger ones are now available for download – easy as that!
Check out the full programme for download: click here
And contact education@nelsonartsfestival.nz if you’d like to book in.
Ok, strap yourselves in – here we go again!
We are delighted to bring you a full, bold and exciting 2022 Nelson Arts Festival.
From a giant flying iceberg to tiny whispers, the programme continues to bring to life the vision we co-created with you, our community, back in 2019: celebrating the arts and our community; championing inclusivity, creativity and connection; revitalising our CBD and placing unmissable arts experiences in unexpected places.
We’re so happy to be here now, in this moment in time, in Whakatū. As we move forward, it’s important to acknowledge we would not have survived the past two years of COVID-19 challenges without the unwavering support of our core festival team, our contractors, artists and volunteers, and of course our incredible funders and partners.
Amazing humans all around, we feel your love and support, and can’t wait to see you this October!
And now, go on, explore, enjoy, plan and get excited about this year’s 11 days of unmissable arts experiences for and with Whakatū. Find the full programme here.
Brent Thawley, Te Tiamana | Chair, Nelson Festivals Trust
They are akin to a storm, long seen in the distance and then wildly all-encompassing when on top of you.
Festivals take you for a ride, and we wouldn’t want them any other way. But not all storms are alike, and not all environments are either. This storm, on this day, in this place, is hugely different from 2021, 2020, or particularly 2019. And so we put on our coats and head out to jump in puddles, to see if we can soar on the gusts and to feel the rain on our faces. This Festival, this creative storm, holds us here, now, in this moment – and for all its challenges, we celebrate it, challenge it, thrive in it, fly in it.
The presentness to this moment (and the certainty of change) means Nelson Arts Festival has to change too. We are making a Festival with our community at its heart, embracing a wider range of artists and spaces in Whakatū and beyond, looking to different framings where even more of our community may feel seen and safe, and embedding the community in a multitude of aspects of the programme.
COVID-19 has fundamentally changed many aspects of our lives, and by necessity our programme. This year we’re not holding events which bring together large crowds focused on one experience over a short space of time, which means there is no Mask Parade and Carnivale this festival. It’s a multigenerational event, and the younger and older members of our community are particularly vulnerable. We know the Carnivale is much loved, so we have split elements of it across the programme: Masks About Town which celebrates the creativity and history of mask culture and making in our community; a big event for the whole community in THAW; and community-led making embedded across the Festival – more details about how to get involved are in the following pages.
After premiering at Sydney Festival in January, we are super excited to be bringing the call to climate action THAW to Whakatū for its Aotearoa premiere. Across 8 hours audiences can come and go, experiencing this wholly unique and life- changing event safely and comfortably.
The storms of now have given us the opportunity to trial new things, reach further, innovate and extend ourselves. This begins to manifest in the programme this year in an expanded Access Programme, continual growth in our Tamariki and Rangatahi Programme, and new initiatives such as the inaugural By Whakatū residency at the Suter Theatre.
From flying icebergs to boxing ring poetry slams, Pasifika cabaret/dance extravaganzas to Ukrainian pop musos, celebrations of Keri Hulme, Rita Angus and Don McGlashan, Dancing With The Stars celebs to Cousins acting prowess, jazz from dawn to nightfall, Ockham winners to book launches, everything from exhibitions, performances, workshops, whispers in the streets, parties, words, discussions, rituals, residencies and unforgettable experiences, in halls, theatres, galleries, cafes, heritage sites, Kōhanga Reo and digital platforms, and, to top it all off, a burning piano to see the storm through.
What will tomorrow bring? Release yourself into the storm and let’s find out, together.
Nau mai, haere mai e te whānau!
Lydia, Annie, Rose, Kerry, Wendy, Natalie, Nerys, Olivia, Maria, JR, Antony & the Nelson Arts Festival team