THE BIG SPRING STREET PARTY

Introducing our BIG SPRING STREET PARTY MC – the fabulous Banana Jolie!

Choreographer, comedic powerhouse and all-round joy machine, Banana Jolie will be bringing the laughs, energy and plenty of outrageous moves to our street party!

And don’t miss her Banana Boogie workshop from 1pm–1.30pm – a hilarious, feel-good dance mixtape packed with classic bangers, sweet moves and plenty of opportunities to shake off your shyness. Open to all ages and abilities, come ready to BOOGIE!

The prophetic People’s Oracle is coming to town! Give & Get free Life Lessons from your neighbour through this interactive installation made out of olden day junk and the community’s collective wisdom.

The Oracle is calling residents from all corners of Whakatū to share their Life Lessons. What’s your greatest insight? Perhaps: Never give up trying? Always water your house plants? Be bold? Eat chocolate at least once a day? Come see the Oracle’s quirky Assistant and entrust your wisdoms to her for feeding into the Oracle.

Life Lessons collected from around Whakatū on Friday night – Life Lessons shared at the Big Spring Party.  

This interactive installation is created by Katja Starke from WE THE COLLATERAL. In her participatory mahi, Katja combines the whimsical with engaging audiences around what is meaningful to them. 

Heidi & Sean Show are a dynamic circus-comedy duo based in Napier, Hawke’s Bay, bringing together physical comedy, circus skills, audience interaction and a healthy dose of chaos. 
 
Sean has almost 30 years of professional performance experience, both nationally and internationally. His career has taken him to festivals and events across New Zealand and overseas. He trained at circus school in Christchurch and has developed a broad repertoire of circus and street performance skills. 
 
Heidi holds a Bachelor of Creative Arts and has performed extensively throughout New Zealand and internationally, including at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Her background in creative arts and performance brings a strong theatrical and character-driven element to the duo’s work. 
 
Together, Heidi & Sean create energetic, highly visual performances that combine circus, comedy, audience participation and spontaneous interaction. Their shows are adaptable to festivals, theatres, outdoor events and unusual spaces, with a focus on making every audience part of the experience. 
Based in Napier, Heidi & Sean are passionate about creating memorable, accessible live entertainment and bringing their unique brand of circus comedy to audiences throughout New Zealand and beyond. 

Emerging in 1996, The Nomad has built a reputation as one of New Zealand’s most respected electronic artists, blending dub, reggae, house, drum & bass, jungle, and live instrumentation into a sound uniquely his own. 
 
Since his first album release ‘Movement’ in 1998, he has gone on to release eleven full length albums, remix albums and various singles, while working with some of Aotearoa’s leading talents, including King Kapisi, Tiki Taane, Barnaby Weir, Tehimana Kerr, Lisa Tomlins, and Oakley Grenell. 
 
The new release continues that tradition, delivering deep baselines, rich textures, and emotionally driven production shaped by years of experience in the studio and on stages throughout Aotearoa and beyond. 

Ngā Mana Kākano o Te Wairepo is a kapa preparing to represent our kura at the Te Mana Kuratahi 2027 competitions in Te Tai Tokerau.

Our kaupapa is grounded in tikanga Māori with our mokopuna and te reo Māori me ōna tikanga at the heart of everything we do. Through kapa haka, we provide our tamariki with a pathway to engage in the arts while strengthening their connection to their reo, culture, whakapapa and identity.

For us, kapa haka is more than performance. It is a vehicle for nurturing mana, whanaungatanga and cultural confidence, creating a space where our tamariki can stand proudly in who they are and where they come from.

Zambuko Marimba is Motueka’s very own African marimba band offering the simultaneously soulful, undeniably joyful, polyrhythmic music of the Shona people from Zimbabwe. A 10-person band, we love to share our passion for this unique music. Put on your dancing feet and come groove with us! 

Mojo Filter is a DJ, producer, remixer and radio host with a taste for the unexpected. His sets move freely through disco, house, electronic music, global rhythms, psychedelic edits, leftfield grooves and heavyweight bass — always with an ear for atmosphere, storytelling and the strange connections between tracks. 
 
Based in Aotearoa New Zealand, Mojo brings years of digging, editing and dancefloor experience into sets that are playful, adventurous and built around one simple idea: follow the energy and see where it leads. 

Tarante’s performances are a celebration of dance from across Europe, shared with their community. Through movement, music, and costume, they bring culture to life, inviting audiences to feel the joy, energy, and history behind every step. From Spain to Italy, Greece, France, and around the Mediterranean, TARANTE connects the past and the present, tradition and modernity, in ways that are both captivating and fun.

We invite you to witness this gathering of colourful sarees taking to the streets and the stage. Starting with a group performance, this group of Nurses from South Kerala will take to the streets bringing their dancing spirit – celebrate by joining in and learning some moves.  

Levity Beet aims to encourage curiosity, experimentation, creativity and an appreciation of the world around us through music with diverse themes inspired by a heartfelt enjoyment of simple things, amazing creatures, funny coincidences and connection with both like-minded people and those with new ideas.

Golden Bay folk duo Hannah and Saci weave exquisite harmonies and heartfelt storytelling into a captivating blend of a cappella and acoustic music. What began in 2022 as gentle songs sung over Hannah’s newborn daughter has evolved into a beautiful musical partnership celebrating nature, connection and community.

Joining them is Liani, an emerging artist and poet from Motueka whose evocative words explore the powerful themes of home, identity and belonging.
Together, this trio of wāhine bring an intimate and moving celebration of music, poetry and stories that connect us.

Gladys & Beryl, the retro -sexy cleaning ladies, were formed as foyer entertainment for a charity comedy event in 2019. Since then the Glad Rags Cleaning Ladies, have taken gallery tours, lit up the Nelson nights , polished fountains, spread kindness, and swept the streets, for a myriad of Nelson/Tasman events. 

Can you guess who’s who?  New Zealand’s iconic circus duo ‘The Twisty Twinz‘ (Jola & Nele Siezen) will once again delight the streets of Nelson with Their Spectacular, Acrobatic Stilt walking Characters! 
 
Together they wow, confuse, amuse and mesmerize – bringing joy and fun for everyone! They are bound to leave a sparkle on your face. 

Eaton Mess likes to keep things silly and joyful. Dancing _is_ a lunch time activity!  Eaton Mess is the host of Fresh FM show Loud and Queer. They have DJed at the Ginger’s Pop-up, Whakatū Pride, queer events in Narrm/Melbourne and at the much-missed Mighty Mighty. Come and enjoy the sounds. 

The Walkers are a nine piece jazz and funk band from Nayland College, with a full horn section and one mission: get the crowd dancing. Mixing high energy originals and covers, they’ve played the Nelson Jazz Festival, Rockquest Regional Finals and Rock the City, and they’re back for another Tune Up. 

It is a very old English style of dance dating back some 500 years. It is important to keep this dance history alive and Ragged Crow Morris Dancing has a part in keeping it going in the Antipodes.