The 2018 Sydney Festival came to play and man, does the Harbour City look set to absolutely shine come January. Festival Director Wesley Enoch and his team have compiled a number of wonderful creations spanning theatre, music, visual arts and more for next year’s Sydney Festival, bringing some heavy hitting international names through, all the while shining the spotlight brightly on our own crop of forward thinking musicians and artists working here in Australia.
The music program is simply delectable, with the likes of Emma Donovan and The Putbacks, Shabaka and The Ancestors, Fémina, Gotye, Aldous Harding and Jlin all set to appear. The contemporary ballet Tree of Codes, brings the work of Wayne McGregor, Olafur Eliasson and Jamie xx to Sydney for an unmissable event running from January 6-10, as an example of the flair next year’s Sydney Festival is operating with.
Elsewhere on the Sydney Festival line up, Indigenous talent is a key focus, with the program for 2018 bringing excellent works to the theatre side of the festival; Gheona Gela‘s My Urrwai will have its world premiere at the Belvoir, while Tribunal, My Name is Jimi and Broken Glass are all set to captivate audiences. The focus on community and local talent is one the Sydney Festival has looked to emphasise for another year and just taking a quick look through the program today, it’s clear to see they’ve met the brief.
“Recently, we have witnessed the global effect of people feeling disenfranchised or disengaged.” Enoch has said. “As Australians we have been asked our opinion on Marriage Equality but not Climate Change, we have been asked to step up and engage in debates and discussions but only so far. Sydney Festival invites you to keep getting involved. The people who live in a country have a responsibility to build the future of that country, to engage in creative re-imaginings and ensure the next generations inherit something better. Artists are here creating more and more ways of celebrating our better angels and questioning the things that are holding us back.”
Check out the full Sydney Festival program here.
Photo by Jamie Williams.
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