Adelaide Festival
PREMIERE PERFORMERS
While other events have fallen to global lockdowns, the Adelaide Festival is preparing to take centre stage with an impressive line-up of some of the best local and international talent
The lights are on, the curtains hung and the stage set for the 2021 Adelaide Festival, South Australia’s iconic arts festival regarded as one of the best in the world. In what’s been the toughest of times for performers around the world, this year’s Adelaide Festival will be even more cherished by the more than 600 artists who will be enthralling audiences more than 70 events over 17 days, from February 26 to March 14. 2021 marks the 61st year of the Adelaide Festival – and the fifth year co-directors Rachel Healy and Neil Armfield will be in charge. The duo – with almost seven decades of Australian theatre experience combined – initially took over the directorship reins in 2017 for a three-year stint; their success means they retain a firm hold on those reins today.
“We started with an overarching vision for the period of our tenure to reassert the primacy of the Adelaide Festival as an international arts festival in the Australian cultural landscape,” Healy says. “We also wanted to affirm its core promise to the community, presenting the greatest artists of our generation in a festival context with a raft of experiences you can only see in Adelaide.”
Those experiences – fondly referred to as “Mad March” by locals – include the Adelaide Fringe and WOMADelaide which run in conjunction with the Adelaide Festival. “You can go from the Festival Centre and walk two minutes to see Writer’s Week, another five minutes to get to WOMADelaide, or drop in at one of the small bars off Hindley Street,” Healy says. “There are so many events, exhibitions and the energy on the street is like no other time of year and like no other festival in Australia. It’s a small city cultural takeover that Adelaide does so brilliantly and has done for decades, which is why when people globally talk about the most important arts festivals of the world, the Adelaide Festival is always among them.”
The level of talent the Adelaide Festival attracts is further testament to its international standing. Past performances have come from New York’s Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, the Batsheva Dance Company of Israel, Italian artistic director and producer Valerio Festi and American composer, arranger, record producer, saxophonist, and multi-instrumentalist John Zorn. Closer to home, local stars including David Gulpilil, Neil Finn and Paul Kelly have also graced the festival’s stages.
And 2021 is no different: despite global lockdowns, an array of national and international talent is currently in or en route to South Australia to perform at this year’s festival – including American countertenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen, who will be taking on the role of Oberon in Neil Armfield’s operatic production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Adelaide Festival Theatre. For Cohen, the role has been a shining light during many dark months.
“We artists have all lost a lot of work so this is a bright light,” he says. “The festival approached me about singing this role with them and I was overjoyed at the possibility. It will be my first time back on the stage in just over a year by the time we open.”
The Adelaide Festival will also give Cohen the chance to indulge in one of his favourite modes of performing – a solo recital at the Adelaide Town Hall. “Solo recitals present an opportunity for opera singers to have full artistic licence over what we are performing,” he says. “It’s the most vulnerable of all of the methods of performance we have – it’s usually just us and a pianist standing on a stage and bearing our soul to the audience with no costume or orchestra. For me it’s a chance to perform the music that speaks most to me and that people might not expect to hear, to show what I can do and do the music I love the most but have had the least opportunity to do.”
That music includes works by Ravel, Brahms and Handel, as well as contemporary music by African American composers and more. “I’ll also be performing music from my heritage and the Jewish tradition,” Cohen says. “There’s going to be a lot going on and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Thrills of a different kind are guaranteed by acrobatics and physical theatre company Gravity & Other Myths, who are coming home to Adelaide to debut their latest show. Featuring 30 acrobats on stage with a 30-voice choir, The Pulse is the company’s most ambitious project yet. Due to debut in Sydney last month, the show was forced to cancel due to COVID-19 lockdown restrictions. “That was totally devastating,” says director Darcy Grant. “Over the past year we had worked towards premiering at the Sydney Festival, with many hundreds of hours of work behind-the-scenes, so to have it not able to premiere was a real blow."
But Sydney’s loss is Adelaide’s gain, with eight performances scheduled at Her Majesty’s beginning February 25. “There’s no precedent in Australian physical theatre for a work of this size and ambition,” Grant says. “We have three ensembles and this is the first time they have performed together. As far as I understand, it will be the first time an ensemble of 30 acrobats will have done a show in Australia.”
Attracting such artists who are at the top of their craft is the underlying principle on which Healy and Armfield operate. “Our vision for the Adelaide Festival is shifting all the time, but what hasn’t changed is our ambition for the festival to present absolutely the best of the work that is available within this country and internationally,” Armfield says. “There is a very high bar that is necessary in order for a festival like Adelaide to maintain its standards and the thrill of that experience.”
Fringe highlights
The biggest arts festival in the southern hemisphere and the second-biggest in the world, the Adelaide Fringe is a drawcard for festivalgoers from all across the nation and the world. From cabaret to comedy, magic to music, dance to digital displays, the Adelaide Fringe brings together people of all ages and interests to enjoy the atmosphere and entertainment on offer.
Although on a smaller scale than in previous years, the 2021 Adelaide Fringe, which runs from February 19 to March 21, still boasts more than 6000 artists performing at more than 300 venues across South Australia. Highlights include:
REUBEN KAYE
Winner of the 2018 Helpmann award for Best Cabaret Performer, Reuben Kaye blends storytelling with song, with plenty of risque entertainment thrown in for good measure. He will be performing at the Wonderland Spiegeltent, the festival’s new venue in Hindmarsh Square.
DISCO WONDERLAND: DANCING TIL DAWN
Join the disco inferno as Adelaide’s East End is transformed into the hottest club in town with the electrifying music of Michael Jackson, the Bee Gees, Sister Sledge, Gloria Gaynor and more.
BOREALIS
Art meets technology in this magical installation as high power laser beams travel through particle clouds to create the illusion of the Aurora Borealis at Rymill Park. Variations in weather conditions, movement, colour, and density mean that the effect is different every night.
SMASHED: THE BRUNCH PARTY
Hosted by award-winning cabaret queen Victoria Falconer and featuring a smorgasbord of world-class cabaret, fierce drag and jaw-dropping circus performers, this weekend brunch and show experience takes place in the surrounds of the gorgeous Spiegeltent at The Garden of Unearthly Delights.
DENISE SCOTT, CAL WILSON, NIKKI BRITTON & LIZZY HOO – CHICKSAL 500
Join four of the country’s best performers for a night of laughs as Australian comedy legend Denise Scott is joined by Cal Wilson, Nikki Britton and rising star Lizzy Hoo.
Log on to adelaidefringe.com.au for the full program and to book tickets
Adelaide Festival highlights
While asking Healy and Armfield to name their favourite picks for 2021 “is like asking us to pick a favourite child”, some not-to-be-missed performances include:
● A Midsummer Night’s Dream
● Celebration of David Gulpilil’s life – a series of performances and screenings honouring the actor’s place in the history of Australian film
● The Plastic Bag Store
● Gravity & Other Myths
● Ngarku’adlu (Let’s Eat)
● Four exclusive international live-streaming events – Medea from Amsterdam, Eugene Onegin from Moscow, BLKDOG from London and Igor Levit from Berlin
adelaidefestival.com.au for more details
illumination
TURNING ON A NEW WINTER EVENT
Showcasing a mix of art, technology and innovation, this year’s inaugural Illuminate Adelaide event aims to light up the city - and provide a beacon for visitors during the traditionally quiet winter months
A dazzling new light will shine on the heart of Adelaide this July with the arrival of an inaugural winter festival guaranteed to warm hearts and chase the chills away. From July 16 to August 1, the city will glow with entertainment as Illuminate Adelaide brings a blend of art, innovation and technology to the festival state, transforming city streets, laneways and buildings with a mix of light, art installations, immersive technology, music, performance and ideas.
Created in partnership with the State Government, Illuminate is the perfect fusion of technology and creativity, offering artists the chance to showcase their extraordinary talents – and the rest of the country the opportunity to see the amazing future technologies innovation which has gained South Australia recognition on the global stage.
“Here in South Australia, there is so much extraordinary work happening and so many talented and incredible innovators in the areas of future technologies, arts and creative industries,” says Rachael Azzopardi, the former deputy executive director of Adelaide Festival who is compiling the program for Illuminate Adelaide alongside Lee Cumberlidge, co-founder of Tasmania’s successful MONA FOMA. “Illuminate Adelaide, with the support of the State Government, will provide a platform to bring these sectors together and showcase them in a collaborative celebration for all South Australians and visitors to the state.”
Azzopardi and Cumberlidge are working with cultural, academic and science institutions in curating the wintertime extravaganza, which will include both ticketed and free events featuring local artists and businesses and the state’s own entrepreneurial community, as well as national and international makers. The over-arching concept of Illuminate Adelaide is to present an engaging new winter experience.
“It’s about taking over the CBD with a big program of light, art and technology,” Cumberlidge says. “We’ve focused on that as our theme. Rachael and I have been inspired by some of the amazing developments that have been happening in SA in the future technologies, energy sector and creative industries.
“We wanted to present something in the public domain for audiences to share and experience together that really focused on those forms – where artists are using technology in creative ways or technologists and innovators are working creatively or embedding the creative process or art in what they do.”
While having elements in common with both Vivid Sydney and Hobart’s Dark Mofo festivals – and the projections which have lit up iconic buildings along North Terrace during recent Adelaide Festivals – Illuminate Adelaide will stand on its own merit.
“We’re looking to develop something unique that will draw on what the city is all about,” Cumberlidge says. “We wanted to go a lot deeper into art and technology and where those two areas intersect – so it’s much more than just a projection event or a light festival in winter.
“The amazing thing about what’s happening in Adelaide is that there are incredible companies working in areas such as special effects, the gaming industry, machine learning, the space agency – these are types of organisations we think could be potential collaborators.”
With Mad March attracting visitors to South Australia during the warmer months for decades, Illuminate Adelaide is expected to become as wonderful drawcard to the state during the cooler months. Illuminate Adelaide will be a key highlight on South Australia’s events calendar, helping entice visitors to the city in what is the usually quieter winter period,” says Events South Australia executive director Hitaf Rasheed. “For the events and festivals sector which has been hit hard with COVID-19, the news of a major wintertime festival was very much welcomed.”
For artistic royalty Azzopardi and Cumberlidge, having the opportunity to create Illuminate Adelaide from the ground up has been something of a career dream come true.
“It’s a great privilege for Lee and I to create something new,” Azzopardi says. “We’re both very proud South Australians, so to actually kick it off here is doubly special for us. We’re hoping all the people of South Australia and beyond come out in winter and enjoy it.”
Details: illuminateadelaide.com
Feast For The Senses
South Australia is living up to its reputation as the festival state. Among the major events set to amuse, provoke and entertain in 2021 are:
Adelaide Fringe – All the fun and games of Adelaide’s biggest party will return this year, with almost 800 shows and events initially booked in across 285 venues, with the potential for more to be added. From music and magic to comedy and theatre, there’s something for all. February 19-March 21. adelaidefringe.com.au
Adelaide Festival – A program of 72 events has been unveiled, including a record number of Australian premieres, a free opening night concert featuring Darwin-born singer Jessica Mauboy and several performances livestreamed from Europe direct to Her Majesty’s Theatre. February 26-March 14. adelaidefestival.com.au
Adelaide Writers’ Week – The last literary festival to sneak in before COVID-19 restrictions hit hard last year, this will be one of the first to return in 2021 – although with international guests joining via livestream. An expanded Australian line-up will appear live in the Pioneer Women’s Memorial Garden. February 27-March 4. adelaidefestival.com.au/writers-week
WOMADelaide – Oz music legends Midnight Oil headline the four-day musical extravaganza, which will be held this year in King Rodney Park. Other performers include Sarah Blasko, Archie Roach, Tash Sultana, Vika and Linda and the Teskey Brothers. March 5-8. womadelaide.com.au
Barossa Vintage Festival – First held in 1947, the biennial festival puts the best of the Barossa on show, offering a tremendous chance to eat, drink, stay and play in the ever-popular wine region. From long lunches and degustation dinners to family-friendly picnics and markets, it’s a community party like no other. April 14-18. barossavintagefestival.com.au
Tasting Australia presented by RAA Travel – A celebration of South Australian food and drink, with more than 140 events throughout the state. April 30-May 9. tastingaustralia.com.au
OTR SuperSprint (Supercars round four) – Get your motorsport fix at Tailem Bend’s internationally award-winning motorsport facility as the Repco Supercars Championship returns to The Bend Motorsport Park with three days of revved-up excitement. May 7-9. thebend.com.au
Adelaide Cabaret Festival – Established in 2001, the Adelaide Cabaret Festival is recognised as the biggest event of its type in the world. Cancelled last year, it returns in 2021 under the artistic direction of Alan Cumming. June 11-26. adelaidecabaretfestival.com.au
Adelaide Guitar Festival – There are no shortage of strings attached with this festival, recognised as the most significant of its kind in the southern hemisphere. Led by artistic director Slava Grigoryan, it features a mix of regional roadshows, workshops, master classes, artist talks and ticketed performances. July 4-25. adelaideguitarfestival.com.au
South Australian Living Artists Festival (SALA) – First held in 1998, SALA is a statewide festival of visual art, involving more than 9000 participating artists across 600 venues. August 1-31. salafestival.com
Feast Festival – An annual celebration of pride and diversity, Feast began in 1997 as a safe and inclusive platform for members of the LGBTIQ community to share and express themselves through art and culture. November 6-28. feast.org.au
UNIQUE Experiences
ONLY IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA
From diving with dragons to sleeping on a mountain top under the stars, there’s nowhere like South Australia
DIVE WITH DRAGONS
Only in South Australia can you leap into pristine waters and swim with leafy sea dragons. These beautiful creatures are a relative of the sea horse, with larger bodies and leaf-like appendages that help them to blend in with the local flora, including seaweed and kelp.
As of the most ornately camouflaged creatures on the planet, leafy sea dragons are notoriously difficult for the untrained eye to spot, which is why most visitors to South Australia take advantage of the skills of experienced divers such as those at Divers Delight. Based in Adelaide’s eastern suburbs, Divers Delight conducts leafy sea dragon tours at Rapid Bay, which sits on the northern coast of the Fleurieu Peninsula about 1.5 hours drive south of Adelaide, and is regarded by many as South Australia’s premier dive site.
Sheltered from prevailing currents, the Rapid Bay jetty features a purpose-built dive platform, while its exceptional visibility allows divers to immerse themselves in the abundance of aquatic life on offer – not just leafy sea dragons but also cuttlefish, nudibranchs, pufferfish, perch, squid, stingray, wrasse and more.
For more information, log on to diversdelight.com.au
A NEW FRONTIER
Located at Lot Fourteen, home of the Australian Space Agency in the heart of Adelaide’s CBD, the Australian Space Discovery Centre will be a public place to inspire, educate and engage the Australian community and next generation space workforce.
The centre will include a space exhibition area; industry area to connect business, start-ups and researchers, and a careers hub. It will also feature a Mission Control Centre for space businesses and researchers to control satellites and space missions, which will be viewable to the public.
Visitors can learn about opportunities in the areas of engineering, science, design and manufacturing, robotics and data analysis, as well as space careers in areas such as business, communications, education, and law.
The centre is expected to be completed and opened in the first half of 2021.
For more information, log on to space.gov.au
STAR-STUDDED EXPERIENCE
Head north of Adelaide for an experience unlike any other – drifting off to sleep under the starry Outback skies of the Flinders Ranges.
Offering ancient, awe-inspiring landscapes by day, the area’s stunning vistas of craggy peaks, gorges and spinifex-covered hillsides give way to million-star views at night.
And there’s no shortage of options to take it all in, with accommodation ranging from luxury resorts and homesteads to simply rolling out your own swag and settling in under the celestial carpet.
If the idea of sleeping under the stars appeals but the thought of camping doesn’t, “glamping” might be the perfect compromise.
Based within Wilpena Pound Resort, Ikara Safari Camp offers this style of camping with a luxurious twist: large tents complete with king size beds, ensuite bathrooms, power and airconditioning.
For more information, log on to wilpenapound.com.au/accommodation/ikara-safari-camp
DRESS TO IMPRESS
Perhaps nothing says classic Aussie country style quite like an outfit from iconic Adelaide-based clothing and boot brand R.M. Williams.
Born in the bush in 1932 – when Reginald Murray Williams crafted his first pair of hard-wearing yet fashionable riding boots – the brand has been a key part of rural wardrobes for more than 90 years, with its footwear today made in a factory in Salisbury.
The boots are complemented by an extensive range of clothing and accessories, from shirts and jeans to belts and wallets, for both men and women.
After a period of offshore ownership, R.M. Williams – which has grown to 74 stores across 15 countries and boasts acclaimed entertainer Hugh Jackman as its global ambassador – was returned to Australian hands last October, after billionaire Fortescue chairman Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest and his wife Nicola purchased the business for $190 million.
For more information, log on to rmwilliams.com.au
BE SWEPT AWAY
How’s the serenity? It’s a safe bet you’ll be echoing the famous line from popular Aussie film The Castle as soon as you enter breathtaking Coorong National Park.
Long, salty lagoons are a haven for birdlife with a narrow strip of sand hills protecting the sheltered waters from the Southern Ocean.
Offering a mix of birdwatching – the sandy landscape set the scene for acclaimed SA author Colin Thiele’s much-loved pelican-themed Storm Boy and subsequent movies – boating, kayaking, fishing, camping and cultural history, you’ll be able to cruise serene backwaters or brave the elements along remote beaches.
“Coorong” is an adaptation of “kurangk”, the Ngarrindjeri word for the pristine stretch, and the Ngarrindjeri Kurangk Culture Experience Tour offers a chance to connect more closely with the land through unearthing and tasting native foods, learning about medicinal plants, exploring the water network and being initiated into country with a smoke ceremony.
Coorong National Park is bordered by both Encounter and Upper South East Marine Parks.
For more information, log on to southaustralia.com/products/limestone-coast/attraction/coorong-national-park
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE
Looking to immerse yourself in a slice of traditional culture?
While guided tours by traditional owners of the lands that today make up South Australia are available throughout the state – from the Outback and Flinders Ranges to Yorke Peninsula and the Murray River – there are also opportunities to learn more without leaving Adelaide.
Developed on the traditional land of the Kaurna people, the city boasts museums, galleries and experiences that help showcase the ancient culture.
The Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute – Australia’s oldest Aboriginal-owned and managed multi-arts centre, at 253 Grenfell Street – provides a chance to explore and experience contemporary and traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and art, with live performances and ever-changing exhibitions in the galleries.
The South Australian Art Gallery features an extensive permanent collection of Aboriginal art, including dot paintings from central Australia, while its Tarnanthi event provides a further annual platform for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders artists to share their stories and showcase their work. Also on North Terrace, the South Australian Museum boasts the largest and most significant ethnographic collection of Australian Aboriginal material in the world.
For more information, log on to southaustralia.com/travel-blog/aboriginal-landmarks-and-experiences
TAKE TO THE SKIES
South Australia is home to some of the most dramatic landscapes in the country, none more so than Wilpena Pound, a rock basin located in the Flinders Ranges and dated to around 800 million years ago. Seen from the ground, the mountain peaks rise majestically up to the heavens; seen from the skies, the true beauty of this prehistoric natural amphitheatre is fully revealed.
Further north lies Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre, one of the largest untouched desert river systems on Earth and another natural wonder best viewed from above. This 144km long and 77km wide body of water comprises two separate lakes connected by the 15km long Goyder Channel. During the wet season, the lake becomes extremely saline but, as the water evaporates, the lake turns pink, thanks to a pigment from an algae species that lives in the lake.
“We think the only way to experience the majesty of the Flinders Ranges is from the air,” says Felicity Brown, owner of Chinta Air which runs scenic tours across the Flinders Ranges, Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre and more. “You’ll discover all sorts of hideaways and features you didn't know were there. And Lake Eyre is spectacular, whether it has water in it or not, it’s well worth a look.”
Chinta Air also offers a personal charter service for guests to tailor their own air safari, with pick-up from Adelaide Airport and all accommodation and meals included. “We offer an air taxi service – you tell us where you want to go and we’ll take you there,” Brown says.
For more information, log on to chintaair.com.au
SCUBA A HISTORIC SHIPWRECK
Like most of Australia, South Australia offers incredible diving experiences with the chance to get up close and personal with many of its natural aquatic wildlife, including sea lions and great white sharks. But there’s another diving experience that is hugely popular with visitors to the state – swimming through a 133m former guided missile destroyer complete with gun turrets and missile launchers.
The ex-HMAS Hobart served in the Australian Navy for 35 years, including three tours of duty off Vietnam, before being decommissioned in May 2000. The following month, the ship was gifted by the Federal Department of Defence to South Australia to become an artificial reef and world-class dive site.
Scuttled by controlled flooding in November 2002, today, the ex-HMAS Hobart is covered in sea sponges and sea grasses, and home to snapper, flathead and snook. It’s a diver’s delight and one of Underwater Sports Diving Center’s most popular tours. As part of the team involved in organising the sinking of the ex-HMAS Hobart, the company’s dive masters can provide the safest and most enjoyable diving experience.
Located in a 550m radius protected zone, scuba diving on the ex-HMAS Hobart without a permit is illegal.
For more information, log on to underwatersports.com.au
GET ALL STEAMED UP
All aboard! Get on track for a memorable trip back in history, while taking in the glorious scenery of the Adelaide Hills and South Coast at the same time.
SteamRanger Heritage Railway operates a number of heritage steam and diesel hauled tourist trains between Mt Barker in the Adelaide Hills, over the southern Mt Lofty Ranges to Strathalbyn and through the coastal holiday towns of Goolwa and Port Elliot to busy Victor Harbor.
Aside from the Southern Encounter – which runs from Mt Barker to the South Coast’s largest centre – SteamRanger services also include the much-loved Cockle Train. This takes in the 30-minute journey along the oldest steel railway in Australia – dating back to 1887 – between Goolwa and Victor.
Trains operate on up to 140 days a year, weather permitting, and are run by Australian Railway Historical Society volunteers, who are also responsible for maintenance of the rail line and the heritage locomotives and carriages.
For more information, log on to steamrangerheritagerailway.org
