Melbourne Cultural Festivals |
Melbourne is regarded as the cultural capital of Australia. Residents and tourists alike find it virtually impossible to keep up with what is on offer - especially when the year-round theatre, music, dance, literature, film and visual arts programs are taken into account.
Keith Lawrence says it's virtually impossible to keep abreast of the festivals in Australia's cultural capital, Melbourne.
Melbourne Fringe
The longest running arts festival in the city, Melbourne Fringe, grew out of the alternative arts scene in the early 1980s. Like its international namesakes, Edinburgh and Adelaide, Melbourne Fringe supports and promotes independent arts organisations and artists. Thousands of artists and audience members are catered for every year across all conceivable (and some less conceivable) artforms, with performances taking place in the traditional and less traditional venues.
Melbourne Fringe
Primarily focused in the north of the city (but far from exclusively), Melbourne Fringe takes place at the end of September and early October - its last few days coinciding with the opening of the Melbourne Festival.
Melbourne International Comedy Festival
The title speaks for itself - April is the month of laughter as more than 300 shows, workshops, cabarets are presented in just about every suburb in Melbourne, from the proscenium arched theatres of the city centre through to RSL clubs in far-flung commuter belts, from community halls in the foothills of regional Victoria to trendy bars in St Kilda.
Big names from around the globe descend on Melbourne and, with a mix of local and national acts, the Melbourne International Comedy Festival sits in the top three of the world alongside Edinburgh and Montreal.
Melbourne International Comedy Festival
Melbourne International Jazz Festival
Free outdoor concerts in Federation Square, names that epitomise jazz even among the most jazz-ignorant of us - Sonny Rollins, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock to name but a few - and the first two weeks of June are the aficionados dream, whether it be in the huge spaces of the Melbourne Town Hall or the intimate back street jazz lounge of Bennett's Lane.
Melbourne International Jazz Festival
Melbourne International Film Festival
Celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2011, MIFF is one of the oldest film festivals in the world and is Australia's largest. It doesn't present major prizes, instead the festival has an investment fund to support local productions. As a result it is the major showcase for Australian film.
This feast of celluloid takes place in the (southern hemisphere) winter over three weeks at the end of July and the beginning of August.
Melbourne International Film Festival
Melbourne Cabaret Festival
Melbourne Cabaret Festival> is one of the latest festivals to hit the city. The inaugural festival took place in South Melbourne's Emerald Hill arts and cultural precinct in July 2010.
One week only but from small acorns, large oak trees grow.
Melbourne Cabaret Festival
Melbourne Fashion Festival
Targeted at consumers rather than the industry, Melbourne Fashion Festival is a spectacular celebration of all things fashion in March. It being Melbourne, some of the fashion shows take place in outlandish locations and a diverse cultural program supports the catwalk activities.
Melbourne Fashion Festival
Melbourne Writers' Festival
In August 2008, Melbourne became a UNESCO City of Literature in recognition of a rich history of local literary culture and creative talent.
The centre-piece of the city's program is the Melbourne Writers' Festival, established in the mid-1980s and evolved into two weeks at the end of August/beginning of September. More than 400 local and international writers are presented at literary banquets, debates, readings, performances, film screenings and workshops.
Melbourne Writers' Festival
Melbourne is a city constantly on the go, it's a city that whenever you visit, chances are there will be some major event taking place.
March 15, 2011 Keith Lawrence
❊ Web Links ❊
➼ Melbourne Cultural Festivals
➼ www.suite101.com
➼ Read more at Suite101: Melbourne Cultural Festivals
➼ Mad Melbourne in March Festivals
➼ Ethnic Festivals in Melbourne
❊ Also See... ❊
➼ Ethnic Festivals in Melbourne
Disclaimer: Check with the venue (web links) before making plans, travelling or buying tickets.
Accessibility: Contact the venue for accessibility information.
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