The Sydney Festival has launched its 2015 program — the third under Belgian born director Lieven Bertels — and it’s certainly big with 179 events delivering 490 performances in the central Sydney area and Parramatta covering circus, theatre, dance music, film and visual arts from January 8-26.
About half of these performances are free which means its $18 million budget has to go a long way.
“We only get 35% from public sources and the rest comes from box office and sponsorhsip,” says Bertels who has been critical of how far the budget has to stretch to stage its free concerts in The Domain.
Bertels says he has found an “elegant solution” to the problem courtesy of new sponsors and has added an extra free concert in The Domain to increase it to four events.
The issue of arts sponsorship in arts management has been a hot button issue this year after the Sydney Biennale and Transfield controversy and Bertels says it’s one that everyone need be aware since the Biennale dumped its sponsor after the demands of participating artists.
“It’s a healthy debate to have. It’s one of those issues that we have to increasingly have to deal with as we look at sponsorship and philanthropy more and more when public funding is static.”
Bertels immediate challenge now, as it has always been for every Sydney Festival director, is to deliver a broad festival that appeal to locals, visitors, tourists and families on school holidays.
“It needs to be a lot of things to a lot of people,” he says, adding that Sydneysiders are always “very honest” in their feedback. “It’s great that Sydneysiders are very eloquent and they are also a very curious audience.”
Bertels’ festival approach is to introduce new names and “make introductions” as well as commission new Australian work. “We’ve commissioned 30 new Australian works over my three years”, he says.
His philosophy also includes getting out of the artists’ way once the commission is secured.
“We (festival directors) are not artists and you have to step aside.”
Actress Charlotte Rampling and cellist Sonia Wieder-Atherton will combine Sylvia Plath’s poetry and composer Benjamin Britten’s music.
Circus performer James Thierrée is back in Sydney with Tabac Rouge with his largest work so far combining his skills as an acrobat, musician, dancer, actor, and choreographer.
Australian theatre maker Kate Mulvany is premiering Masquerade by Kit Williams for chidren and adults.
Kiss & Cry – a dance work with a difference as two sets of hands perform a romance with cinematic projections and tiny sets.
Indian director Roysten Abel’s The Kitchen, combines music and food with dishes made on stage from within the musicians’ instruments.
Nigerian synth pioneer William Onyeabor’s Atomic Bomb! The Music of William Onyeaborwith a line-up that includes Gotye, Sinkane, Money Mark (Beastie Boys), Luke Jenner(The Rapture), Alexis Taylor(Hot Chip), Pat Mahoney (LCD Soundsystem) and Mahotella Queens.
Brazil’s Seu Jorge whose pop covers and original songs combine samba, reggae, Brazilian pop and electronics.
A screening of The Artist with its score performed live by the Sydney Symphony Orchestraand conducted by Ernst Van Tiel with composer Ludovic Bource on piano.
Hyde Park’s Festival Village will see 40 contemporary music performances and not one, but two spiegeltents.
The Domain with four concerts which includes shows by Seu Jorge, William Barton on didgeridoo with the SSO, an operatic concert from Opera Australia and Beat the Drum: Celebrating 40 years of Triple J featuring Hilltop Hoods, The Presets, The Cat Empire, The Preatures, You Am I and more.
