Adelaide Festival Centre is staying connected with audiences by launching The Show Must Go On – an online collection of free performances, interviews and workshops available from today.
The Show Must Go On is an online hub featuring collated content from Adelaide Festival Centre and its Home Companies, who are finding new ways to showcase innovative works and celebrate what makes the arts in South Australia unique.
“We recognise the power of the arts to not only entertain but also to provide comfort and connection, especially during these challenging times,” said Adelaide Festival Centre CEO & Artistic Director Douglas Gautier AM. “This is why the show must go on, and we’ve created an online platform to support local arts organisations during this time and help bring entertainment directly to people’s homes.”
Adelaide Festival Centre’s popular Something on Saturday events, which have been running for more than 40 years has launched a new program called Something on Saturday at Home. It includes hands-on activities for children to inspire an appreciation for the arts while at home and this week’s episode gives instructions on making a special gift for Mother’s Day.
Through its learning program centrED, Adelaide Festival Centre will also present a series of online workshops and performances for school students to complement their Term 2 curriculum.
These include choreography with local artist Erin Fowler and Latin music with Cuban-Australian trumpeter Lazaro Numa. More than 300 South Australian students across 22 schools have registered for the workshops – a result which centrED Education Co-ordinator Ruth Weldon said was “amazing”.
“It is clear there is a need for arts education at this time, with excursions to the theatre and in-school workshops not being an option,” said Ms Weldon. “Our team has been lucky to work with some of the best SA independent artists to create content that is both educational and engaging.”
The Show Must Go On also highlights the recent inSPACE presentation of Contact by local musician Kiah Gossner, along with a poignant performance from an empty Festival Theatre by one of Australia’s favourite classical couples, Slava and Sharon Grigoryan.
Home Companies featured on the platform are offering a range of their own online initiatives – such as Australian Dance Theatre’s fortnightly ADAPT series, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra’s Virtual Concert Hall and a program of digital content from State Theatre Company South Australia, Stay in With the State.
The Show Must Go On will be updated regularly, with audiences invited to follow #MyFestivalCentre on social media to see what the Festival Centre has been rediscovering from its archives. For more information, visit: www.adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au for details.
Image: Erin Fowler in Femme – photo by Chris Herzfeld