Seven new works never seen before will make their national debut in Newcastle as the New Annual festival launches into 10 days of unforgettable art, music and ideas.
Newcastle artist Izabela Pluta and local dance company Catapult are among those taking centre stage with their latest works, which were unveiled at the Canoe Pool today after being commissioned for City of Newcastle's flagship arts festival.
Festival Director Tory Loudon said New Annual continues to champion the people, places and creative spirit that make Newcastle unique.
"At a time when festivals across the country are being forced to curtail their investment in the industry, New Annual has been cementing itself as a platform for emerging and established artists to perform in front of new audiences," Ms Loudon said.
"This year's festival alone features 402 artists across 40 events and includes seven new works commissioned by New Annual.
"This festival is uniquely shaped by Newcastle, inspired by its coastline, communities, histories and unmistakable character.
"We're delivering experiences that couldn't happen anywhere else - and that you won't see anywhere else - ensuring this year's New Annual will be an experience to remember."
The sixth edition of the festival kicks off tomorrow and runs from 25 September to 4 October, with an abundance of free and low-cost ticketed performances for audiences of all ages.
Pluta's immersive work in the Canoe Pool encourages viewers on land - and in the water - to experience the familiar location in a new way.
Cavitation: Breathing Ocean uses sea floats collected from coastlines in Far North Queensland to create a beautiful, buoyant installation that shifts with the tides.
Accompanied by an exhibition at The Lock-Up, Cavitation explores how water carries people, objects and histories across places, reflecting the Polish-born artist's own experience of migration and her connection to water as a swimmer and diver.
Catapult Dance Choreographic Hub will also make the Canoe Pool their stage in At Sea, a new 30-minute performance at the water's edge that will see dancers move with the tide, wind and sand to an original score by Zackari Watt.
Shaped by place and performed each morning at 8am, the newly commissioned work will be followed by a public dance workshop that encourages audiences to become part of the experience.
The people and places of Newcastle are also inextricably linked to the third new work making its debut on the festival's opening weekend, Petite Suite.
The highly anticipated experience, which has been created by Sydney arts organisation Brand X and is already sold out, will transform Cooks Hill's much-loved Oriental Hotel into an immersive performance space.
"Hotel Manager" Drew Fairley will invite participants to step into unexpected worlds within seven of the hotel's rooms and become part of the surprising performances by local and national artists and collectives.
The remaining new commissions will make their debuts throughout the rest of the festival, however there's plenty more to see on the opening weekend, with a packed program of art, music, theatre and hands-on creativity.
Laman Street will be closed to traffic on Friday 25 September for the free First Night Art Party featuring powerhouse female performers Aleksiah, Djanaba, and Ngaiire, while Newcastle-based Samoan-Australian artist Angela Tiatia launches her new exhibition Muse inside Newcastle Art Gallery.
The Civic precinct will come alive throughout the weekend, with exhibitions and performances at Civic Park (Loca Vida at the Spiegeltent), The Playhouse (Truck Driver), Newcastle Museum (Framed in Sound: selected works of Tony Mott) and Museum Park (Curtain Call: Strut Your Stuff).
Watt Space Gallery will host the Night Flowers exhibition showcasing more than 100 images from University of Newcastle alumni Damien Frost, which were captured over a decade in London and extended for New Annual with new portraits of Newcastle's queer and alternative communities. Frost's work has also inspired a one-night-only after-dark art party taking over Bartholomews on 26 September.
The opening weekend includes the highly anticipated return of the free SOAK sunset music sessions at the Newcastle Ocean Baths, with ARIA award-winning electronic music pioneers Hermitude pairing up with Newcastle-based DJ Claire O'Brien on 26 September, followed by a night celebrating Newcastle's thriving jazz culture on 27 September.
Newcastle's coastline will also set the scene for Sea Stories, inviting audiences to grab a headset and enjoy a communal listening experience as the sun rises over Dixon Park Beach.
Created by Melbourne theatre maker Roslyn Oades, the audio journey was inspired by interviews with extraordinary water-loving Novocastrians who explain how the ocean has been a transformative force in the face of life's challenges.
Visitors to Dixon Park Beach can also check out the work of Newcastle's award-winning ocean and coast-life photographer Penelope Green, whose series of captivating photographs will be displayed along the promenade fence, celebrating the city's ocean swimming community.
New Annual is delivered by City of Newcastle and proudly supported by the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW, Multicultural NSW, Transport for NSW and Create NSW. The University of Newcastle returns as a presenting partner for the 2026 event.
Visit the New Annual website for all the details.
New commissions premiering at New Annual
- Cavitation (25 Sept - 4 Oct) at the Canoe Pool: Izabela Pluta's monumental art installation, with an accompanying exhibition at The Lock-Up Gallery
