8.30 Art Trams
Start the morning with a ride on one of the art trams crisscrossing the city. Artists Rone, Gabriella Possum Nungarrayi, Christian Thompson, Kristen Headlam, Janine Daddo, Jeff Makin, James Cattell and emerging talent Callum Croker have wrapped their artwork around some of Melbourne’s trams.
9am Grasslands
Take a moment to reflect on what came first. Artist Linda Tegg transforms the University of Melbourne’s forecourt with native plants to conjure up the wilderness that was the city before white settlement in the thoughtful art piece Grasslands.
9.30am Vault
While circus fever has swept this year’s Melbourne festival, Circus Oz has led the way since 1978. Celebrate the history of the crazy, quirky Australian company with Vault, filled with multimedia artworks, interactive exhibitions and archival footage. Runs until late.
from 10am Golden Mirror Carousel
Take a ride, albeit a very slow one, on artist Carsten Höller’s gilded reinterpretation of the fairground carousel at the National Gallery of Victoria. The Belgian artist, who delights in interrogating the familiar, describes the reflective installation as “meditation-inducing”.
10.30am Since I Suppose
Mash Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure up with the latest smartphone technology and you’re off on an unexpected journey through the streets of Melbourne. Since I Suppose is an immersive interaction with all you thought familiar.
11am Haydn Unpicked
Go behind the scenes of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra with acclaimed violinist Sarah Curro and a string quartet as they take a previously unseen piece of sheet music by Franz Joseph Haydn from first glance to first performance in Haydn Unpicked.
from 12pm Art as a Verb
Decide what art really means in the modern world at the provocative experience Art as a Verb at Monash University Museum of Art. Dance, sing or perhaps do nothing at all.
from 12.30pm Crossing Paths with Vivian Maier
Outsider artist Vivian Maier captured the collective imagination when more than 100,000 of her photographs were discovered after her death. Be inspired just like contemporary artists including Patrick Pound, Debra Phillips, David Wadelton, Cherine Fahd and Clare Rae, who drew on her street photography and self portraits for the Crossing Paths with Vivian Maier exhibition.
1pm Artists in Conversation: Heiner Goebbels
Learn from one of the best, when acclaimed German theatremaker Heiner Goebbels discusses his latest work, the dance, spoken word and song piece When the Mountain changed its Clothing in a unique Artists in Conversation session.
1.30pm Content + Process: A New Virtuosity
Tune into the deeper implications of art making with Big hART, the acclaimed company that creates inspiring work with marginalised members of society. Find out more about their work with Content + Process: A New Virtuosity.
2pm Hello, Goodbye, Happy Birthday
Reflect on what’s gone and what’s to come with the “headphone verbatim” theatre show Hello, Goodbye, Happy Birthday. Director Roslyn Oades asked 18- and 80-year-olds about their life experiences, and found surprising differences and similarities.
3pm Am I
Understand what all the fuss around Shaun Parker is about, as his celebrated work Am I finally plays in Melbourne. The dance-music performance has done the rounds at Sydney and Adelaide festivals to the delight of audiences, but there’s still much to discover.
4pm Complexity of Belonging
Ponder the disconnects of modern society at the world premiere of Complexity of Belonging, the latest collaboration between Chunky Move choreographer Anouk van Dijk and playwright Falk Richter. The actors and dancers mine their own experiences for an enlightening insight into a very modern experience.
6pm Eavesdropping on Artists
Find out what other artists really think about Heiner Goebbels’ work When the mountain changed its clothing. Matthew Lutton, Sarah Austin, John Hughes and Danni Zuvela discuss the music, theatre and dance piece in a one-off Eavesdropping on Artists event at MPavilion.
6.30pm Nanjing Project
Return to the roots of Australia’s current circus obsession with the breathtaking Nanjing Project. Five of the finest Chinese performers work alongside rising stars from the Australian circus scene.
8pm When the Mountain Changed its Clothing
After all that discussion, experience the much anticipated When the Mountain changed its Clothing for yourself. The large-scale work sees 40 young singers interpreting the transition from childhood to adulthood.
8pm The Gloaming
Drop in and hear the new masters of the Irish folk music scene when “supergroup” the Gloaming take the the Hamer Hall stage. Fiddle, guitar, piano and vocals explode any expectations of traditional Irish music.
11pm Snarky Puppy and Kormac’s Big Band
Finish up the evening with a double bill of jazz-funk specialists Snarky Puppy and jazz-influenced hip-hop artist Kormac’s Big Band at the Foxtel Festival hub. Foot-tapping dance moves not included.
