First Tarnished Frocks and Divas, and now another major Tauranga event has been cancelled due to Covid-19 restrictions. Planned for October 21-31, 2021 the Tauranga Arts Festival has just announced their difficult decision.
Alert Level 2 restrictions that require physical distancing and limit indoor gathering sizes greatly reduce audience capacity, which in turn affects the viability of the Festival. The decision has also been impacted by uncertainty over artists and staff travelling from Auckland’s higher alert level zone. Auckland’s extended lockdown has also severely impacted the rehearsal and preparation time for many of the theatre shows coming to the Festival. And of course, essential weeks of promoting the shows, managing logistics, rehearsing and otherwise practically preparing for the massive 10-day undertaking have been lost.
Those who had already purchased their tickets, will be able to receive a full refund through Ticketek.
“We have been working through an unknown landscape,” board chair Kathryn Lellman said. “The arrival in the community of the Delta variant of Covid-19 changed that landscape again and we felt that the uncertainty around fast-moving changes to alert levels, and changes to the restrictions within those alert levels, left us with no option but to cancel.”
At Alert Level 2 the Festival will still be able to offer its specially commissioned soundwalk, Te Manawataki o Mauao by Riki Gooch with Sonicity, from October 21-31. For 10 days, Tauranga Moana residents and visitors will be able to experience the rhythmic pulse of Mauao with a walking performance specific to our maunga. A meditative and immersive event, this piece uncovers the hidden treasures of Mount Maunganui. All you need is your phone with the downloaded Te Manawataki o Mauao app and your headphones – the app responds to your geolocation. Take any track up the maunga and let original music and soundscape evoke land, skies and sea.
In partnership with Supercut Projects, the Tauranga Art Gallery and The Elms Te Papa Tauranga will also offer vibrant public and free-to-access artworks, created by both local and national artists. The works scattered around the central city are both a celebration and a reflection of Tauranga Moana. Please visit the Tauranga Arts Festival website for more information about these events.
