Caloundra Fringe Festival: a showcase for local talent
The 2012 Caloundra Music Festival is now scheduled for 28-30 September, over the new Queens birthday holiday weekend and coinciding with the spring school holidays.
The 2012 Caloundra Music Festival is now scheduled for 28-30 September, over the new Queens birthday holiday weekend and coinciding with the spring school holidays.
A full list of festivities will also take place in the lead up to the main event at the inaugural Caloundra Fringe Festival. This will showcase some of the best local artistic talent to our visitors.
A wide range of activities is planned for the Fringe Festival, including youth music workshops (conducted by Nicky Bomba from The John Butler Trio), theatre, street performances, circus, instrument making, lunch time concerts, indigenous art and dance.
Free musical events will also feature along with art displays at festival locations. Festival Director Richie Eyles said the popular Music on Kings and Festuri would return and local playwrights would also have a chance to premiere their latest works.
"We would like to see local restaurants and entertainment venues open their doors for longer sessions during the week to cater for what will no doubt be large demand," he said.
"The idea is to celebrate local culture and diversity, showing the rest of the nation what we are capable of, as a lead-up to the Caloundra Music Festival itself.
"We have all age groups coming here due to the generational breadth of the festival performers, so the broader our cultural offerings, the better."
Economic Development and Entrepreneurship Portfolio Councillor Lew Brennan said the new convergence of school holidays and the festival dates offered a prime opportunity to put Caloundra firmly on the cultural and festive map.
"In effect, we will have a captive audience to enjoy the huge range of artistic diversity we have to offer," he said.
"Not only that, it can become an annual economic windfall for business at the south end of the coast, and which will no doubt spread northwards throughout the region as demand for accommodation grows.
"And we will need that: in 2012, Queensland, NSW and Victoria spring school holidays all fall on the same dates."
Mr Eyles said artists and groups who were keen to perform at the Fringe Festival should register their interest as soon as possible.
"We are looking for interested community groups that have an idea for, or would like to participate in the inaugural Caloundra Fringe Festival," he said.
"Visit the CMF website for further details and drop the CMF team an email to start the ball rolling."