Adelaide’s iconic celebration of the arts still strong after six decades

Adelaide, the southern hemisphere’s arts mecca, is the destination for art lovers. In 2022, she once again calls those from around the globe to her bosom.

For 62 years, the Adelaide Festival has been regarded as one of the world’s most iconic celebrations of the arts. Incorporating Writers’ Week (Australia’s original literary festival) and WOMADelaide (the world music festival), each year sees some of the globe’s top performers across opera, theatre, dance, cabaret, classical and contemporary music, literature, visual art and new media showcase their talents at venues throughout the CBD, parklands and inner suburbs.

Despite Covid’s best efforts, last year’s pared-back festival continued the success of its predecessors; indeed, it was the only festival of its scale in the world at that time, with 70 events and 896 performances across a successful 17 days.

While lockdowns and border closures made things a bit more tricky, 847 artists from 22 countries appeared at the festival, which attracted close to 5000 interstate visitors.

Artistic directors Rachel Healy and Neil Armfield are back in charge for the 2022 Adelaide Festival, which will run from March 4 to 20 and feature 71 events. This will be the duo’s sixth year curating the festival and they are committed to delivering a festival that “energises, comforts and reasserts the necessity of human creative imagination remains”.

The 2022 Adelaide Festival takes place from March 4-20, while Writers’ Week takes place from March 5-10. For full details, visit adelaidefestival.com.au