Dark Mofo gives the audience credit and is duly rewarded

For the past few years, I have been experiencing dreadful FOMO as my social media feed is filled with images of Hobart's Dark Mofo winter festival. Not this year. Determinedly I packed the thermals and flew south into the darkness while others flew north chasing the light.

After two nights, I stepped back onto the mainland, my clothes and hair smelling of wood smoke, having shared experiences of surprise, delight, shock and wonder with thousands of others clad in plumes of puffer jackets at the bottom of the world.

Red inverted crosses decorated central Hobart during Dark Mofo, upsetting some Christians.Credit: Remi Chauvin courtesy Dark Mofo

So much has been written on what makes a good festival city: the geography of the place, the artists, the creative direction, the weather, the locals, government support. And there’s much critical commentary – whether it’s grown from the grassroots, been manufactured for a purely commercial or tourism incentive, or been running too long and is past its use-by date.

Not a great deal of credit is given to the audience, those forgotten beings that can make or break a festival. Having worked on great festivals myself – Melbourne International Comedy Festival and Sydney Festival – I have spent an inordinate amount of time developing audiences, pandering to them, segmenting them and trying to understand them.

Not a great deal of credit is given to the audience, those forgotten beings that can make or break a festival.

Virginia Lovett, MTC

Dark Mofo is unapologetic and the audiences love it. They didn’t need any hand-holding or censorship warnings; they were simply willing to go on the journey to an unknown destination. They made up their own minds. For some shows they stayed, some they walked out. And isn’t that the whole point of art – curiosity, choice and challenge?

People were stumbling around back lanes and car parks discovering performance art that shocked. Families roamed amongst fields of fire, played in laser tapestry constructed in sheds on electrical industrial sites, watched artists being lowered under roads or took a virtual reality ride through space. The freedom of expression both for artists and audiences was exhilarating. It took me back to bygone days before over-regulation and risk assessments crept in to the point of artist suffocation and expression.

Virginia Lovett has worked on a range of successful festivals.Credit: Ponch Hawkes

I had left for Dark Mofo the weekend we started previewing our latest production at the Melbourne Theatre Company – a show we felt needed to be fully "risk assessed" as a particular scene may prove too shocking for our audiences. We had put in place full communication and front-of-house plan. Checking the show reports, the audience had once again come up trumps and embraced the creative vision, many coming out exclaiming it was our "best show yet".

Audiences should never be underestimated. They are hardy, curious and resilient.

Virginia Lovett, MTC

Audiences should never be underestimated. They are hardy, curious and resilient. Many people pigeon-hole MTC subscribers as conservative, however, our research shows they are far more likely to take a risk on a new show or support a new Australian writer or artist, as well as enjoy new international work. In many cases, it is now the grandchildren who are risk averse and need the security of a blockbuster, a star casting or a guaranteed good night out.

Artist Mike Parr emerges after 72 hours underneath Hobart's Macquarie St during the festival.Credit: AAP/Rob Blakers

Without question the safety of staff, artists and audiences are paramount. Even at Dark Mofo, festival safety guru Bill Coleby stood by as Mike Parr emerged from his asphalt tomb but clearly there is a way to balance the dangers that art can present and keep it exciting without constraining artistic freedom.

Maybe we should all follow Dark Mofo's lead. After all, the title is the warning ...  it’s a Dark Motherf---er.

Virginia Lovett is executive director at Melbourne Theatre Company. She was previously general manager of Melbourne International Comedy Festival.