Adelaide Festival Centre’s OzAsia Festival, Australia’s leading contemporary arts festival engaging with Asia, has been awarded a Creative Australia Asia Pacific Arts Award at the inaugural ceremony in Sydney last night.
Celebrating cultural exchanges and collaborative partnerships in the Asia Pacific region, the award recipients were chosen by a panel of Industry Advisors and presented by Minister for the Arts, the Hon Tony Burke MP, at Sydney’s Riverside Theatre on Tuesday 23 April.
With a prize pool of $125,000 across five categories, the Asia Pacific Arts Awards recognise the work of remarkable Australian artists, organisations and groups connecting with the Asia Pacific, and promote continued engagement with the region. OzAsia Festival was recognised in the Connect category, for delivering an intersectional program to diverse audiences in Australia.
Held annually over three weeks in spring and revered by audiences and critics alike, OzAsia Festival presents a bold and exciting line-up of boundary-pushing contemporary arts, showcasing the best theatre, dance, music, visual arts, literature, food and cultural events from across Asia.
For 17 years OzAsia Festival has showcased Asian and Asian Australian artists and introduced audiences to artistic works rarely seen on Australian stages. This ethos, at the heart of OzAsia Festival programming is exemplified by “In Other Words”, a writing and ideas program and recent addition to the festival, featuring Asian and Asian Australian writers and thinkers.
Adelaide Festival Centre CEO & Artistic Director Douglas Gautier AM: “Since we launched it in 2007, OzAsia Festival has grown to become Australia’s leading arts festival dedicated to the cultural engagement between Asia and Australia as well as being a platform for Asian Australian artists and writers. We are honoured to be recognised by Creative Australia and look forward to continuing to showcase Asian and Asian Australian voices for years to come.”
In 2024 OzAsia Festival welcomes Artistic Director Joon-Yee Kwok, while previous Artistic Director Annette Shun Wah (2020 – 2023) will be staying on as a Programming Advisor. With a passion for presenting, celebrating, and supporting Asian Australian artists, culture, and communities, Joon-Yee initiated Brisbane City Council’s BrisAsia Festival, and is the founder and convener of the Australian Bureau of Asian Creatives, a network supporting and celebrating the work of Asian Australian artists.
OzAsia Festival Artistic Director Joon-Yee Kwok: “I am thrilled that OzAsia Festival has been awarded an inaugural Asia Pacific Arts Award and am looking forward to continuing our work in fostering cultural engagement with Asian and Asian Australian artists and communities. I'm excited about what we have planned for 2024 so look out for the program in the coming months.”
Minister for Arts, the Hon. Andrea Michaels MP: “Congratulations to OzAsia Festival for winning a new Creative Australia Asia Pacific Arts Award. The Malinauskas Government is proud to support this fabulous festival celebrating Asian and Asian-Australian culture. Well done to the OzAsia Festival team on winning this prestigious award.”
Club Até, featuring OzAsia Festival alumnus Justin Talplacido Shoulder, received the Inspire Award (Individuals, Collectives, Groups), recognising an Australian artist or group/collective for a project or significant body of work developed or shared across the Asia Pacific.
Among those shortlisted for the awards included previous OzAsia Festival Artistic Director Annette Shun Wah (2020-2023) in the Impact category, for significant impact on communities and/or audiences in Asia or the Pacific; Chun Yin Rainbow Chan, S. Shaktidharan, William Yang, Contemporary Asian Australian Performance, Chamber Made Opera, Mayu Kanamori, Australian Art Orchestra, Luke George and Daniel Kok, Gamelan DanAnda and Marrugeku.
Thank you to 2023 OzAsia Festival partners the Government of South Australia, Creative Australia, Adelaide Economic Development Agency, City of Adelaide, Hong Kong Economic Trade Office, National Foundation for Australia China Relations, Flinders University, Playking Foundation, Mahmood Martin Foundation, Adelaide Festival Centre Foundation and all other OzAsia Festival partners, donors and supporters.
The full OzAsia Festival program will be launched this July – keep an eye on ozasia.adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au and @ozasiafestival on Facebook and Instagram.
OzAsia Festival 2024 runs from October 24 to November 10.
Images and vision from previous OzAsia Festivals can be found here.
A bio and hi-res images of OzAsia Festival Artistic Director Joon-Yee Kwok can be found here.
Hi-res images of previous OzAsia Festival Artistic Director Annette Shun Wah can be found here.