Introducing the “Now or Never” festival, a groundbreaking artistic event set to light up Melbourne with large-scale outdoor sculptural installations and projections, a 360° pop-up dome cinema and a menagerie of performances at the intersection of creativity and technology.
If you were around in Melbourne almost a decade ago, you might remember White Night Melbourne? It was a city-wide music, art and sound festival that meant retailers and bars were open all night in the CBD. Think that, but for 2023.
Running until the 2 September, the event will showcase the talents of over 300 local and international artists, composers, innovators, and change makers, with a line-up featuring 18 Australian premieres and 20 exclusive festival commissions.
Anticipation is high, with more than 200,000 visitors expected to attend venues across the city during the 17-day festival. With over 70 innovative music performances, immersive digital art installations and thought-provoking daytime talks, the inaugural “Now or Never” program promises a journey into the convergence of art, ideas, sound, and technology, addressing the pressing questions of our future in light of the present moment.
Program highlights include a 1.2-kilometre Art Trail in Docklands curated by Experimenta, immersive films in the Neversphere, a pop-up dome in the Melbourne Museum forecourt, and the return of large-scale live music to the historic Royal Exhibition Building for the first time in 20 years. The festival will also showcase an exclusive world premiere of a new composition, a multi-sensory dining experience in the Neversphere, and a series of talks and panels exploring the creativity and technology intersection.
“Now or Never” is set to be a major milestone in Melbourne’s cultural landscape. As Lord Mayor Sally Capp puts it, “Now or Never is a new festival that will bring digital musings, adventurous performances and one-of-a-kind culinary experiences to Melbourne. Melbourne, it’s Now or Never.”