WOMAD, Seven New artists for 2020!

Today, WOMAD New Zealand is very excited to add seven new performers to a lineup already brimming with top tier talent.

The first all-women Mariachi group Flor de Toloache will be joined by Maghrebi/European

outfit Ifriqiyya Electrique who infuse industrial post-punk and techno with the traditional Banga music of the Tunisian desert. KermesZ à l’Est, eight long-haired metallers without guitars from Belgium will perform alongside the Brit award-winning, folk singer-songwriter Laura Marling and Marina Satti a Greek-Sudanese emerging star who represents hope. Local artists, award-winning Troy Kingi will be performing the deep roots/reggae music from his latest album Holy Colony Burning Acres and The Black Quartet ensemble will bring their contemporary touch to classical music to round off the 2020 festivals incredible lineup.

WOMAD New Zealand is famous for bringing together artists from all over the globe for a vibrant showcase of the world’s many forms of music, arts, and dance. The 2020 festival is no exception and will feature close to 100 hours of music, dance and voices across eight stages. Over three days Ngāmotu’s stunning Brooklands Park and the TSB Bowl of Brooklands will once again be transformed into a village of colour, energy and inclusion.

WOMAD NEW ZEALAND 2020
13-15 March, 2020
Brooklands Park and the TSB Bowl of Brooklands, Ngāmotu (New Plymouth)
Tickets on sale now from www.womad.co.nz

Seven new acts announced for
WOMAD New Zealand 2020

The Black Quartet (Aotearoa/NZ), Flor de Toloache (Mexico/USA),   Ifriqiyya Electrique (Maghreb/Europe), KermesZ à l’Est (Belgium),
Laura Marling (UK), Marina Satti & Fońes (Greece/Sudan),
Troy Kingi (Aotearoa/NZ).

WOMAD New Zealand 2020 features 28 cutting edge performers and world-class musicians from every corner of the planet, delivering fresh new takes on traditional music. And come March 2020, multi-award-winning, solo artists, duos, trios and 12-piece brass bands from around the globe will come together to perform at WOMAD New Zealand. Finnish Beatboxing, Maloyan Dance and Black Samba will join hands with Reggae, Rap, Folk, Funk, Jazz, Soul, Classical and Afrobeat to celebrate the world’s differences. Pioneering young artists alongside inspirational icons are set to promote acceptance, joy, love, hope and change via the universal language of mankind, music.

WOMAD New Zealand is very proud to present, for the 16th year anniversary of the festival (in alphabetical order)
Albi & The Wolves (Aotearoa/NZ), Blind Boys of Alabama (USA), Catrin Finch & Seckou Keita (Wales/Senegal), Destyn Maloya (Réunion), Ezra Collective (UK), Flor de Toloache (Mexico/USA), Hiatus Kaiyote (Australia), Hot Potato Band (Australia), Ifriqiyya Electrique (Maghred/Europe), KermesZ à l’Est (Belgium), Kim So Ra (South Korea), King Ayisoba (Ghana), L.A.B. (Aotearoa/NZ), Laura Marling (UK), Liniker e os Caramelows (Brazil), L Subramaniam (India), Marina Sattir & Fońes (Greece/Sudan), Ziggy Marley (Jamaica), Minyo Crusaders (Japan), Orquesta Akokán (Cuba), Reb Fountain (Aotearoa/NZ), RURA (Scotland), Salif Keita (Mali), Soaked Oats (Aotearoa/NZ), The Black Quartet (Aotearoa/NZ), Trio Da Kali (Mali), Troy Kingi (Aotearoa/NZ) Tuuletar (Finland).

Full details on previously announced artists HERE.

The ever-expanding World Of Words stage, now held on the sun-drenched lawn of the Kunming Garden will be hosting poets, musical legends, authors, entertainers, comedians and educators to leave you both thinking and laughing.

The WOMAD New Zealand World Of Words 2020 stage (in alphabetical order)

Dave Fane (Aotearoa/NZ), Joanne Drayton (Aotearoa/NZ), Ken Arkind (USA), Mike Chunn (Aotearoa/NZ), Miriam Lancewood (Aotearoa/NZ), Penny Ashton (Aotearoa/NZ), Selina Tusitala Marsh (Aotearoa/NZ), Shayne Carter (Aotearoa/NZ), Te Radar (Aotearoa/NZ).

WOMAD New Zealand is also elated to announce two new additions to the festival for 2020.

STEAM Lab
Being hosted on a brand new stage in the tranquil setting of the Pinetum is WOMAD New Zealand’s first-ever STEAM Lab. Come and hear speakers from Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics fields talk about incredible breakthroughs and their journey of innovation.

BOOK CLUB 
Introducing WOMAD New Zealand’s inaugural Book Club. The book chosen for the 2020 festival is We Can Make A Life by Chessie Henry. Book Club aims to bring people together to express their perspectives and explore the themes within the book while getting insights from Chessie herself.

WOMAD New Zealand remains a place to bring artists together from all over the globe to break down barriers, educate, inform and inspire. Come and lose yourself in the sights, sounds, and tastes that blend together to make up the vibrant WOMAD experience!
WOMAD, 2019
Photo credit: Matthew Clode

WOMAD New Zealand 2020

WOMAD New Zealand – the world’s festival, is a three day festival of world music, arts and dance, known for its exciting, diverse and discoverable line-up. Now is in its 16th year, WOMAD New Zealand is being held once again in the stunning TSB Bowl of Brooklands, Pukekura Park, New Plymouth.

Over the years, WOMAD New Zealand has rightfully gained a reputation as one of the most beautiful outdoor festivals in the world. The main stage is set at the base of a natural amphitheatre and not only provides a stunning setting but an acoustic experience second to none. The other seven stages are located throughout Brooklands Park, with every square inch oozing the vibrancy of WOMAD.

The capacity for WOMAD New Zealand is kept purposely comfortable and there are plenty of things on-site to discover.

Bring a blanket and enjoy refreshments from The Global Village, a world-wide range of international cuisine stalls. The three-day event is the perfect opportunity to explore culinary flavours from around the world.

Watch a cooking demonstration at the palate-provoking Taste the World stage. The key culinary feature of the festival, sees musicians swap their instruments for pots and pans to cook dishes from their homeland in front of the crowd, passing samples around for the audience to taste.

Get involved with the interactive workshops, a true reflection of the WOMAD ethos with artists coming from all corners of the world to teach traditional skills from their home country. The onsite art, eye-popping installations and roaming performers will immerse you in the warmth of the WOMAD vibe.

The kids will be entertained at Kidzone with workshops made especially for them spread over the weekend.

The WOMAD New Zealand campsite is situated next to the festival within the New Plymouth Racecourse and TSB Stadium. The festival site is also located a short distance from New Plymouth’s city centre. If you book early enough, you could get a motel, hotel or house close enough to walk!

Praise for the festival: 

“People chatted under shade, tucked into a dizzying array of food, danced in nooks and crannies, or took in spoken word performances on a stage surrounded by trees. Smiles seemed to be mandatory.”  – Chris Schulz, New Zealand Herald 

“The place reverberated under the mighty watch of Mount Taranaki with the kind of passion that only comes from the sheer celebration of diversity.”   – Rosie Morrison, The Spinoff  

“…most acts put on repeat performances over the weekend allowing you the chance to customise an itinerary that would rival an around the world music trip.” – Rosie Morrison, The Spinoff 

“There aren’t too many places you can sit on the grass and watch international music while surrounded by trees, birds, and water.”  Stephanie Mitchell – stuff.co.nz 

Keep up-to-date with everything WOMAD New Zealand:

www.womad.co.nz 
www.facebook.com/WomadNZ 
www.twitter.com/WomadNZ 
www.instagram.com/womadnz 
www.youtube.com/channel/WOMADNZ 
https://open.spotify.com/user/womadnz 
#WOMADNZ

WOMAD, 2019
Photo credit: Gareth Shute 

WATCH: WOMAD 2019