Diverse writers attending diverse offerings at #brisfest23

We are nearly halfway there, rolling into the third weekend of four action packed Brisbane Festival weekends.

We were excited to return to Brisbane Festival for a third run. The week before the festivities kicked off, we held our third annual professional development workshop with our writers, with two special guests to inspire and provoke.

Interviewer to the stars, media entrepreneur and provocative artist Bec Mac came and discussed the Art of the Interview. We were delighted to touch base in person, for our mutual contributions to the creative vault, ours in writing, hers in video. Her archive of over six hundred interviews over six years  is a significant cultural, historical and social documentation of the creative scene in Australia. Bec is a firebrand, and spoke to how we can get to the heart of an interview or a topic swiftly, and how gaining our own greater knowledge of the arts ecosystem can lend weight to more juicy interviews.

We also welcomed Mikayla Hoskings, director, stage manager, actor, writer, production manager and creative. Mikayla’s conversation focused in on how to critique the different creatives within a theatre production. When we are watching a show, what can be critiqued of the performers and other visible creatives like the set designer and costume designer, and what is the directors vision? Can you critique a dramaturg? What is a dramaturgs role? All these questions and more were threshed out, leading to some inspired and excited critics eagerly discussing the possibilities of the written word and the intelligent response to live performing arts.

And then we went out into the festival to see what we could see. The programming this year certainly reaches into hitherto unseen corners. We were delighted to send diverse critics to attend and critique the diverse offerings this year. There are a number of world-class disability-led productions. There are some hefty mainstage offerings exploring the nuances of gender diversity in all its power and fragility. There are brilliant new musicals and fascinating immersive experiences.  First Nations arts presented in traditional framing and in stunning contemporary iterations.  

They are all gathered here for you to check them out, the reviews of Brisbane Festival 2023. Meet the writers here and find out what makes them tick. Then read through their reviews and see what they think. Jump on our social media and tell us what you thought! And check back here regularly, as new pieces are posted right up to the end of the festival.