It’s been five years since the last Asia Topa – Australia’s major triennial festival of performance art from across the region. It’s a joint initiative of Arts Centre Melbourne and the Sidney Myer Fund, and though the festival launched in 2017, a little thing called Covid-19 means we’ve only experienced the citywide fest twice before.
When 2025’s festival kicks off in February, it’ll have 18 world premieres and the same number of new commissions – all spearheaded by new artistic director Jeff Khan. It’ll also have a new series of late-night events merging contemporary art and club culture.
The full program is yet to be announced, but Khan has teased two early projects that have us intrigued. The first is a virtual reality concert by the late pianist Ryuichi Sakamoto. Before the composer died, he was working on a series of compositions which will be brought to life in a monumental concert – with an avatar of the pianist performing 10 original pieces.
We think you might like Access. For $12 a month, join our membership program to stay in the know.
SIGN UPAudiences wear virtual reality headsets in a performance where they’re encouraged to wander around the stage, peering over Sakamoto’s shoulder and watching him play.
The show, Kagami, is a collaboration between Sakamoto and Tin Drum. It’s already toured New York and the UK, and its Asia Topa show at Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (February 19 to March 16) will be its Southern Hemisphere premiere.
The second project announced so far is Home Bound, a huge woven art installation that’ll come together on Arts Centre Melbourne’s forecourt. Artists Daniel Kok and Luke George – who previously suspended five AFL players in rope at the National of Gallery of Victoria in Still Lives for Rising in 2022 – will work with communities that have ties to weaving or rope in some way, including First Nations groups and bondage practitioners.
In the lead up to February, the artists are calling on the general public to donate rope or similar materials to aid in the project. You can also participate in public weaving workshops to help create the installation.
Asia Topa (Asia-Pacific Triennial of Performing Arts) returns from February 20 to March 10. Tickets are now on sale for Kagami. The full Asia Topa program will be revealed on November 12.