The Best Events at Now or Never 2025, According to the Festival’s Curator

At the point where art meets technology, you’ll find Now or Never. Returning from August 21 to 31, the Melbourne festival offers a platform for artists from around the world to explore the ways in which forward-thinking technology intersects with music, film, art installation, performances and more.

“It’s the future,” says festival artistic director Elise Peyronnet. “I know we’ve talked about AI and we’ve talked about technology as almost like a bad word, but I think that this is showing the positive side of it. Sometimes we think technology cannot have that connection with the audience, but to me it’s the opposite.”

For its third year, Peyronnet and the Now or Never team have pushed the scale of the festival, expanding the mix of free installations and ticketed events across the city with a focus on three main hubs: the Evan Walker Bridge, Melbourne Town Hall and the Royal Exhibition Building. It makes for a packed program worth planning your calendar around. If you’re unsure where to start, Peyronnet has a few suggestions that should top your list.

Einder

Kicking off the festival’s opening night on August 21 is Einder, a free thunderstorm-inspired installation at the Melbourne Town Hall by Dutch artist Boris Acket, who’ll be performing in Australia for the first time. “His work is a 20-metre-long audiovisual installation combining moving fabric and lights and spatial sound in one piece,” says Peyronnet. “It’s been curated for Melbourne Town Hall, and will have a soundscape that’s being composed on the grand organ.”

While Einder is due to be performed on August 21, 23 and 24, the piece will also act as a backdrop for a unique dining experience on Friday August 22. Ostro x Einder pairs Acket’s elaborate sound performance with an immersive art dining experience from cookbook author Julia Busuttil Nishimura.

MATRIA

Set inside the World Heritage-listed Royal Exhibition Building is Matria, a monumental, immersive installation from Barcelona-based Penique Productions. MATRIA will transform the building’s interior with a pink inflatable membrane designed to mimic the feel and movement of a living womb. “The idea is really from the name ‘Matria’, which comes from ‘mother’ and ‘motherland’ – an invocation of belonging and warmth,” says Peyronnet.

Complementing the free installation will be a series of ticketed events set within the “womb”, including a collaboration of industrial noise and choreography from local dancer Amber McCartney and Sicilian DJ Shapednoise, and guided breathwork sessions with The Breath Haus.

DJ Python, Ryoji Ikeda, Laurel Halo live with Leila Bordreuil

Taking over the Melbourne Recital Centre and the Melbourne Town Hall, Now or Never’s music program is packed with highlights. Topping the list for Peyronnet is the Australian debut of New York’s avant-dembow and reggaeton-spinning DJ Python, the sonic minimalism of ultratronics by Japanese sound and visual artist Ryoji Ikeda, and a grand piano and cello soundscape by artists Laurel Halo and Leila Bordreuil.

CORTEX by KDV Performance Group

For Peyronnet, though, there’s one performance in particular that’s worth heading to: CORTEX by KDV Performance Group, Tayhana and Hamill Industries. The four-act work, which explores themes of mortality and isolation, is scheduled for August 30 and 31 at the Melbourne Town Hall, alongside headliners Young Marco and Marie Davidson.

“It’s a dance piece, but also a visual piece,” she says. “It’s a multidisciplinary performance piece that was created by choreographer Kianí del Valle in collaboration with Hamill Industries, who are really pioneers in AI visual arts.”

Assembly

Showing August 27, 29 and 31, Assembly is one of Peyronnet’s highlights from Now or Never’s film program. The documentary looks behind the scenes of a New York art installation by its maker, Rashaad Newsome, exploring deep themes through a kaleidoscope of media.

“Rashaad Newsome is this amazing technologist and artist who really brings the African identity into AI and into how technology should be presented,” says Peyronnet. “This documentary blends music and dance projections with an African and queer lens that is interesting and quite political.”

Broadsheet is a proud media partner of Now or Never, running from August 21 to 31 across Melbourne. Explore the full program and get your tickets online.