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UNIQUE venues in Castlemaine and surrounds will host a huge variety of music, dance, theatre and art at the Castlemaine State Festival in March.
The festival launched on Wednesday at the Castlemaine Goods Shed in Kennedy Street.
Now a live theatre space and the home of Castlemaine Circus, the venue was previously earmarked as a potential pokies venue before residents had the bid quashed.
The Goods Shed will host physical theatre, circus, cabaret and dance at next year’s event with 13 acts to perform there over the 10-day festival.
Indigenous singer Yirrmal kicked off the festival launch with a stirring performance of his music before Castlemaine Secondary College students dressed as steam punks to perform a work they created with award-winning UK choreographer Robby Graham.
“The enlivening of this space makes it an incredible centre for physical theatre, circus and cabaret,” Castlemaine State Festival director Martin Paten said. “We are bringing in artists from all over the world as well as Australian artists.”
Other unique venues include Carman’s Tunnel in Maldon where oboe player Ben Opie will perform works by Bach, Debussy and Castiglioni.
Buda Historic Home and Garden will host a music event at dawn when Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Manju Mehta and Jay Dabgar perform Bhupalam Raga – a customary Indian dawn performance.
Music will also feature at the Vossloh Cogifer foundry in Barker Street when the Thompson’s Foundry Band plays among machinery in the steel factory.
Art will also take over part of the town when an artist from the Philippines – Leeroy New – creates a temporary installation on the exterior of the Castlemaine Art Museum.
“We are really looking forward to taking audiences into some really incredible Castlemaine and regional venues,” Mr Paten said.
“That's what the festival is about, doing something different and using places that we would otherwise never be able use and taking people to places they have never been to.”
The festival is on from March 17 to 26. Go to www.castlemainefestival.com.au.