By Luke Voogt
Bands from across the state will invade Geelong streets with sound for this year’s After Dark celebrations.
The StreetSounds festival’s dozen bands were thrilled to play in Geelong After Dark for the first time, said organiser Lyndal Chambers.
“We thought Geelong is a great place for it – it’s a big city but not big enough to get lost,” she said.
“There’s a lot of stuff going on in Geelong. It’s a very culturally-rich place.”
Ms Chambers spoke to one of the bands after their final rehearsal Tuesday night.
“It felt like an army going into battle,” she said. “Everyone was geared up and good to go.”
The people behind the festival have “raised” a dozen street bands since starting their philanthropically-funded community project in 2015.
The bands will play on the streets of Geelong Friday evening and will head to Pakington Street Saturday for a morning of skill-sharing workshops.
The musicians hail from as far away Inverloch, Morwell and Kyneton, and will bring with them a “heady mix” of horns, accordions and panflutes.
The festival will also include acts from Clonard College and Tate Street Primary School.
The StreetSounds festival is a fitting addition to this year’s After Dark, themed ‘The Sound of Light’.
This year’s Geelong After Dark will be the biggest yet, with 370 artists and 83 activities to discover throughout the CBD from 6pm to 10pm Friday night, organisers said.
City arts and culture manager Kaz Paton said the response from artists and participants this year was “mind-blowing”.
After Dark had grown each year since its inception in 2014, with 15,000 people enjoying the work of more than 270 artists in 2016, she said.
“I really urge the Geelong community and visitors to the city to come along to this unique and surprising event with an open mind … you never know what might pop up!”
Ms Paton encouraged children to join in The Amazing Arts Adventure, an interactive journey of discovery through central Geelong.
Another highlight will be The Storytelling Machine, an interactive media artwork that instantly transforms the public’s drawings into animated characters.
Geelong After Dark is a multi-award winning annual event organised by the City of Greater Geelong with creative production by Diversitat.
