Interactive arts festival ROAM Geelong has been hailed as a huge success by Geelong council.
The inaugural event, organised and delivered by the City of Greater Geelong, drew more than 16,000 people to Geelong’s CBD and generated $2.3 million in economic revenue, according to data gathered by the City.
Held on Saturday 11 October, the event showcased the vibrancy and depth of the region’s artistic and cultural communities, with installations, music and theatre stretching from Johnstone Park through Little Malop Street.
The lineup included Blanck Canvas’s giant falcon puppet, Georgie Rose’s Wade the Tardigrade, a giant inflatable sculpture by Mark Cuthbertson, performances from Bangarra Dance Theatre and Tim Ross and the Archibald Prize exhibition at Geelong Gallery.
According to the City’s post-event survey the average attendee spent $63 at the event, while overnight visitors spent an average of $221 during their stay.
Deputy chair of the council’s arts portfolio Elise Wilkinson, who participated in Bluebird Foundation’s The Featherlings, said seeing the event come together had been one of the highlights of her time as a councillor so far.
“We have so much talent in this region, and for us to be able to share that with each other and celebrate that…it’s really lovely,” she said.
“We had the Archibald, Bangarra, Back to Back – these are internationally renowned exhibitions and theatre companies, and they were all within 500 metres of each other.
“It was so exciting seeing Geelong go yeah, we’re all for this…there was lots of incredible community participation, it felt really positive.”
Cr Wilkinson said the economic importance of the arts and culture sector, which contributes $756 million (4.7 per cent) to Geelong’s gross regional product, was “massive”.
“(The creative industries) are very, very important economically, and I think that is consistently and frequently undervalued,” she said.
“When you look at the number of people that go to see live music or theatre as opposed to going to see sports (event)… the arts is actually where it’s at.”
Mayor Stretch Kontelj said the event was a “resounding success”.
“We were thrilled to welcome strong crowds from across the region, Melbourne and regional Victoria, further cementing Geelong’s reputation as a Clever and Creative UNESCO City of Design,” he said.
