Festival First Night

The heart of the city is again transformed for Festival First Night - an extravaganza that invites everyone to experience Sydney in spectacular and surprising new ways. All are welcome, big and small. And it's all free.

Enjoy kids' fun in the afternoon with Holly Throsby performing her children's album See! from top to toe, plus Caspar Babypants with his very cool rockin' sing-a-long. Share the shade with Erth's puppets (if you dare) or get all tangled up in Polyglot's bouncy sculpture. Hosted by Melbourne's madcap Listies, this is one afternoon the kids won't want to miss.
One of New Orleans hottest bands Tuba Skinny bring a joyful swagger to the afternoon with their take on trad jazz and blues from the 1920's and 30's. Catch solar-powered chillers, The Sun Chasers keeping it cruisey on the lawn with their blend of afro-dub and reggae, while Salvation Street Shout transport audiences to the streets of 1920s Charlotte, North Carolina, reviving the southern tradition of the trombone shout band. Festival favourite Gramophone Man wheels his mobile cart through the streets winding up all eccentricities from your grandparents' collection of 78s, from Fats Waller to bush ballads and bird calls.

As evening sets in, join one-man band Lewis Floyd Henry from South East London with his Hendrix hair and mod suit for a super-charged rock set on the Music Garden stage before the Zulu grooves and hyper-fast foot work of Soweto's Shangaan Electro get the crowd revved into a frenzied pace with the speediest marimba solos you've ever heard.

The good times roll on with DJ Norman Jay parking his iconic double-decker bus in Hyde Park, keeping Sydney dancing from 3pm with a marathon eight hour set of idyllic summer tunes. Meanwhile, one of Australia's leading contemporary artists, Brook Andrew, presents an all-embracing spectacle that brings the buildings and streets around Hyde Park to life with massive projections and street performances amid a bevy of hand-painted caravans.

As the sun sets prepare yourselves for the breathtaking aerial performance As The World Tipped on College Street, telling a powerful tale of eco-crisis. Combining dramatic film and visuals with stunning aerial agility, the stage literally tips skywards as performers cling on for dear life.

The Art Gallery of NSW stays up late on Festival First Night with music, film and performances for the whole family. Inspired by Picasso's native Spain and his adopted home of Paris, My Sauce Good, Monsieur Camembert and more perform inside the Gallery until 11pm. Entry to the Gallery is free, the major exhibition Picasso: Masterpieces from the Musée National Picasso, Paris is ticketed.

Pull on your retro threads and dancing shoes and head to Elizabeth Street to catch Jamaica's mento masters The Jolly Boys. These dance hall legends get things swinging before The Sirens Big Band open an explosive outdoor Trocadero Dance Palace. The 40s and 50s jive and hop into life as Sydney's swingsters and rockabillies fill the streets in all their fabulous finery.

Further additions to the Festival First Night program, including the announcement of The Domain line-up, will be posted here.

It's free!

Sydney city streets & parks
Saturday January 7
3pm-11pm

Leave the car at home.
For detailed public transport information visit 131500.com.au or call 131 500. For information on road closures, alternate traffic routes and parking restrictions visit livetraffic.com or call 132 701.

Cycle to Festival First Night.
Enjoy free bike parking at The Domain and Hyde Park.

No BYO alcohol. No glass.
Food and beverages are on sale throughout the event at St Mary's Cathedral Square, Hyde Park, Elizabeth Street, Macquarie Street, The Domain and Queen's Square.

Click here for more Festival First Night tips