If New Zealand summers are synonymous with music festivals, then spring is all about the arts. In October, Tauranga, Taranaki, Hawke’s Bay and Nelson will come alive with the sound of music, theatre, dance, comedy and talks about books. As well as the chance of a great night out, regional arts festivals create a sense of place and pride for their communities. And they are a valuable touring circuit for our artists and some from overseas.
This year, possibly no one else has had to think more about what a regional arts festival can offer than Pitsch Leiser, Hawke’s Bay Arts Festival director since 2015. Leiser hoped that after the disruption of Covid – when the festival reduced shows and focused on the hyper-local – 2023 would be the year they bounced back with a vengeance.
“Needless to say when we woke up on February 14 [when Cyclone Gabrielle hit] and got a sense of the devastation in the following days, we realised very quickly how severe the impact was,” he says. “What became evident very quickly was that we needed to respond in a way that was meaningful for our communities.
“With the cost-of-living crisis and
