Calendar of Special Events
The calendar of major special events taking place in and around Newcastle may help in the planning of your event. It may conjur an idea for a wonderful offsite dinner or activity, or may simply help you select the best date to hold your event.
ONGOING |
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Livesites Newcastle L!vesites is a cultural events programme taking place in public spaces in the heart of Newcastle including: Newcastle Mall, Harbour Square, Honeysuckle Promenade, Civic Park and Wheeler Place. Each year, Live Sites produces over 100 days of events and provides over 700 days of arts employment. Outdoors performance, installations, concerts, open air cinema and mass public dance classes - the programme is diverse and varies from month to month with events happening constantly all around the city -sometimes in several venues at once! Events are mostly free of charge and include a variety of cultural activities and entertainment to attract a broad range of people. Newcastle L!vesites' vision is to enliven the city making it a vibrant, exciting and safe place in which to live, work and play. |
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Markets |
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MAY |
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| Darby Street Chocolate and Coffee Festival Sample a variety of local, organic and national coffees & styles. Taste morsels of chocolate decadence. Sip teas with a difference. Three stages full of entertainment, roving musicians, street performers, rides, face painting and market stalls showcasing local designers. Contact: Stacey Anderson on 0447 441 259 |
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AUGUST |
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Newcastle Jazz Festival August 2010 Come and enjoy a wonderful weekend of great jazz and take an opportunity to catch up with the Australia wide Jazz family. This year the Newcastle Jazz Festival is celebrating its 23rd anniversary and has continued to grow each year. The Festival features some of Australia's best Jazz & Blues performers. This year performers will be heard in 5 different rooms within the City Hall at various times over the weekend. Highlights include a Jazz breakfast, and a Jazz Gospel on Sunday morning. Full details including registration form, program and details of the artists appearing can be obtained from the Newcastle Jazz Club website, www.newcastlejazz.com.au. |
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SEPTEMBER |
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Spring Racing Carnival September 2010 Cameron Handicap Raceday
Traditionally Ladies Day, the fillies on the lawns vie for great prizes worth over $5000
Tooheys New Gold Cup Raceday
Join NJC in celebrating the Gold Cup with the countrys finest horses, jockeys and trainers.
So gather your friends and family and head to beautiful Broadmeadow for a day of exhileracing! Click here for more information about the Newcastle Jockey Club and other race day events |
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OCTOBER |
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Mattara Festival October 2010 A celebration of, and by the people of Newcastle and the Hunter, through a diverse range of skills and performaces, at the picturesque Newcastle Foreshore. Dance, theatre, sculpture, art, food, music and environmental awareness is all on display in a fun atmosphere. The word MATTARA, meaning hand, was inspired by the language of the Awabakal Aboriginal Dialect used by former natives of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie areas. Mattara was selected as the title for the festival, denoting the hand of friendship that Newcastle extends to visitors as well as the Citys hand of industry. Thousands of people attend the Festival annually, carrying the festive spirit through out the entire duration of Mattara. Key attractions include the inaugural Outdoor Art Exhibition and the Mattara Street Parade. Look out for these and other attractions:
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Mattara Hill Climb October 2010 Considered one of the most challenging Hillclimb courses in Australia, King Edward Park has been a picturesque hill climbing venue since 1951. Newcastle MG Car Clubs premier annual event has been run on the historic King Edward Park course every October since 1963. The course record for the 1.094 kilometre hillclimb is 38.05 seconds, set by Eric Barnes on October 11, 1999. The event has become so popular that it is now conducted over two days - with the New South Wales Hillclimb Championship held on Sunday 4 October, whilst Monday 5 October features the Tri-Challenge series between Newcastle, Tamworth and Kempsey Sporting Car Clubs. The outstanding success of this event, held as part of the Mattara Festival, is achieved through the efforts of many dedicated people. A feature of the weekend is the large historic car display in the adjacent parkland, usually attracting special interest classic and sports cars from other car and motorcycle clubs in the district. |
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National Maritime Festival October 2010 Stroll along the scenic waterfront from event to exhibit, to the thrills and spills on the harbour when the National Ski Racing, the Jet-Ski Enduro races and the awesome X-Cats let loose; take your front row seat to see world champion wake boarding demonstrations! AND no one can resist the tug ballet! Take a free seat aboard the "Fantasea Crystal" and tour our working port. There is plenty of entertainment and exhibits to exhaust the fittest family pirates and mermaids. Grab a bite from the many food vendors and catch the Quick and Dirty boat building teams. Step aboard the mighty HMAS Parramatta, see the The Navy Divers or climb the gang plank onto the magnificent tall ship; ‘James Craig’; for that matter, join the crew for an experience of a lifetime and sail back to Sydney with them! |
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Rainbow Visions Festival October 2010 This years gay and lesbian Rainbow Festival builds on the success of last year with a fabulous line up of events and activities to tease and please the GLBTIQ (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex and Queer) community and their friends. The Festival will be 5 days of fun and celebration which will harness the creativity and enthusiasm of our community while allowing people to express their talents and skills. The Festival aims to celebrate community diversity through activities that explore and express GLBTIQ cultural and social interests. Events include a community dance party, a youth Chill Out evening, a Community Connections Dinner, the ever popular Short and Curlies film screening, and will conclude with the infamous Picnic in the Park at Gregson Park on the Sunday with heaps of entertainment and fun things to do! |
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This Is Not Art Festival October 2010 This Is Not Art (affectionately known as TINA) is dedicated to the showcase of independent, emergent, and experimental arts and new media. This Is Not Art provides a national networking opportunity for niche communities and the highly curious. For five days Newcastle comes alive with panels, workshops, artists presentations, forums, exhibitions, performances and live gigs. With over 90% of our program being free, people from across Australia come together to get their hands dirty with arts and music craziness. Bringing you treats and delights from across the globe This Is Not Art works in conjunction with Electrofringe, Sound Summit, Critical Animals, National Young Writers Festival, and the CTF Theatre Festival to ensure that our program is as varied and diverse as possible. This year promises no exception to the grab bag of chaos that This Is Not Art is renown for, with treats to include: multi-media performances, comics, hip-hop, comedy, storytelling, spoken word, independent media making mayhem, skillsharing with independent music label provocateurs, debate, and research and new visions by post graduate critical writing students. |
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DECEMBER
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Boxing Day Races 26 December 2010 "Girls and boys come out to play its NJC Boxing Day".
They come to play on the horses, they come to socialise, and they come to party with their friends and to meet new ones. The social event not to be missed.
Gather your friends and family and head to beautiful Broadmeadow for a day of exhileracing! Click here for more information about the Newcastle Jockey Club and other race day events |
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