Festival Ambassadors
Igniting Imagination
The Age
Critics’ AWARD
At Melbourne Festival, we pride ourselves
on bringing the best art from around the
world to your doorstep – but we’re also
fervently committed to supporting and
nurturing the vibrant arts industry that
exists in this country.
We are pleased to welcome the support
of The Age, for the fourth year running,
in presenting an award for the best new
Australian work of performing art at
Melbourne Festival.
All new major Australian works in this year’s
program, in the fields of dance, theatre and
music, are eligible for this prestigious award,
which carries with it a $5,000 cash prize.
Selected by a panel of The Age’s expert critics,
the winner of the award will be announced on
26 October.
In 2011, The Age Critics’ Award went to the
highly acclaimed Ganesh Versus the Third Reich
from Back to Back Theatre, which the judges
described as ‘emotionally powerful, thought
provoking and brilliant’.
So while you’re taking in everything this
year’s Festival program has to offer, make sure
you check out our homegrown talent – and see
if you agree with the critics’ winning choice.
Visit melbournefestival.com.au or
theage.com.au/melbournefestival for
more information.
In 2011, Melbourne Festival began a collaborative
partnership with Multicultural Arts Victoria,
designed to build bonds with diverse local artists
and communities from varied backgrounds, and
to connect them with the vibrant arts our city
has to offer.
As part of the program, six Festival Ambassadors
from various cultural backgrounds were chosen
to build connections between their communities
and the Festival, by using their platforms as
spokespeople to help people from our city’s richly
diverse cultures engage with Melbourne Festival.
The success of this collaboration has seen it build
further this year, with even more ambassadors
appointed. Melbourne Festival is proud to
be represented by these keen advocates for
Melbourne’s art and culture.
If you happen to see these ambassadors around
the Festival, feel free to say hi – after all, we’re all
at the Festival for the same reason: to celebrate
and enjoy the diverse wonders of the arts.
Zvi Belling
One of the key collaborators behind the infectious
afro-beats of The Public Opinion Afro Orchestra,
Belling is also a director of ITN Architects.
Lisa Hilli
Papua New Guinean–Australian visual artist Hilli
is the founder of the Pacific Women’s Weaving
Circle, an initiative that provides a collaborative
forum for local artists working with traditional
arts and crafts.
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Steven Simba Kali
A South Sudanese musician who arrived in
Melbourne in 2004 as a refugee, Kali has since
recorded reggae and gospel music about his life
and experiences.
Richi Madan
An icon and pioneer of the Australian Bollywood
scene, Madan is an entertainer, musician and
journalist who hosts the Mumbai Masala show on
PBS.
Antonio Moreira
Brazilian percussionist Moreira has recently
relocated to Australia. A regular performer with
Tumbarumba, he is currently establishing a new
Melbourne-based percussion group.
Neda Rahmani
Iranian-born Rhamani performs with Brazilian
percussion group Tumbarumba, and is also a
singer-songwriter in her own right, recently
releasing her solo album All Colour.
Evelyn Tadros
Evelyn Tadros founded Australia’s first
Human Rights Arts and Film Festival in 2006,
is a theatre writer, director and performer, and
regularly presents on 3CR’s human rights show,
Right Now Radio.
Photo James Henry
Melbourne Festival thanks Multicultural Arts
Victoria for their ongoing support.