Dance and music performances, photography, public trails, and fashion showcases – for those looking for a creative getaway, meet Penang’s George Town Festival.
We know that it’s across the Causeway but weekends were made for satiating that wanderlust!
Picture a month-long celebration of the arts, including opera, music, theatre, dance, and film. The George Town Festival is held in honour of the town’s entry into UNESCO’s World Heritage listing in 2008, and this year’s festival is titled ‘Taking Off’. It will feature both local and international cultural acts.
Why you should visit
If you haven’t visited Penang before, now’s your chance! Explore this city of delish food and take in the intense cultural immersion. You get to witness the making of Penang into an international boutique destination for arts and culture; we’ve sneaked a peek at the line-up and it truly doesn’t disappoint.
Want to get familiar with the island first? Getting to know Penang’s capital will be a walk in the park – literally. Titled ‘Secret Gardens of Earthly Delights’, this large-scale exhibition was created by various gardeners and landscape and installation artists and is an extension of Ernest Zacharevic’s ‘Mirrors to George Town’.
Lens lovers and frame fanatics, this one’s for you – check out ‘Obscura’, the festival’s photography highlight. Fall in love with the art all over again as you view photography works by both amateurs and professionals. See photography from different perspectives at forums, workshops, and portfolio reviews. Psst – we hear that National Geographic and Smithsonian’s Maggie Steber will be there too! (We might or might not be coming home with some autographs…)
Then there’s a film festival that incorporates scent (no, really!), Teochew puppets, Hokkien rhymes, storytelling for kids – come on, can you feel how excited we are?!
Here’s the really exciting bit:
Our homegrown designers will also be travelling across the Causeway to do us proud at the festival! Carrie K. Artisan Jewellery’s quarterly artisan showcase, ‘Keepers’, will be at the George Town Festival under the ‘Singapore House’, a pop-up store and exhibition space.
With jeweller Carrie K. leading the ‘Keepers’ pack, ‘Singapore House’ will also host the best of the Keepers - Ong Shunmugam (still fresh from AFF 2013); leatherworks artisan Ling Wu; time masters Edypoi; award-winning hat-makers Head of State Millinery, and IEX, a creative initiative by Ideas Empire.
In ‘Singapore House’, a unique retail experience awaits – revamp your closet for the upcoming seasons, rub shoulders with the founders, and be inspired by the stories behind each label.
We’re so proud of these guys that we’ve already made plans to be there during the festival’s opening weekend to show our support. Get your tickets and we’ll see you there!
George Town Festival will be held in Penang from 7 June to 7 July. For the full list of performances, ticketing, and respective event details, see website.