THE George Town Festival (GTF) is back, this time with 80 programmes covering visual art, theatre, music, dance, film, photography, and more from July 9 to 24.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the GTF’s continuous efforts to promote arts are one of the reasons Penang has made significant strides in the global arts scene. It is now in its 13th year.
“CNN Travel dubbed GTF as ‘Best of Penang rolled up in one big festival’ while The New York Times reviewed it as a ‘festival growing into a major Asian arts event,” Chow told a press conference to announce the festival’s return to the physical stage this month.
“Much of the festival’s success stems from its sincere commitment to nurturing homegrown talents, preserving local culture and heritage, and providing an international platform for local artists.
“The festival will not have big-scale outdoor events for this year. Instead, small and medium events on a reduced scale with diverse themes at different venues will be held throughout the festival to create the mood for a universal celebration.
“Besides ticketed programmes, festival-goers can look forward to free programmes, which constitute 70% of the festival’s programmes to showcase Penang’s diverse culture and heritage – ranging from shows, screenings, exhibitions, masterclasses and many more.”
During the Covid-19 pandemic, the festival adopted an online format in 2020 and a hybrid format in 2021.
State Tourism and Creative Economy Committee chairman Yeoh Soon Hin said the 2019 festival saw more than 300,000 visitors, generating millions in public relations value.
This year’s 16-day festival, Yeoh added that it would provide tourists with enough reasons to extend their stay here in Penang while allowing them to experience Penang’s unique arts and culture in a meaningful way.
“Penang has always been known for its food and seaside getaways. However, after its capital George Town was conferred the Unesco World Heritage Site status in 2008, the tourism industry has grown by leaps and bounds.
“The spectacular growth in Penang’s tourism industry ultimately sets the pace for other tourism-related sectors, such as festival and hotel industries to grow. Festivals, such as the George Town Festival, have been instrumental in branding the state as a creative city.
“Thanks to the festival’s continuous effort in supporting the arts, many visitors and even locals begin to recognise the state as an innovative city.”
Among some of the featured ticketed programmes are ‘The Senses’ and ‘Mozart at the Mansion’. These niche ticketed programmes will be held at The Habitat Penang Hill’s Curtis Crest and Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion (the Blue Mansion), which are located within Penang’s two Unesco-designated sites.
Other not-to-be-missed ticketed programmes are “Teater Tradisional Makyung ‘DEWA INDERA INDERA DEWA’”, a riveting performance of Mak Yong, an almost extinct Malay traditional performance, and “Ibu”, a Teochew puppet theatre performance which brilliantly combines traditional Teochew art form with modern technology (projection mapping) to tell a story inspired by a famous Southeast Asian folklore.
Details of the programmes will be announced soon.
Story by K.H. Ong
Pix by Law Suun Ting
Video by Ahmad Adil Muhamad