Rising (stylised RISING) is a city-wide arts festival held in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Australia. The festival was announced in 2020 as Melbourne's premier arts and culture festival, replacing the

Melbourne International Arts Festival Melbourne International Arts Festival, formerly Spoleto Festival Melbourne – Festival of the Three Worlds, then Melbourne International Festival of the Arts, becoming commonly known as Melbourne Festival, was a major international arts festi ...

and White Night Festival, and is supported by the

Victoria State Government The Victoria State Government, also referred to as the Victorian Government, is the executive government of the Australian state of Victoria. As a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, the State Government was first formed in 1851 when Vic ...

. Following two attempts to launch the festival in 2020 and 2021 disrupted by the

coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, Rising has been held annually each June in Melbourne from 2022. The festival has received praise for the depth and variety of its events and First Nations programming, whilst also receiving critiques about its ability to capture the purpose and identity of its predecessors. The next Rising festival takes place 4–15 June 2025.

History

Origins and initial attempts

Rising was conceived by co-artistic directors Gideon Obarzanek and Hannah Fox, both artists with previous directorial experience in the creative industries and arts festivals including Dark Mofo, the

Melbourne Festival Melbourne International Arts Festival, formerly Spoleto Festival Melbourne – Festival of the Three Worlds, then Melbourne International Festival of the Arts, becoming commonly known as Melbourne Festival, was a major international arts festi ...

and Melbourne Fringe Festival. The festival was first proposed in 2020 as a replacement for the

and White Night Festival, and received support from state Government agencies to provide $2 million in funding, seeking a expressions of interest for grants to local artists to contribute "ambitious", "unusual", and "radical" concepts specific to Melbourne that would contribute to the "night-time culture" concept of the festival. Rising's inaugural festival, scheduled to take place in August 2020, was delayed by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

and postponed to 2021. In March 2021, a rescheduled program was announced for Rising, expected to occur over 26 May to 6 June. The program engaged 800 artists in over 130 events, intended to focus on "site-specific performance and large-scale public art, new collaborations in theatre and dance and novel line-ups in live music". The program included several installations and events in site-specific areas in the Birrarung,

Chinatown Chinatown ( zh, t=唐人街) is the catch-all name for an ethnic enclave of Chinese people located outside Greater China, most often in an urban setting. Areas known as "Chinatown" exist throughout the world, including Europe, Asia, Africa, O ...

Arts District An arts district or cultural district is a demarcated urban area, usually on the periphery of a city centre, intended to create a 'critical mass' of places of cultural consumption - such as art galleries, theatres, art cinemas, music venues, and p ...

, Midtown and Satellite precincts, with the stated intent of developing "multiple connected experiences" across the city. A headline event for the festival was the installation ''A Miracle Constantly Repeated'' by artist Patricia Piccinini, an exhibition that utilised the Flinders Street Station Ballroom and was the first time the space was accessible to the public in 35 years. On 27 May 2021, the Victorian Government announced a public health directive and seven-day statewide lockdown to manage the effects of an abrupt outbreak in the coronavirus pandemic. The organisers immediately cancelled events and issued refunds during the lockdown, although several site installations remained in place for the duration of the festival. Plans to relaunch the festival in its second week in June were abandoned after the lockdown period was extended, leading to a cancellation of the remainder of the program.

Inaugural and later festivals

The first complete Rising festival was held from 1–12 June 2022 after announcement in March of that year. The program involved over 80 projects and 225 events involving 685 Australian artists. Around 40 per cent of the events announced for the 2021 festival were incorporated into the program for 2022, with the remainder of the previous year's events deferred due to venue and artist availability.

Events

''Rising'' festivals include a mixture of music, performing arts, dance, and art in their programming. The festival has been noted for including a focus on site-specific installations and performances that transform the precincts of inner-city Melbourne and experimental works that are "immersive or ephemeral" in nature.

Reception

Rising has received praise for its breadth of programming and involvement of First Nations artists, and also critique towards the festival's overall identity and stated purpose. Kristen Hé of ''NME'' commended the 2023 festival for its "extensive nddiverse roster", describing the festival as having an appeal that elevated it from its counterparts due to the "abundance of ways in which it makes the city come to life", and Karen Gwee similarly highlighted the 2022 festival for its "thoughtful and varied approach to programming" and being "more sprawling and free-floating" than a typical festival, although noting its broad roster and timeframe made the festival occasionally feel "atomised" and incohesive. Jane Howard of ''ABC'' noted that the 2022 festival was a "smaller" and "gentler" festival compared to its predecessors, noting that its "unexpected discoveries" and "small interventions" had positively "changed the shape of the city", but described the fesetival as having "missteps" and "teething issues" due to the "underwhelming" nature of some of the installations. Writing for ''

The Conversation ''The Conversation'' is a 1974 American neo-noir mystery thriller film written, produced, and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. It stars Gene Hackman as a surveillance expert who faces a moral dilemma when his recordings reveal a potential ...

'', Sarah Austin highlighted the 2023 festival's "significant and thrilling work" by First Nations artists, but believed the festival had "yet to establish what kind of intervention it is making in our cultural conversation". Some critics were less positive in their assessment of the festival's impact. Describing the festival as facing an "identity crisis", Cameron Woodhead of ''The Age'' praised the 2023 festival's "extensive live music program" and leading role of First Nations artists, but critiqued the festival, stating "it lacks an articulated purpose", "clashes with established interstate festivals", such as Dark Mofo and Vivid Sydney, and was yet to reconcile the "conflicting missions" of predecessors White Night and the

. First expecting that the festival may be a "refreshing change" to the "bare" arts calendar caused by the pandemic and end of previous festivals, Karen van Ulzen of ''Dance Australia'' later considered the 2022 festival to be a "disappointment" and "need a rethink" due to its contrast with the events and tone of White Night and

, unclear name and branding as an arts festival, and poor weather in part due to the winter timing. The 2024 festival received more positive coverage, including from past detractors, acknowledging the event had landed a tight and cohesive program. ''The Age'' praised the 2024 program, saying Naarm/Melbourne's biggest arts festival had "finally, five years in, achieved lift-off". ''The Australian'' called the festival a "winner", with critic Tim Douglas writing: “With Mofo having gone quiet across Bass Strait, Melbourne has taken the midwinter mantel and run with it. With Orbazanek and Fox in their element... RISING is – as its name suggests – a festival inthe ascendant.”

Awards and nominations

Music Victoria Awards

The

Music Victoria Awards The Music Victoria Awards (previously known as The Age EG Awards and The Age Music Victoria Awards) are an annual awards night celebrating music from the Australian state of Victoria. They commenced in 2006 and are awarded in Melbourne Music W ...

are an annual awards night celebrating Victorian music. They commenced in 2006. ! , - ,

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, Rising , Best Metro Festival , , , - ,

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

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References

{{Melbourne events Arts festivals in Australia Festivals in Melbourne Festivals established in 2021 Autumn in Australia