Spring has sprung, and what a time for beautiful new things to begin to emerge. The blooming flowers are coloring our landscape, and on the family arts calendar, festivals are blossoming, a brand new children’s library is opening, and these school holidays are a great chance for kids to try out a new artsy activity.
Here are some of Sydney’s artsy family offerings for the October school holidays.
Festival Vibes
Get your party shoes on! There are a couple of huge festivals for all you artsplorers on these school holidays.
From 29 Septmember – 11 October, the Art Gallery of NSW hosts the Fo Fum Fiesta Festival, a giant festival of imagination and play! Kids and their adults can roll up their sleeves and get hands on in artmaking and performance workshops; meet artist David Capra and his dazzling sausage dog Teena in special guided tours of our furry friends in the collection; move and groove to live music and performances; hear stories; play and create or sit back and enjoy a family flick in our artist curated film series. Full schedule of events on the website.
The Spot On Children’s Festival at Riverside Theatres (Parramatta) is an extravaganza of creative goodness for families. Running 1 – 5 October, there are both paid and free events for all ages. Just check out this lineup (full details on tickets and schedules on the website):
- Lullaby: Sonic Cradle – a unique musical experience all the way from the UK inspired by traditional Indian lullabies with soothing sounds and meditative light projections. Ages 0+.
- Tröll – from New Zealand comes a darkly comic one-man production in the vein of Netflix’s Stranger Things featuring storytelling, music and puppetry. Ages 8+ years.
- Dr Hubbles Bubbles – an hilarious journey into the unbelievabubble world of bubbles. Ages 3 – 12 years.
- The Conductor and the Clown – a mini symphony show combining physical comedy with classical music and featuring a 13-piece orchestra. Ages 4 – 12 years.
- Roald Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes & Dirty Beasts – A multi-Helpmann Award nominated production that rearranges the world’s best-loved fairy tales with some surprising and hilarious twists. Ages 5+.
- Roald Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes & Dirty Beasts workshops – led by the actors, perform your very own version of the stories using Dahl’s delightfully disgusting poems. Ages 6 – 10 years.
- Trash Test Dummies – an award-winning show combining slapstick comedy and circus to provide a dump-truck of hilarity. Ages 5+ years.
- Haunted House Workshops – learn and develop filmmaking skills in the horror and scary film genre. Ages 9 – 18 years.
- Much-loved films including The Lion King, Ghostbusters, A Dog’s Journey, Mia and the White Lion and Goosebumps, as well as screenings of two winning horror shorts from the Bloodfest Film Festival- made by children.
- Avocado Smash Concert – a free concert with catchy tunes, dance moves and languages from around the world. Ages 2 – 7 years.
- Free activities including face painting, craft activities, library tent, photo booth and giant chalkboards.
Little Creators Project at Darling Quarter is offering free workshops in art, music, and storytime daily from Wednesday, 2 October to Monday 7 October (inclusive). Sessions of each workshop will run at 11:30am-12:30pm and 1pm-2:00pm. No bookings necessary but places are limited! Activities include:
- Create artworks of native flora and fauna to take home, under the guidance of renowned Indigenous artists, brother and sister duo, Noni and David Cragg.
- Test your electronic music production skills with the team from Heaps Decent.
- Take part in a whacky interactive storytime with Mimi and Laura from The Beanies (1st to 4th and 7th Oct), or join in as Eleanor Clapham performs her musical ‘Cheeky Little Emus’, which explores the traditional stories of the Murrawarri people of northwest NSW (5th & 6th Oct).
See A Show
In addition to the live performances included in the Spot On Children’s Festival, little theatre lovers will also enjoy these shows:
Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo at the Sydney Opera House from 28 September – 12 October. Journey back in time and meet awesome prehistoric creatures, from cute baby dinos to some of the largest carnivores and herbivores that have ever walked the planet, in this uniquely entertaining and educational performance experience. Recommended for ages 6+.
Meeting Mozart at the Sydney Opera House runs 4 – 13 October. Watch with delight as renowned Australian pianist Simon Tedeschi assumes the persona of the musical wunderkind himself, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, on this journey into the music behind the man. Little music lovers will meet all the instruments in the ensemble along the way, and discover some of Mozart’s best known and loved classical music. Recommended for ages 2 – 8.
Art Kids
This holiday’s Contemporary Kids at the Museum of Contemporary Art focuses on the work of Shaun Gladwell and his solo show Pacific Undertow. Experience BMX, surfing, skate and extreme sport culture through works that challenge our perception of the way we move in the world. Back in the Creative Studios, collage an alternative world then use the magic of green screen technology to transport yourself there! 1 – 5 October.
Library Lovers
The State Library of NSW plays host to several activities over the school holidays.
- Drop in activities ($5) will be available in the Learning Centre 9a.m. – 3p.m., along with free kids tours at 11a.m. September 30 – October 4.
- Pop up art making in the galleries with an art educator is free (first 25 kids) 12p.m. – 1p.m. 1 – 4 October.
- Author Louise Parker leads a free writing workshop for kids ages 8 – 12 on October 8.
- NEW CHILDREN’S LIBRARY OPENING! On Saturday October 12, the State Library will open their new children’s library with a full day of activities.
In addition, be sure to check with your local library to see what activities they have on for kids over the school holidays!
Do a Workshop
School holidays are the perfect opportunity for students to try out new artsploring activities. Here are some of the workshops being offered by organisations in the Artsplorers’ Directory of Sydney Area Arts Classes. Have a look in the Directory if you’re looking for an arts class or playgroup for the school term, as well.
Applause Musical Theatre Academy (East Lindfield and Willoughby)
Once again Applause Musical Theatre Academy and The Maker’s Loft are collaborating to offer you not one, but two workshops this spring based on the popular musicals “The Lion King” and “Aladdin”!
In three action-packed, creative days your child will sing, act and dance to songs from your choice of musical (as mentioned above). Additionally your child will gain confidence plus important communication and interpersonal skills through acting games.
Your child will also create costumes and props to be used in the to parents on the last day.
East Lindfield (The Lion King) from Monday September 30 to Wednesday October 2); Willoughby (Aladdin) from Wednesday October 9 to Friday October 11.
Cost: $330 Early Bird ($360 otherwise)
NSW Creative Kids provider.
Big Wild Imagination (Neutral Bay and Mobile – I can come to your place)
Feed your child’s curiosity in our workshops that packed with creative experiences and resources to ignite their senses. Fostering creative thinking, children are expose to a wide range of resources and tools used in innovative ways to inspire open-ended creativity and unlimited imagination!
Big Wild Imagination is offering full day workshops at Whoosh Club in Neutral Bay and mobile workshops that come to your place for a 2hr workshop.
Cost: $100/ full day workshop at Whoosh Club. Mobile workshops $150/2 hrs/4 children ($20 per extra child up to 6 children max)
NSW Creative Kids provider. (Please email your childs name, date of birth and voucher number prior to booking.)
Hello Little Artisan (Beacon Hill – Northern Beaches)
The Messy Paint and Play: At Hello Little Artisan we understand the importance of children engaging in sensory and creative play. Each session is set up with stations that will inspire children to use their curiosity and creativity to explore different textures and materials. Messy Play is an important part of Early Child Development and the benefits include
*Communication and Language Development
*Improved Fine and Gross Motor Skills
*Improved Hand Eye Coordination
*Builds Problem Solving Skills
*Encourages Choices Making
*Builds a positive approach to new experiences
*Developing new friends
Hello Little Artisan is a place where we focus on the process of making and creating, not the final product. This is a place where it’s ok to be messy!
Cost: $20
Bookings online
READ + CREATE with Oh Creative Day (Drummoyne)
Kindness ROCKS, doesn’t it? In this special school holidays class, we will read two books that celebrate kindness. We will then decorate our own collection of rocks. These rocks can be left in public places as a random act of kindness, or they can be given as gifts. Or they can be kept by the mini-maker as a reminder that kindness is cool.
Preschoolers through to Year 1 students welcome!
Cost: $22
Here’s wishing you and your kids a mot colorful school holidays!
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