Yonder music and arts festival set to go ahead in 2020

Despite being in the midst of a global pandemic, Queensland's mesmeric and mystical music, arts, and culture festival Yonder is going full steam ahead with their 2020 event. Set to take place in the Mary Valley between the 26-28th of November, this completely immersive festival is defying the odds with a Covidsafe Plan that is set to ensure the safety of all punters, while maintaining a supportive and positive atmosphere.

With a limit of 1000 tickets, this three-day camping festival will feature artists across four stages, and will include a range of music, visual art, theatre, and dance set to transport attendees into a world of discovery, expression and innovation. With a strong focus on culture, the event acknowledges the traditional custodians of the land aiming to build meaningful relationships with the local community to support local artists and culture, particularly with Indigenous practitioners, communities and artists.

Known for its eclectic and wondrous festival experience where fantasy takes hold, Yonder hopes to maintain an entrancing ambiance while ensuring all necessary measures are enforced to prevent further spread of the virus. Working alongside state government to formulate a QLD Health approved Covidsafe Plan, this event aims to align with public health directives by ensuring safe practices.

Festival Creative Director Lincoln Savage hopes to continue the culture of innovation, encouragement, and commitment created during the successful debut of Yonder in 2019. In an effort to rethink the entire festival to include a Covidsafe experience, organisers will screen attendees for any COVID-19 symptoms, ensuring a 1.5-metre distance from other festival-goers, clear signage, hand sanitising stations, and no dancing permitted at the event. This may sound extreme but the festival hopes some of these directives will relax closer to the event. In an effort to maintain a strong focus on community, Yonder aims to encourage connection verbally rather than physically highlighting some of the drastic changes in live music events during these unprecedented times.

Excited to be one of the few festivals to persevere through the wrath of the current pandemic, Savage said, “Yonder is an experiential arts project that has been built from the ground up to provide a deeply immersive avenue for human communication and connection through the arts. As one of the first festivals to gain approval to proceed we are excited to get back out to site.”

With hopes of creating a magical, emotional and spiritual experience through the maintenance of socially distant connections, Yonder is sure to bring life back to 2020 with its fantasy-inspired event. With the current pandemic forcing a decline in festivals, this immersion of culture, arts, and music is your perfect escape from the current the gloom of today.

Lineup announcement is set for early November, stay tuned. For more information visit the website www.yonderfestival.com

Words by: CLAUDIA FALLON

Image: Kalem Horn

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