WOMADelaide 2025 – The World’s Festival
WOMADelaide – World Of Music Arts & Dance – returns from 7 – 10 March 2025 to the City of Adelaide’s Botanic Park/Tainmuntilla for 4 days over the March long weekend.
The Worlds Festival, an internationally acclaimed event, is a truly unique part of the Australian festival landscape, showcasing the best, the essential – and the surprising – in music, arts, dance and ideas from around the world.
2025 lineup
The 2025 lineup of artists includes PJ Harvey (UK), Nils Frahm (Germany), Mariza (Portugal), Goran Bregović & His Wedding & Funeral Band (Serbia), Cie Yoann Bourgeois (France) and Bangarra Dance Theatre (Aus) joining the recently-announced Khruangbin (USA).
Legendary multi-instrumentalist and two-time winner of the Mercury Music Prize, PJ Harvey (UK) brings her live show and full-band experience – performing songs from the Grammy-nominated tenth studio album I Inside the Old Year Dying and her remarkable back-catalogue for the festival’s opening night.
Since his breakthrough album Felt in 2011, the exceptional instrumentalist, Nils Frahm (Germany) has become renowned for his unconventional approach to the age-old instrument, the piano, garnering him international acclaim for his live shows and albums.
Born in Mozambique and raised in Lisbon’s Mouraria district, Mariza (Portugal) is a global superstar and one of the most acclaimed Fado singers of our time. With a career spanning over 20 years, 30 platinum albums, and countless accolades, Mariza has performed around the world, and has shared stages with musical legends such as Sting, Gilberto Gil, Lenny Kravitz, Cesária Évora, and Tito Paris.
Known for his dynamic fusion of Balkan folk, rock, and classical influences, Goran Bregović & His Wedding & Funeral Band (Serbia) has forged a unique sound that is both universal and unmistakably his own with iconic anthems such as Bella Ciao, Kalashnikov, and In the Death Car.
Musician, producer and composer, Nitin Sawhney CBE (UK) is a formidable talent across many genres – from his own brand of British electronica and fusion, to his compositions for orchestras and film and artists such as Paul McCartney, Sting and Akram Khan – Sawhney returns after being unable to travel to the 2024 festival.
A pioneering voice in the renaissance of British jazz, Shabaka (UK) transcends conventional notions of genre and draws from a vast palette of cultural influences, which has seen him become one of the most celebrated jazz musicians of the decade. Releasing his first solo album Perceive Its Beauty, Acknowledge Its Grace in 2024, Shabaka’s wide-ranging career has also seen him lead influential bands Sons of Kemet, The Comet is Coming, and Shabaka and the Ancestors.
After performing at the 2016 festival to huge acclaim, 47SOUL (Palestine/Jordan) return with their message of equality for the world. Melding hip-hop, electronica and R&B with the sounds of Dabke (the traditional music from the Levantine region), the group created their own music genre ‘Shamstep’, a sound for the people of the Sham region (Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria).
Queen Omega (Trinidad & Tobago) is of the biggest female stars on the international dancehall-reggae scene. Since the 1990s, she has been blazing a trail for other women artists through her powerful performances and conscious messages.
Having wowed audiences at Adelaide Festival’s popular Red Square club in 1996, the exceptional taiko drum ensemble and masters of this ancient traditional percussion artform, from the village of Ota, O.TA.I.KO ZA MYOJIN (Japan) return.
Intertwining the haunting sounds of a single zither with two distinct voices, Duo Ruut (Estonia) craft a minimalist yet imaginative musical tapestry. Their contemporary songwriting is deeply influenced by diverse cultural beliefs, reflecting an emotive journey that resonates and captivates audiences worldwide.
Founded in the mid-1950s by visionary Sun Ra in Chicago, Sun Ra Arkestra (USA) stands as a force in the realms of synthesiser innovation and free jazz, with a mission to spread positive vibrations and elevate the universe through music. While Durand Jones & The Indications (USA) – loved for their dual lead singers, thoughtful songwriting, and joyous and energetic performances – push beyond the boundaries of funk and soul and reach for inspiration in vintage disco vibes.
Sydney-based artist Ngaiire (PNG/Aus) – from the Eastern Highlands and New Ireland provinces of Papua New Guinea – premieres her new project PAIA, a spectacular live-performance and visual experience. Known for her captivating fusion of electronic neo-soul, gospel, and pop, she has shared stages with artists such as Sufjan Stevens, Alicia Keys and Flume.
A storyteller who brings an evocative and expressive voice to Australia’s blues and roots scene, 2024 multi-ARIA award nominee Emily Wurramara (Aus), a Warnindhilyagwa woman from Groote Eylandt, sings in both English and Anindilyakwa language. While the Arnhem-Land-based eight-piece funk band – led by the shy-but-extravagant, blind, keytar-wielding Yolngu Elder – Andrew Gurruwiwi Band (Aus) serves up high-energy infectious grooves.
Since forming on Invasion Day in 2022, First Nations trio 3% (Aus) – made up of hip-hop MCs Dallas Woods, Nooky, and Angus Field – released their debut album KILL THE DEAD this year, which impressively has been nominated for four ARIA awards. ‘We’re not just 3% – we’re 100% black magic,’ they say.
An Australian premiere and coup for the festival, Yoann Bourgeois Art Company (France) brings The unreachable suspension point, a captivating work comprising a revolving staircase, trampoline and dancers exploring weightlessness and the spiralling themes of life. Breaking down the barriers between dance, theatre, music, visual installation, and audio-visual art, Bourgeois has worked on film projects with artists such as Coldplay, Harry Styles, FKA twigs and Pink.
Australian leading performing arts company, Bangarra Dance Theatre (Aus) – comprised of dancers, storytellers and fire-makers – presents its first main-stage cross-cultural collaboration, The Light Inside. The breathtaking performance work, created by Māori choreographer Moss Te Ururangi Patterson and Bangarra alumna Deborah Brown, explores cultural forces that bind us together, across oceans and the First Peoples of the Oceania region.
VIEW THE 2025 LINEUP OF ARTISTS
It’s been 30 years since WOMADelaide made its debut as an independent major event in 1993, and it is now an established pilgrimage for artists and audiences from around the world, hosting over 30+ countries.
A family friendly festival with something for all ages, there will be more than 100 performances across seven stages. For kids and families the entertainment is endless away from the stage too, with the Planet Talks forum, KidZone, art and cooking workshops, the global village and much more.
WoMarkets
The WoMarkets will return in 2025 – a shaded hub of more than 40 retail stalls, in the tradition of a marketplace where different cultures share their wares – along Plane Tree Drive.
The Studio
Also returning is The Studio, a theatre space created within the Adelaide Botanic High Gym, where a range of performances have been presented since 2022. This year the festival welcomes Adelaide’s own Restless Dance Theatre in Seeing Through Darkness and actor/theatre-maker Dorcy Rugamba’s musical reading Hewa Rwanda: Letter to the Absent.
WOMADelaide for FAMILIES
WOMADelaide is extremely family friendly. Many of you may have grown up with WOMADelaide, and they love seeing the next generations of tiny dancers appearing each year. There is always so much to keep the little ones entertained at WOMADelaide, and kids under 12 are free.
You are more than welcome to bring prams or strollers. Parents with babies and toddlers can enjoy a shaded, comfortable and discrete Parenting Room, plus nursing parents at WOMADelaide have access to feeding chairs, baby changing facilities, a microwave and more.
KIDZONE
A world of fun awaits in the KidZone with daily activities programmed specially for kids 12 and under in a fun, family-friendly and safe environment.
KidZone Program Announced in January.
FOOD & DRINKS
WOMADelaide is a food lover’s dream, offering an incredibly diverse selection of international cuisines prepared by some of Australia’s finest food vendors. They take great pride in presenting food choices above and beyond the standard festival fare, with dishes that draw inspiration from The Barossa to Bangalore.
A smorgasboard of over 50 of Adelaide finest eateries and festival favourites will be revealed closer to the event.
TICKETS
Each adult ticket purchaser is entitled to bring up to two children 12 years and under for free. Additional children’s tickets can be purchased at $25 for a festival ticket or $10 per single day.
All children are required to be ticketed so please ensure that you include the number of free children in the ticketing selection when purchasing tickets. Children must enter with a responsible adult and unaccompanied children will not gain access.
A discounted Youth Pass price is offered to children aged between 13 – 17. Please note that it is a condition of the event Liquor License that after Midnight all people under the age of 18 must in the company and supervision of an adult.
CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS PRICES AND INFO
Take a look at some of Play & Go’s past WOMADelaide Reviews:
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For more information and all enquiries please visit the WOMADelaide website.
What: WOMADelaide 2025
When: Friday 7 – Monday 10 March 2025
Where: Botanic Park/Tainmuntilla | Adelaide, South Australia
Who: Everyone
At Play & Go Adelaide we make every effort to provide accurate information to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication. We recommend confirming times, dates and details directly before making any plans as details may be subject to change.
Image Source: photos by Play & Go / graphics by WOMADelaide
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