Between 18 – 20 June, a new festival titled Third I Festival will take over Enmore Road, shining a spotlight on indigenous and international communities through a dynamic line up of arts, music, food and cultural events. The new festival will form part of Sydney Solstice and will see the vibrant Inner West community activated like never before.
Over the three days, Third I Festival will celebrate the ‘three I’s: Indigenous, Inner West and International Communities across 30 different cultural activations throughout the festival. The program of events will include panel discussions, art exhibitions, live music, comedy shows, slam poetry and a multitude of unique food experiences.
Kicking off on Friday 18 June, you can enjoy the Third I’s Comedy Festival featuring five local comedy acts and slam poetry takeovers of Inner West institutions, including Barberchino, Tattoo Movement and P&V Wine + Liquor Merchants.
On Saturday 18 June, six thought-provoking panel discussions will take place at the iconic Dendy Cinema in Newtown covering topics such as diversity in media, multiculturalism in sport, women in leadership, and the asylum seeker experience. The panel discussions will include a cross-mix of speakers such as admired AFL legend Michael O’Loughlin (Sydney Swans), corporate powerhouse Sam Mostyn and talented musicians including Western Sydney’s Barkaa, South-African born rapper Ecca Vandal and Sydney hip hop artist Kobie Dee.
Taking place at the Urban Hotel on the Saturday, ARTiculate is an inspiring exhibition featuring works by an eclectic array of artists, but most importantly many up-and-coming Indigenous and asylum seeker artists who will come together to participate in a live artwork enriched by their individual stories. All artworks will be available for purchase, with the completed artwork to be displayed at a local institution at the end of the festival.
The festival will also see the international food strip that is Enmore Road reinvigorated through one-off offers at cult institutions such as Cebu Lechon, Little Lagos, Colombo Social and The Duke, as well as special events – like the epic Inner West cook-off taking place in the Young Henrys courtyard. There is also a series of masterclasses to enjoy, including a Herradura Tequila Masterclass with drinks-industry figurehead Jason Crawley, a Tiki Cocktail Masterclass with Pasan Wijesena from Earl’s Joint, and a Gin Masterclass hosted by distiller and AFL legend Daniel Motlop.
To close the festival, a major one-off live music concert is happening at the Metro Theatre on Sunday June 20 and will feature an impressive line-up of indigenous and international hip hop and rock artists including Ziggy Ramo, L-Fresh the Lion, King Stingray, The Merindas, Becca Hatch, Thandi Phoenix and more.
All profits from the festival’s closing party will be donated to PlateitForward, a non-for-profit community-driven organisation providing food, training and employment opportunities to Sydney’s disadvantaged community members.
Through this partnership the Third I Festival aims to create job opportunities for Indigenous and asylum seekers, many of whom haven’t worked before due to lack of experience or training, and opportunities that may normally be out of reach.
Tickets will be sold for individual experiences throughout the festival, however visitors are encouraged to purchase a Food and Beverage Passport or Cultural Passport which will allow them access to more of the festival experiences at a special price point.
To learn more about the Third I Festival, to purchase tickets or for the full program of events, please visit: https://thirdifestival.com.au/
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