Arts Festival to go out with a bang

Mime artist Martin Zimmerman plays a spun-out office worker. Photo /Mario Del Curto

Auckland Arts Festival organisers are expecting a barn-storming end to the festival, which wraps up on Sunday after three weeks.

Productions such as Sound of the Ocean from Taiwan's U Theatre and Douglas Wright's Rapt have made the lineup for the final week strong.

"What we discovered last festival - and you learn a little each time you do one - is that most of our bigger work was at the front end, and by the last weekend it was a quiet-ish programme," said festival artistic director David Malacari.

"This time we've managed to spread the bigger shows and as a result we've got a much bigger finish."

Partly because of that strong finish and also because of a lack of statistics, organisers have yet to work out audience numbers.

However, Mr Malacari said the festival had delivered in terms of providing Aucklanders with the chance to see high-quality acts.

Bringing international acts such as Bolivian theatre group Teatro de los Andes was important as their performances had a "legacy" in arts and audience development, he said.

"Audiences didn't know what to expect. Next time they see a Latin American show, the appetite for it will be bigger.

"That's our job. We're introducing new things and new ideas, and we're often out there at the vanguard. And then turning around to audiences and saying, 'Please, come with us, come with us'."