City of Newcastle announced on Tuesday that its fledgling cultural festival will be called New Annual.
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The festival will run from February 12 to 21 next year then likely move to spring.
The Newcastle Herald reported last year that the council wanted to establish a fringe-style festival showcasing local theatre, dance, music and visual arts talent.
The council will release a program next month for the inaugural New Annual, which will be designed to operate as a COVID-safe event if required.
The artistic director of Newcastle theatre company Curious Legends, Mitchell Reese, said New Annual was "absolutely crucial" to the group's survival.
"Ninety per cent of our work disappeared overnight when COVID hit," he said.
"The fact that council is investing money into the arts means that we can continue existing as a company."
Curious Legends' last performance was for Randwick City Council in March. The group's large-scale outdoor puppetry for New Annual will employ 11 artists.
"We need to create very big theatre with very strong visuals that people can view from quite a distance away," Mr Reese said.
New Annual will include events across the city, including in public spaces and in council and private venues.
Lord mayor Nuatali Nelmes said the festival could grow in future years to incorporate national and overseas acts over a month or more.
"COVID will make it a smaller festival in the first iteration," she said. "I imagine you'll be extending the time and hopefully be attracting artists from overseas."
New Annual would "build on the success" of Newcastle's This is Not Art fringe festival, which would continue under its own name.
She said the New Annual name was "descriptive of a new annual cultural event".
"The concepts, the names, the programming is all being driven locally from the local artists.
"Local creatives have worked hard on coming up with a concept they feel will resonate with the market."
The festival has attracted two grants from the NSW government.
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