Free Auckland Arts Festival Events

Be part of the largest choir in Auckland, singing a selection of iconic waiata, as part of the opening night of AKLFEST24. Read more. 

Pop up to your nearest vantage point or come into Aotea Square with a blanket and relax with your friends gazing at the lights searching the sky above. 

Celebrate a showcase of artworks by established, mid-career and emerging Māori artists, the culmination of eight whare toi wānanga held in late 2023. Read more. 

Led by artist, curator and creative Nigel Borell, MNZM, this kōrero explores transformative activism, the power of collective action, and the challenge to overcome systemic barriers by Māori in the arts sector. Read more. 

Get your boogie on with a show that is guaranteed to get your feet tapping, your hands clapping and your body moving to the pulse of life! After Culture Beats stay for City Beats and join our drum lesson of epic proportions. Read more. 

Immediately following Culture Beats, be part of Auckland’s biggest ever mass drumline. Bring any percussion instrument of choice. Read more. 

New Zealand’s leading Street Dance Freestyle and Battle collective Projekt Team are bringing a day of beats, international guests, raw local talent, prizes and pure excitement. Read more. 

A breakdance performance unlike any other! Be inspired by the moves, grooves and stories of this international crew comprising differently-abled Bboy dancers. Read more. 

This larger-than-life outdoor screen will feature works from local and international artists that will fire your imagination and capture your attention. Read more. 

Look out for the Undergrand, a portable baby grand piano popping up all over Tāmaki Makaurau with music that moves the spirit and gives us reason to pause and reflect. Or journey through the city centre with Street Beats and witness the streets come alive with beats, melody and movement delivered by vibrant, brilliant artists.