NELSON ARTS FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES INTERNATIONAL CIRCUS SHOW MACHINE DE CIRQUE

Photo credit: Loup-William Théberge.

Internationally acclaimed contemporary circus company from Quebec, Machine de Cirque will bring its celebrated production to Whakatū Nelson in October 2026, making it the only opportunity to see the show in the South Island and tickets will go on sale on 23 June.

Nelson Arts Festival is proud to announce this international event for 2026, supported by the New Zealand Government’s Event Boost Fund.

In this reckless, touching and comical show, five wacky characters find themselves alone in the world, trying to contact other survivors with the help of a strange machine. Along the way, they master a teeterboard, juggling clubs, a drum kit and even a bath towel, creating a 70-minute performance full of acrobatics, invention and broad comedy.

Part of a tour to Aotearoa in late 2026, with Nelson Arts Festival presenting the production at Trafalgar Centre in Nelson. It will be the only opportunity for South Island audiences to experience Machine de Cirque on Friday 30 and Saturday 31 October.

The Nelson Arts Festival is New Zealand’s longest running annual regional arts festival and will deliver its 32nd programme in 2026, from 22 October – 1 November. Over 11 days, the festival will celebrate dynamic multidisciplinary arts across Whakatū Nelson, showcasing premiere events from local creative forces alongside artistic works from around Aotearoa and international artists.

The programme will weave together bold placemaking experiences, a premium international showcase, and an electric mix of live music, comedy, theatre, storytelling, contemporary dance and celebratory cultural experiences.

Machine de Cirque sits at the centre of this ambition. The company is known for its inventive, deeply human circus works that combine impressive physical feats, live music, theatre, humour and poetry. Machine de Cirque has been performed more than 700 times across Europe, Asia and North America.

Alongside Machine de Cirque, the Nelson Arts Festival’s literary programme, Pukapuka Talks, will feature beloved New Zealand writer Witi Ihimaera and Sri Lankan writer Shehan Karunatilaka, winner of the 2022 Booker Prize.

Witi Ihimaera will appear in The Swimmer & The Whales at lunchtime on Friday 23 October, to talk about his three new books out this year: his memoir Te Kaikaukau | The Swimmer, about how he reclaimed his voice, history and whakapapa by studying te reo Māori; his highly anticipated new YA novel, The Star Path of the Whales: A Return to the Realm of The Whale Rider, which revisits the classic novel that became the classic film; and Ariā and the Monster Island, the third children’s book in the Astromancer series.

On the evening of Friday 23 October, Towards the Truth will feature Shehan Karunatilaka discussing his life and literary adventures since winning the 2022 Booker Prize for his astonishing novel, The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida. Set in the ‘In Between’, this supernatural murder mystery recounts photographer Maali Almeida’s attempts to navigate a bureaucratic, crowded afterlife to uncover the truth of his murder. While the story is a satire that examines power and bureaucracy in the past, it is also an invitation to explore personal and political questions equally relevant today.
 
Nelson Festivals Trust General Manager Ruth Roebuck says
"For more than three decades, our community has supported Nelson Arts Festival, and we are delighted to continue bringing opportunities of this calibre to audiences across Te Tauihu and beyond. From the internationally acclaimed spectacle of Machine de Cirque to conversations with some of the most significant literary voices of our time, including Booker Prize-winning author Shehan Karunatilaka and one of Aotearoa’s most influential writers, Witi Ihimaera, these events reflect the ambition, quality, depth and diversity of the 2026 programme, and our commitment to connecting Whakatū Nelson with exceptional artistic experiences from Aotearoa and around the world.

The support of the Government’s Events Boost Fund allows us to continue delivering programming of national and international significance while ensuring it remains accessible to local audiences. It also cements the festival’s role as a regional tourism attraction, generating wider benefits for Nelson’s creative culture, accommodation providers, hospitality businesses and retailers throughout the region."

Nelson Arts Festival will announce its full 2026 programme in August 2026.

Machine de Cirque | Dates: 30 and 31 October
Venue: Trafalgar Centre, Nelson
Tickets On Sale: 23 June 2026
More information: https://nelsonartsfestival.nz/support/events-boost-fund/

The Swimmer and the Whales | Date: 23 October
Venue: NCMA, Nelson
Duration: 60mins

Towards the Truth | Date: 23 October
Venue: NCMA, Nelson
Duration: 60mins