Seductive cabaret meets First Nations storytelling in a mesh of creativity at this year's Sydney festival.
Until January 28, the festival will deliver live music, theatre shows and art installations to more than 50 venues across the city, from Parramatta to Bondi Beach.
Running since 1977, the event is being spruiked as an excuse for a city that works hard to "down tools" and enjoy the summer.
The festival officially kicked off on Friday with harbourside performances by a traditional Māori choir followed by femme cabaret group, Smashed: The Nightcap.
The cabaret group will headline Sydney's new after-hours precinct and festival hub, The Thirsty Mile, which snakes its way around Walsh Bay Arts Precinct featuring a pop-up speakeasy and other attractions.
One of the festival's installations is a 15-metre inflatable octopus which presides over a patch of harbour at Barrangaroo.
The artwork is based on the Māori myth of Te Wheke; a giant octopus said to have led Polynesian navigator Kupe across the water to discover Aotearoa New Zealand.
The work's creator, Auckland-based artist Lisa Reihana, said as well as drawing people to the harbourside, she wants Te Wheke to tell the lesser known story of our region.
"We often talk about Captain Cook; he's written in the history books as the discoverer of Australia and New Zealand," she said.
"In actual fact he came later.
"He was a great navigator as well I have to say, but this is just trying to bring forth those other pre-histories to people's attention."
Chief executive of government agency, Create NSW, Annette Pitman said Sydney Festival makes January the best time to live in or visit the Harbour City.
"For a city that works hard, Sydney Festival marks a moment when Sydney downs tools and celebrates," she said.
Core funding for the festival is provided by the NSW government and City of Sydney, however, the larger portion of income comes from ticket sales, catering and private sponsorship.
This year's festival boasts over 130 events including 25 world premieres, 45 international acts, 29 Australian exclusives and 43 free events.
Sydney Festival director Olivia Ansell said one of the event's aims is to continue a meaningful pathway to reconciliation, as well as an exhilarating summer of art.
"Saltwater stories, freshwater stories, tales of Sydney Harbour," she said.
"The weaving of over 1000 local and international artists and their voices who represent a diverse range of intercultural and intergenerational stories."
Last year, event organisers were forced to cancel a planned three-day music event intended as part of the festival, citing cost pressures and "changing consumer behaviours".
The Summerground Festival was announced as a mid-city music event to run over three days at Tumbalong Park and feature acts, Cimafunk (billed as the James Brown of Cuba), as well as Tanzanian-Australian singer-songwriter Beckah Amani.
