Mayor of Cairns' Regional Council, Val Schier has unveiled this year’s exciting Cairns Festival program which will take place from Friday 20 August to Sunday 5 September.

The season comprises more than 50 free and ticketed events spanning indigenous arts, culture, entertainment, food and a good dose of comedy.

"There is no place in the world like Cairns," remarked Mayor Schier, "and we are working hard to make a Festival that is unlike any other on the planet."

Hailed as an unprecedented success in its first year, Cairns Indigenous Art Fair at Tanks Arts Centre and Cairns Regional Gallery returns in 2010 as a key event of the Festival’s opening weekend and is joined by multi-cultural celebrations, Tropical Wave Festival and the UMI Arts Big Talk One Fire events at the Esplanade.

Esplanart 2010, another one of last year’s inaugural successes is back with 10 new commissions by local visual artists. This series of temporary art installations will be situated along the southern part of Cairns Esplanade. The outdoor art is joined by nearly ten exhibitions and visual art programs at Festival participants, KickArts and Cairns Regional Gallery.

The first weekend of Cairns Festival will also herald the start of a new cultural representation project, Opening Notes TNQ. Driven by Cairns Regional Council and local sponsor Cairns Penny Savings Bank, Opening Notes TNQ will welcome every baby born in the region -- 4,000 each year -- with a musical CD and booklet of north Queensland creative content. A partnership with dozens of local musicians, artists, and Queensland Health, this project also indicates a new community engagement ethic for the Festival.

Music has a strong presence this year with performances by Australia’s much loved brother and sister folk duo, Angus and Julia Stone. Indigenous East Timorese artist, Ego Lemos will perform at the Tanks Art Centre while the world-renowned Australian concert pianist, David Helfgott, whose life inspired the Oscar-winning film Shine, will offer a recital at Cairns Civic Theatre.

The Civic Theatre will also present quality entertainment and family fun in the form of The Carnival of the Animals performed by local classical musicians, Paradise Concerts in partnership with Cairns Concert Orchestra and will feature internationally acclaimed soloists. The classical concert extravaganza will be narrated by Lillian Crombie, actress from epic film Australia.

Dance fans can enjoy a wide range of genres from The Nutcracker performed by the Imperial Russian Ballet to Torres Strait Island dance group, Grrilla Step fronted by legendary Australian, DJ Dexter, to Stomp the Nard, the regions’ largest and most energetic dance battle showcasing at the Cairns Esplanade skate park and The Pier parking lot.

Performing arts are strongly represented in Cairns Festival’s program with The Impossible Dream celebrating its launch at the Shangri-La Hotel. The first in a series of three locally produced plays, When the wheels Fall off the World will be performed at the Botanic Gardens and a beautiful song cycle by nationally acclaimed Indigenous singer Megan Sarmardin, who focuses on the strengths of family in overcoming extreme odds, Blackbird, will debut at JUTE Theatre.

The full program, along with information about events and activities, will be available in late July. For more information, visit the Cairnsfest website.