WOMAD Aotearoa is the fantastically successful Taranaki-based arm of the international festival that celebrates the world's many forms of music, arts and dance. And Josie Hunter-Annand has a 17 year history there, working in almost every role imaginable.
In her role as associate programme director, Josie spent months hunting out and curating a line-up for the the OMV Steam Lab, the festival's hub of science and fascinating innovations. This lead to an invitation for our production manager Maddi Brown and the delicious WOMAD x WCF collaboration chocolate bar.
We talked to Josie about the incredible success of the festival that takes place 14-16 March.
WOMAD has such a strong position in New Zealand, where other festivals might come and go, WOMAD is there every year. What is the secret to this success?
I think WOMAD Aotearoa is a festival that almost defies description, in the sense that it is so much more than a music festival, and I think that this might be its edge! Not only do the values and ethos behind the festival see us bringing amazing musical artists from all around the globe, those lesser-known places and faces being given the stage and the opportunity to absolutely ‘wow’ our audiences, it also has some really amazing programmes outside of the music, which allows for people to engage at the festival in multiple ways.
We have the OMV STEAM Lab, where science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics are given the stage, and some of our brightest minds, innovators, artists from all disciplines come and share their knowledge – this is where you will find Maddi and Matt from WCF doing their thing at the festival this year.
We also have the World of Words stage, where Aotearoa’s marvellous authors and poets are given the spotlight, and speak on a multitude of subjects as they discuss their works or slam their poetry in a relaxing and engaging festival setting. Then there is our Taste the World Stage, where our artists come together to cook and tell stories about their culture, their lives, and how food brings us together, and once again Maddi and Matt will be hitting the stage here to make a WOMAD One Pot Wonder Brownie, with the help of one of our local hospo gems, Kate Laude.
And I’m not finished yet, we also have our Te Paepae Stage, which is a workshop stage, where festival artists take the stage to teach the audience everything from how to play their instruments, to the moves to a traditional dance from their countries and more! And if that wasn’t enough, we also have Kidzone, an area that is all about our festival tamariki, which each year is programmed with performers and also offers workshops, where children can make and take away festival keepsakes, all at no additional charge!
I guess, to put it simply, WOMAD truly is a festival for everyone, with something on offer for most walks of life, from the young to the young at heart – and I think people feel at home there.
The WOMAD x WCF chocolate bar has the beautifully strong WOMAD imaging including the lion icon. What is the history and meaning behind the WOMAD lion?
The Lion is the King of the jungle, the image of a lion is often associated with strength and pride and the lion is also strongly connected to countries that we traditionally think of when thinking of ‘world’ music in a more traditional sense of the genre. The festival itself, has been a vital gateway for new music and different cultures to be recognised and celebrated in the mainstream, breaking down barriers, melting borders and bringing people together. The festival is a place for all cultures to come together, to stand strong and to take the stage, perhaps you could say, with the pride and the strength of a lion. To be perfectly honest, however, I’m not 100 percent sure on the thinking that artist/singer Peter Gabriel had when he started the festival 43 years ago, and came up with the lion as the mascot, but at a guess, I would think it was along these lines…
The collaboration bar is dairy-free with coconut milk base with banana, coconut & cardamom and ethically sourced Pacific chocolate. How did you develop the flavour profile alongside WCF?
To us, it felt like WCF are a company that have matching ethos’s around sustainability, coupled with a fun and creative edge we could relate to, and we were so excited to have this opportunity to collab! After a couple of Teams meets to discuss what the festival is about and what we were thinking re flavours etc, chocolatier and WCF’s wizard of flavours herself, Maddi, came out to us with a bunch of flavour combos to consider – and they were all so delicious sounding – but one stood out to us and we could not move past it and that was Banana, Coconut and Cardamom – made with ethically sourced pacific chocolate and coconut milk!
This seemed to perfectly capture the vibrancy and fun of the festival, as well as being inclusive (dairy free, nut free)! You have the base of the bright tropical banana, found worldwide, and also a firm family fave, perfect for a family friendly festival; you have the toasted coconut, which takes you to sunny distant and not so distant shores, such as those of our Pacific neighbours (and home to the chocolate itself) and this adds a delectable crunch and element of surprise also, which the festival is also renowned for….and then there is my favourite element, the cardamom…this is the beautiful, exotic, warming spice that brings it all together, like a warm exotic hug…and I think you kind of leave the festival each year, feeling like that is exactly what the festival gives you!
Lastly, what three events are you most looking forward to seeing at WOMAD this year?
Ooooh….there is too much I am looking forward to, to narrow it down to just three… But I would say musically, Delgres, Queen Omega, Roisin Murphy, The Veils and Who Shot Scott, and then, I always look forward to all of the workshops as they are such cool sessions – and of course this includes the WCF sessions – which are bound to be popular – I mean, who doesn’t love chocolate?!
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WOMAD Aotearoa | 14-16 March 2025
womad.co.nz
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Each WOMAD X WCF collaboration chocolate bar gives you TWO chances to WIN 3-day festival passes + camping! One winner will be heading to WOMAD Aotearoa 2025, and another will score their spot at the festival in 2026. Simply buy a bar and scan the code inside the wrapper to enter!
