Gilberto Gil to perform at WOMADelaide 2024

The iconic annual festival - World of Music, Arts, and Dance - will feature artists from 25 countries.

Among the performers is Brazilian music legend Gilberto Gil, aged 81, who has recorded more than 60 albums over as many years. A player of guitar, electric guitar, hurdy-gurdy and vibraphone, he was a pioneer of the Tropicalia movement of the 1960s - a Brazilian artistic music blending popular and avant-garde genres, plus Brazilian and foreign traditions and styles.

South Africa's Handspring Puppet Company, best known for their giant creations War Horse and Little Amal, will work with Adelaide's Slingsby Theatre Company to present the Celebration Parade. A family of life-sized elephant puppets will explore the park and interact with audiences in magical moments of discovery for everyone. Their WOMADelaide home each day will be within KidZone, the heart of the festival for children under 12, where young puppet-makers can hone their skills.

While the festival will have a plethora of taste-tempting food stalls, audiences can dine in comfort at The Taste the World Restaurant @ Sanctuary. A haven where festival-goers can enjoy a tranquil, fine dining experience with views over Adelaide Zoo and the park, the menu for 2024 is inspired by Peru's vibrant ingredients and innovative cooking techniques, showcasing South American asado and spiced meats, paired with the vibrant tastes of the West Indies and the Caribbean.

Part of a redesign of the festival layout will be a new precinct along Plane Tree Drive; the WoMarkets. This shaded hub of more than 40 retail stalls, in the tradition of a marketplace where different cultures share their wares, will be within a breathtaking 160m-long sculptural structure which has been specially commissioned from Tetrik, Australia's specialists in future-focused tensile fabric structures.

WOMAD is on from March 8-11 at Botanic Bark, North Terrace, Adelaide. Tickets www.womadelaide.com.au