Fresh off a completely sold-out 2025 New Zealand tour, Avalanche City returns with a renewed creative spark and a live show that highlights the heart of Dave Baxter’s songwriting. Since breaking through with the global hit Love Love Love, followed by another #1 hit Inside Out, Baxter has become known for his warm, cinematic indie-folk.

His performances are intimate, engaging, and full of the storytelling that has earned Avalanche City a devoted following.

Joining the tour is Mountain Boy, an NZ Folk-Rock artist who has made waves internationally with their EP From The Dust and self-produced debut album The Days. Mountain Boy has toured with The Paper Kites, Ziggy Alberts and Boy & Bear and sold out headline shows locally. If you were lucky enough to attend a show in the Avalanche City 2025 sold out NZ tour, you may have caught a glimpse of his multi-instrumental genius, on this tour he will be returning with a full set.

Audiences can expect a powerful blend of fan favourites and new material, an evening shaped by honesty, connection, and the unmistakable charm of Avalanche City + Mountain Boy.

Find out more and secure tickets here.

Join us for an evening of celebration and recognition at the 2026 Napier Port Hawke’s Bay Primary Sector Awards Dinner, honouring the people, businesses, and leaders who make an outstanding contribution to Hawke’s Bay’s food and fibre sector.

The Primary Sector Awards celebrate excellence, innovation, leadership, and growth across rural Hawke’s Bay, recognising those shaping the future of our primary industries.

The Awards Dinner brings together finalists, sponsors, industry leaders, and supporters for a professionally delivered evening of awards, dining, and connection.

Date: Thursday 2 April 2026
Venue: Toitoi - Hawke's Bay Arts & Events Centre, Hastings

Event timings:
5.15pm - Networking
6.00pm - Formalities commence

Dress: Smart business attire

Your ticket includes drinks on arrival, drinks served throughout the evening, wine to table, and a three-course dinner designed and delivered by Dish Catering.

Tickets are limited and subject to venue capacity.

We look forward to welcoming you for an evening celebrating the strength, success, and future of Hawke’s Bay’s primary sector.

Event Image Credit: https://blog.steelandtube.co.nz/heb-construct-napier-ports-6-wharf

‘A story about the goddess and the dark side of the moon.
A young girl is watching the moon landings on repeat, entranced by those astronaut’s weightlessness.
A bunch of teenagers are swimming under a lunar eclipse, lost in what might happen next.
A mis-matched couple are watching a horror film at a drive in cinema, about to step into all the next stuff.

SELENE is a radical explosion of an ancient myth.
It’s about how we grow up defined by our bodies. It’s about the light sides of us and the dark sides of us.
And it’s about the stuff inside us. All the wild stuff inside of us.

A new sibling show to the hugely acclaimed HELIOS, the UK’s “masters of storytelling (ThreeWeeks) Wright&Grainger return to Aotearoa with SELENE – an intimate theatre experience with cinematic score and striking storytelling. Told by and made with Megan Drury.

The performance will be in the Opera House stage, with audience in the round.

Presented by Wright&Grainger with Theatre@41 Monkgate. NZ tour produced by A Mulled Whine Productions.

Find out more here.

Saturday 18 April see’s the return of Whānau Day at Toitoi for Lift Off Festival! Based in the Municipal Buildings section of Toitoi,

Enter a completely transformed Toitoi where exploration, discovery, and creativity overflow!

Whānau day has everything that will ignite little imaginations, with theatre shows, interactive backstage tours, roaming characters, immersive experiences, playmaking spaces, storytelling, and even a Club Kids with a DJ! Find a surprise around every corner, have a go at something new, and get your free Creativity Passport stamped!

Most activities are free to just pop in and have a go, with only a handful of events you’ll need to book and pay for.

TICKETED EVENTS
The Ice Cream is Melting, 10.30am & 2.30pm (50mins), $25 per person, Opera House
Siblings Bonnie and Nikau have been promised a special treat, ice creams! But it’s a hot day and on the way home the ice creams begin to melt...
Their journey home becomes an epic adventure that transforms important issues around environmental change into a double scoop of delight. Sprinkled with aerial acrobatics, contortion, ice cream juggling and more, the siblings work their way through environmental issues to get the ice cream safely home for the whānau.
Children and families delight in this silly, fun and sweet story told through the wonders of circus. Book Now

FREE EVENTS
Little Wonders, 12pm – 2pm, starting every 10 minutes Opera House Old Foyer
Little Wonders is a progressive theatre experience that transforms usually unseen parts of the Opera House into playful, living performance spaces. Witness the auditorium, backstage, scene dock, alley way and hidden nooks and crannies become the stage for vibrant performances, secret installations, pop-up poetry, and unexpected encounters. Tours last are 30mins. Limited spaces for each session. Bookings essential. No cost

The Re-cycled Rainforest 10am – 3pm, Cushing Foyer
Step into a world where imagination grows wild! Recycled Rainforest invites children to help build a vibrant rainforest using everyday recycled materials. From cardboard tree trunks and bottle cap beetles to paper bag birds and fabric scrap vines, tamariki will work together to create a living, colourful ecosystem, crafted entirely from items that might otherwise end up in the bin.

Along the way, kids will explore themes of sustainability, teamwork and creativity, learning how small actions can make a big difference for our planet. Guided by friendly facilitators, they’ll build, paint, invent creatures, and watch their rainforest transform as everyone adds their own creations.

Perfect for curious hands and imaginative minds, Recycled Rainforest is an unforgettable, eco-friendly arts adventure where creativity takes root and the jungle comes to life, one recycled treasure at a time.

Creation Station
Join our artists in residence to design, create, and make cool stuff! It’s all about You! Create your own magazine cover, learn how to make a poetry collage, develop your own costumes and participate in other fun interactive activities.

Storyfort, 10am - 2pm, every half hour, 2nd floor Opera House foyer
Join us in the all-kids-designed story-fort. We will have an array of local multi-language storytellers, from vibrant artists to champion bookreaders, ready to share stories, legends, fairy tales, and yarns from around the world. An inclusive and welcoming space that celebrates our diverse voices and cultures throughout Aotearoa.

Sound Lab, 11am – 1.30pm, Laneway
Step into the Sound Lab and let tamariki become instant composers! Using a special electronic drum pad to create beautiful melodies with no experience needed, all supported by a live ambient soundtrack that makes every note fit perfectly. Playful and empowering, it’s a chance for kids to explore sound, build confidence, and discover the music inside them.

Creative Play with Loose Enz, 10am – 3pm, Tama Tūranga Huata room
We let kids go loose with a playground of loose parts and junk play resources, letting their imaginations soar as they build and create a world of their own.

Find out more here.

The #1 Ladies Night Out, Breaking Records Worldwide Magic Men Australia is taking over the world, breaking attendance records across Australia, New Zealand, Europe, U.S South America and Canada, including over 6,500 screaming ladies at a single Ladies Night.

This is global entertainment at its peak. And for the first time, the show presents TikTok and world-famous Instagram superstar Will Parfitt, with a combined following of over 20 million.

He’s one of the most recognised male entertainers on social media… and he’s live on stage.

Get ready for a night you’ll never forget.
Magic Men delivers Australia’s most talented performers, high-energy choreography, jaw-dropping acrobatics, and cheeky crowd interaction, all packaged into a world-class touring production.

This isn’t just a show. It’s an experience. Expect:
• Record-breaking performances across the globe
• Featuring Will Parfitt (20M+ followers)
• World-class dance routines
• High-energy group numbers + unforgettable solos
• Charisma, comedy & crowd interaction
• A safe, inclusive, feel-good atmosphere
• VIP meet & greet + photo opportunities

Whether it’s a hen's night, birthday, girls’ night, or a chance to escape reality, Magic Men delivers a night that’s classy, powerful, and completely unforgettable.
Magic Men Australia
Where entertainment meets energy and where records keep getting broken.

Find out more here.