Price: $18-$83

For 90 unforgettable minutes, Festival audiences left reality behind and were immersed in a place of dreams, imagination and giant puppets as James Thiérrée unleashed his stunning array of skills. Read on

Price: $18-$48

Following two hugely successful UK tours and sell-out runs in London’s West End, this riveting adaptation of Michael Morpurgo’s award-winning book came to the Festival. Read on

Price: $10-$18

New Zealand fiction writers Paula Morris and Linda Olsson launched their careers with stunning first novels and have continued to create emotional and engrossing work. Read on

Price: $10-$18

Three inspirational women joined forces to examine past, current and future social and political women’s issues. Read on

Price: $10-$18

Ken Duncum led a discussion with playwrights and screenwriters Dave Armstrong and Robert Shearman as they explored how theatre survives in an age of downloads, DVDs, YouTube and TV on demand. Read on

Price: $10-$18

Michael Corballis is Professor Emeritus of psychology at The University of Auckland and has an outstanding ability to transform complex scientific theories into plain English. Read on

Price: $10-$18

Harry Ricketts is a poet, academic, editor and reviewer who studied English at Oxford University and lived in Asia before moving to New Zealand. Read on

Price: $10-$18

Scottish crime writer Denise Mina, Doctor Who screenwriter Robert Shearman and American slipstream fantasy writer Kelly Link gathered to explore the world of comics, fantasy and popular culture. Read on

Price: $53-$65

The circus got a titillating twist as Cantina’s creatures of the night came out to play. Read on

Price: $48-$55

Described as one of the world’s top ukulele composers and arguably the best player on the planet, James Hill’s unusual techniques, humour and creativity have seen him build a global base of fans. Read on

Price: $43-$50

Playwright Gary Henderson takes a touching, bittersweet look at life in the 1960s in this beautifully crafted play, directed by Jane Waddell. Read on

Price: $38-$78

Festival audiences were invited to step inside the vintage big top on Wellington’s waterfront and enter a world of enchantment and intrigue with Circus Ronaldo. Read on

Price: $48-$58

The laws of gravity are made to be broken in this brilliantly mind-boggling piece of theatre. Read on

Price: $38-$68

Kiwi eyes and ears were smiling as famed Irish accordionist Sharon Shannon’s infectious tunes and seven-piece big band lit up the Town Hall. Read on

Price: $15-$26

Maisey Rika brings her eclectic songs and honey-stung vocals to Otaki and Upper Hutt. Read on

Price: $40-$48

With intricate, almost imperceptible flicks of his fingers, santoor maestro Shivkumar Sharma created music that was nothing short of magic. Read on

Price: $28-$33

Three-time Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, columnist and author Thomas Friedman concluded Writers and Readers Week with a keynote address examining the current state of America. Read on

Price: $65

Minds were engaged and taste buds indulged as Selina Hastings presented Nancy Mitford and Evelyn Waugh: A Literary Correspondence Course based on the brilliantly funny letters they exchanged. Read on

Price: FREE

In Mark Harvey's Productive Bodies, a group of people with experience of redundancy and unemployment are brought together as a community to explore and perform ideas of usefulness and productivity. Read on