Youth Calendar
What's happening in Central Otago
Play It Strange Junior Songwriting Competition 2026 (Online)
Dates: Sun, 1 February 2026 - Sun, 3 May 2026
For Year 9-11 students, this competition encourages young songwriters to explore their identity through the connections and experiences that shape who they are, regardless of genre, language, or style.
This year's competition will be judged by a panel of judges. The recording quality of the entry is not taken into account in the judging process.
1st place wins:
1:1 mentor session with a competition judge
Performance at our Annual Awards
Artist Development session with Sacha Vee
ALL finalists will have their song recorded in a professional recording studio (one day up to the value of $850+GST) to go on one of the 2026 Junior Songwriting Competition digital albums.
Location
February 2026
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
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Central Stories Museum and Art Gallery - Welkam Long Vanuatu.Sun, 1 February 2026 - Sat, 28 February 2026 @ 10am - 4pm Daily Central Stories Museum and Art Gallery - Floral Portraits by Rod Eales.Sun, 1 February 2026 - Tue, 31 March 2026 @ 10am - 4pm Daily Call for Entries: Rod Oram Memorial Essay Prize 2026 (Online)Sun, 1 February 2026 - Fri, 27 March 2026 Landfall Tauraka Young Writers’ Essay Prize 2026 (Online)Sun, 1 February 2026 - Tue, 31 March 2026 Play It Strange Junior Songwriting Competition 2026 (Online)Sun, 1 February 2026 - Sun, 3 May 2026 Play It Strange Waiata MÄori Competition 2026 (Online)Sun, 1 February 2026 - Sun, 21 June 2026 Play It Strange Strange Album Art Competition 2026 (Online)Sun, 1 February 2026 - Mon, 3 August 2026 Play It Strange National Songwriting Competition 2026 (Online)Sun, 1 February 2026 - Sun, 26 July 2026 Tickets on sale now, showing in May: The Big Bike Film Night NZ 2026 (Alexandra)8th, 12th, 15th & 22nd May Sun, 1 February 2026 - Fri, 22 May 2026 @ 7:30pm | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
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