How NZ's World Buskers Fest makes struggling performers feel like 'rockstars'

Ōtautahi has been the home of a stellar street showcase for 33 years in a row, but the co-director of this year's World Buskers Festival says this one will be one to remember.

“It was a pioneering festival among street performers, and it still has that iconic status across the world,” explained Pitsch Leiser. 

“For a lot of international buskers, Christchurch is on the bucket list.”

He told rova when he travels to Europe to scout talent for future festivals and mentions the event by name, they become almost star-struck.

One of the lead acts for the festival, Clarke McFarlane, can attest to this.

Performing under the stage name Mario, Queen of the Circus and travelling with the cast of Cirque Bon Bon, McFarlane was one of the buskers determined to get to Ōtautahi.

“I was always performing as a kid… That became acting and doing plays, and I never really thought of it when I went to university,” he recalls.

“That’s when I heard about street performing in Europe, so I went over there and met a whole community of buskers.”

After ping-ponging around music festivals and wine nights, McFarlane found himself in Ōtautahi in 2003. Immediately, he knew it was different from any other place he performed at.

“We arrived at the airport, and the people checking our passports were like ‘Oh! You’re here for the buskers! Great!’ Like, they knew about it, and it felt like such an integral part of Christchurch culture.”

He said the warm welcome made him feel like a “rockstar”, encouraging him to come back another six times. 2026 marks his seventh time at the World Buskers Festival, where he will perform - in great detail - the origin of his busking persona.

But street performing is not all about swallowing swords and juggling fire, for many it’s a passion that struggles to pay the bills.

Danny Syme, owner of Altora, a popular location for the festival, said he saw this firsthand in his community.

“They get up in the morning, and they’re like, 'right I’m going out to busk today'. They get their gear together, and they spend the whole day preparing and just hope when they get to the street today that there’s going to be generous people, which isn’t always the case,” he explained.

He added that places like Ōtautahi don’t usually attract longtime buskers. Instead, they travel to more touristy locations around the motu, where people are less likely to get quickly bored with their performances.

However, even hunkering down in a tourism paradise has its downsides: “Tourists who have saved money and come over, and they do have an extra $50 American bill. But then of course you have to go over and change the currencies, which runs the risk of adding extra costs.” 

At its core, it’s the community and love of the art that allows people like Syme, Leiser and McFarlane to keep coming back to the art of busking.

“We’re all in this together. And when people do support us, we’re just elated because we work so hard to create this thing that’s going to lighten your life and entertain you - or just make the whole sh*tty situation we’re in a little better,” laughed Syme.

The World Buskers Festival is currently underway in Christchurch until Feb 1st. Over a hundred internationally renowned performers will take to the streets for 240 free street performances and 25 ticketed shows.