Experience Newcastle’s Enchanted City - magic, mystery and cosmic skies
More exciting details have been announced about what visitors to Newcastle’s Enchanted City can expect this December.
Enchanted City is the city’s new after-dark arts experience, and the next addition to Newcastle’s ever-expanding festive offer. The family friendly event takes place on Northumbria University’s City Campus, just a short walk from Newcastle’s Christmas Market and Fenwick’s famous window display, so perfect way to spend a festive evening with family and friends.
Enchanted City’s theme for 2025 takes its inspiration from the night-skies, with a series of awe-inspiring creative installations including large-scale immersive projection, fire, performance, sculpture, puppetry and more.
As darkness falls, Newcastle City Centre will come alive with extraordinary light, sound, and storytelling. The Enchanted City programme has lots in store for ticketholders including:
A new large-scale projection, created by Internationally acclaimed and award-winning Newcastle studio NOVAK — known for their immersive media and large-scale projection works, including at Durham’s Lumiere. The stunning projection onto the façade of the Ellison Building, SIGNAL, is a new collaboration with local composer, Ed Carter. This artwork takes real radio transmissions from deep space and transforms them into an ever-shifting landscape of light and sound.
Within the atmospheric surroundings of St James’ United Reformed Church, Ascendance by internationally renowned, multi-award-winning artists, Studio McGuire, invites audiences into a dreamlike holographic vision: a life-sized astronaut floating through a surreal cosmos of flowers, butterflies, and shifting hallucinations, accompanied by a beautiful soundtrack.
Created exclusively for Enchanted City by Newcastle’s acclaimed Moving Parts Arts, Starmongers promises a truly cosmic spectacle. Step into a celestial encounter with two towering, illuminated puppets — otherworldly explorers inspired by 18th-century astronomers. These wanderers will drift through the event site, scattering light and inviting audiences to beam their own messages into the stars.
Gaze upward as Terra Nova, a mesmerising suspended globe sculpture, turns slowly on a clockwork constellation of gears and cogs. Its rotation casts swirling shadows across surrounding surfaces and giant weather balloons that double as projection screens. Paired with a specially composed soundscape and developed through community workshops, this captivating installation is the work of Bethan Maddocks who graduated from Northumbria University’s Fine Art degree 20 years ago.
Created by Newcastle’s Unfolding Theatre, Clear the Way invites audience into an immersive Emotional Baggage Drop Off as they arrive to the event, inviting everyone to let go, look up, and reconnect. Step into a glowing field of lights, where suspended luggage-tag constellations transform the space into a shimmering blend of planetarium and dreamscape. At its centre, three welcoming performer-hosts help guide visitors through this playful, reflective, and uplifting experience.
To round off Enchanted City experience, ticket holders can enjoy free, hands-on creative workshops led by local artists; this is an opportunity to get hands-on, make something and take it home as a memento! Visitors can also pop into Greencroft Arts’ Moon Booth and take a charming keepsake vintage photo of themselves “on the moon”. And in Northumberland University’s Quad, delicious food and drinks under the stars awaits.
And there’s so much more to be announced!
Cllr Abdul Samad, Cabinet member for Culture, Music and Arts at Newcastle City Council said: “Enchanted City is a new, city-centre experience that we’re proudly launching this December and has been designed to enhance Newcastle’s ever-popular festive offer.
“It is also an exciting addition to the city’s growing cultural programme, offering local people and visitors to the city easy access to arts and culture and giving local artists the opportunity to have their works seen and enjoyed by a wider audience. By attracting both local and regional visitors, Enchanted City will also contribute to the city’s winter economy by increasing footfall and encouraging visitors into Newcastle.
“I’m sure this annual event will become a firm favourite for families, accessible, both in terms of location and cost, and something people can look forward to every year.”
Annie Rigby, founder and Artistic Director of Unfolding Theatre said: "We're really excited to be a part of Newcastle's first-ever Enchanted City! The whole event promises to be an awe-inspiring, surreal and magical spectacle - a fantastic way to kick-start family festive celebrations this year".
Elliot Thomson - Creative Director | NOVAK added: “We’re thrilled to be part of the inaugural Enchanted City and to unveil SIGNAL, a new collaboration with composer Ed Carter. SIGNAL invites audiences to imagine what these deep space transmissions might mean, where they originate, and how we interpret the unknown; we can’t wait for visitors to experience it.”
Enchanted City is delivered by Newcastle City Council, and funded by Newcastle City Council and North East Combined Authority (North East CA).
Enchanted City: From City Streets To Cosmic Skies, which will take place each evening from 4.30pm, Thursday 11th to Sunday 14th December 2025 on Northumbria University’s City Campus. A relaxed sessions is also available at 4pm on Friday 12th December for those looking for a quieter experience. Tickets are available now at www.enchanted-city.co.uk.
