The Festival Playground ran for the duration of the festival and was visited by 60,000 people with ticketed and free music concerts, visual arts, and a food and drinks pavilion. AAF 2019 took place 7-24 March and included the return of the Spiegeltent to Aotea Square with sizzling cabaret show Blanc de Blanc. The 2019 Festival saw the introduction of a new programme strand - Toitū te Reo. Translating as holding fast to our language, this signalled AAF's desire to champion te reo Māori through the platform of the arts with a goal that te reo Māori be seen, heard and felt every day of the Festival. The Festival opened with Tira, a free concert in Aotea Square attended by approx. 2000 people and live-streamed on AAF's website and Facebook page reaching a further 6000 people. The concert saw people sing iconic waiata together in te reo Māori. Other features of the 2019 Festival included Komische Oper Berlin and 1927's innovative production of The Magic Flute, a new dance work from Muscle Mouth, As It Stands, gripping theatre Ulster American, physical theatre The Dreamer, world-famous Silkroad Ensemble, and a contemporary music programme including Death Cab for Cutie, Four Tet, Beach house, Rhye and Neko Case. Halfway through the 2019 Festival, 51 people were killed in the Christchurch mosque shootings. As a result, Whānau Day was cancelled. AAF 2020 was scheduled to take place 11-29 March, however was seriously impacted by the COVID-19 (coronavirus) global pandemic. In late February air cargo issues as a result of cancellation of flights resulted in the cancellation of the major outdoor event Place Des Anges. The Festival opened as planned on Wednesday 11 March with TIRA in Aotea Square featuring Hollie Smith, Hātea Kapa Haka and the six Auckland Everybody Sings choirs and was attended by 2000 people, and reaching a further 7000 people online. From Saturday 14 March, the New Zealand Government imposed border controls and limits on mass gatherings which saw the cancellation of a number of shows. On Thursday 18 March further restrictions limiting indoor gatherings to 100 people resulted in the cancellation of the rest of the Festival. New Zealand entered full lockdown on Thursday 25 March. Highlights of the eight days of the Festival which took place 11-17 March included: Ballet Preljocaj's Snow White, the trans-Tasman rom-com BLACK TIES from ILBIJERRI Theatre Company and Te Rēhia Theatre Company, the mind-blowing Cold Blood, Los Angeles Master Chorale's profoundly moving performance of Lagrime di San Pietro, circus-cabaret Limbo Unhinged, Silo Theatre's UPU, and the world premiere of Ka Pō, Ka Waiata: Songs in Darkness.