Brisbane Festival
Brisbane Festival — South Bank’s spring arts season
Brisbane Festival is the major Brisbane arts festival, running for three weeks each September across the South Bank Cultural Centre precinct, the QPAC venues, the Brisbane Powerhouse, and a substantial public-realm component along the river. The festival was founded in 1996 as a biennial event, switched to an annual programme in 2009, and has run continuously since (with the exception of a curtailed 2020 edition during the COVID-19 lockdowns). The festival’s signature closing event is Riverfire — the Brisbane River fireworks finale that draws audiences in the hundreds of thousands to the river banks.
What it’s known for
Brisbane Festival’s identity sits in the intersection of accessible mainstage programming (closer in spirit to Sydney Festival than to Adelaide Festival’s curatorial ambition), substantial commitment to Queensland-based artists and companies, the Riverfire closing event, and a strong contemporary music and contemporary circus programme. The festival has a particular reputation for circus and physical theatre — Brisbane is the headquarters of Circa and the festival programmes substantial contemporary circus each year, often as part of an international circus season.
The festival’s South Bank precinct location is one of its principal advantages — the Cultural Centre, QPAC, the Queensland Art Gallery, the Gallery of Modern Art, the State Library, the Brisbane Powerhouse (a short ferry ride away), and the river itself sit within a single walkable arts district. The September timing aligns with the most pleasant weather of the Brisbane year and the lead-up to the Brisbane Festival of arts catalysts the spring season for the city’s tourism programme.
The programme pattern
A typical Brisbane Festival programme runs approximately twenty-five ticketed mainstage productions across QPAC and the Brisbane Powerhouse, an extensive contemporary music programme split between dedicated festival venues and existing Brisbane venues, the public-realm programming along the South Bank parkland and the Brisbane River, the Riverfire closing event, and a substantial First Nations programme. The mainstage selection typically includes one major international touring theatre or dance production, two or three contemporary circus or physical theatre productions, the Brisbane Festival’s own commissions (often pairing a local Queensland company with an international collaborator), and a substantial contemporary music headline programme.
Key venues
- QPAC — Concert Hall, Lyric Theatre, Playhouse, Cremorne Theatre, and the new Studio venue.
- Brisbane Powerhouse — New Farm. The contemporary venue across the river, used for the festival’s contemporary theatre, dance and music programming.
- South Bank Parklands — used for the public-realm programming.
- Riverstage — the open-air amphitheatre in the City Botanic Gardens.
- The Tivoli — Brisbane’s principal contemporary music venue, used for the festival’s contemporary music headline acts.
- Brisbane River bank — site of the Riverfire closing event.
How to plan a trip
Brisbane Festival’s programme launches in May each year. Subscriptions and packages open immediately; single tickets follow in mid-June. The Riverfire closing event is free and doesn’t require booking, but the prime viewing positions on the South Bank parkland fill from mid-afternoon on the day. The contemporary music headline programme tends to sell out early; mainstage productions have better availability into the run.
If you’re flying to Brisbane for the festival, the Brisbane September is the most pleasant weather of the year — warm without humidity, reliable. Accommodation in Brisbane’s South Bank precinct is the optimal location for festival visitors — most major venues are within five minutes’ walk. Pair the festival with the Queensland Art Gallery and GOMA exhibitions (running concurrently), the Brisbane Powerhouse contemporary music programme, and the substantial Brisbane food scene that has developed in the last decade.
Recent highlights
The annual Riverfire fireworks closer. The Circa international circus collaborations. The 2023 Australian premiere of the Carmen contemporary touring production. The 2024 Brisbane Powerhouse contemporary music programme. The 2025 First Nations programming with Marrugeku and other Queensland-based First Nations companies.
Useful links
- Official: brisbanefestival.com.au
- Where we cover the festival: Festivals
- Hub venue: QPAC