The Best Of Brisbane Festival Events For 2024
Brisbane Festival 2024 returns this year with a bumper programme of events and we’re ever so ready for it! Celebrating the lifestyle, persona and energy of our river city, this highly anticipated event brings an enormous calendar of performance, art and cultural events back to our doorsteps.
What you might not know, is that Brisbane Festival emerged from the Warana Festival, which saw its inaugural year in 1961 with beauty pageants, a drama festival and various other culture and entertainment events on the calendar.
Fast-forward to 1996, and we have the beginnings of what we now know as the Brisbane Festival. From light shows, and renowned artist performances to incredible installations to immerse yourself in, this is the best time of year to explore the growing pace of Brisbane’s arts and cultural scene.
This year, you’ll find free creative workshops beginning as early as July, a myriad of immersive and theatrical performances, Blak excellence from our First Nations folk as well as some friendly free and affordable events.
With South Brisbane and the CBD seeing most of the action for the river city’s annual festival, we invite you to scroll through our guide to the best events happening across the month.
Lightscape
Invite a sense of wonder into your life this month with the arrival of Lightscape, a two-kilometre, self-guided trail. You’ll wander under glowing tree canopies filled with colour and through sparkling tunnels of light as you follow the path. Pore over neon roots bursting from the undergrowth of the Brisbane Botanic Gardens, as this immersive installation is brought to life in a warm-up for the Brisbane Festival.
With sessions running every 15 minutes, we recommend allowing yourself a leisurely 90 minutes to stroll through the experience, so you’ll have plenty of time to be mesmerised… and to get your Instagram moments, of course.
From $24 per person
Thursday 29 August to Thursday 12 October, 5.45pm until late
Brisbane Botanic Gardens, Brisbane City
Riverfire by Australian Retirement Trust
Brisbane Festival wouldn’t be complete without the annual Riverfire headliner event, but this year we see it mark the opening of the Festival, rather than act as a finale.
This fireworks extravaganza can be enjoyed from multiple viewpoints around the city, but if you score a front-row spot along the Brisbane River, you’ll get to experience an integrated large-scale First Nations-led visual performance that celebrates the beauty, creativity and wisdom of Australia’s Indigenous culture.
Riverfire gets bigger and better every year, so make 2024 your moment to enjoy the awe-inspiring display of light and colour.
Free admission
Saturday 31 August, Entertainment from 4pm, fireworks from 7pm
Brisbane River and surrounds
Jean Paul Gaultier’s Fashion Freak Show
Possibly the most Julia event of the Brisbane Festival is Jean Paul Gaultier’s Fashion Freak Show, a vibrant explosion of fashion, expression and performance all in one. Showcasing fifty years of pop culture is no mean feat, and Jean Paul Gaultier has spared not a single speck of attention to detail, when he wrote, directed and designed costumes for the show.
He’s designed hundreds of new exclusive outfits that will feature alongside some of his most iconic creations on the Brisbane runway, so don’t miss this opportunity to see the world through his eyes.
Tickets from $89
Friday 30 August to Sunday 15 September
South Bank Piazza, 186 Little Stanley Street, South Brisbane
Cirque Bon Bon - Le Retour
Cirque Bon Bon returns to the Piazza, bigger and better than ever before!
This sellout show returns for Brisbane Festival 2024 with a brand-new, all-star cast of contortionists, acrobats and dancers and is hosted by Mario Queen of the Circus.
This festival fiesta is the brainchild of two Brisbane locals - former Cirque Du Soleil Assistant Creative Director Ash Jacks and choreographer Julieann Nugent, making it the perfect excuse to book a night out to marvel at the creative talent born from our little river city.
Tickets from $30 - $65
Wednesday 18th September to Friday 20th September
South Bank Piazza, 186 Little Stanley Street, South Brisbane
Sweet Relief!
For iconic party vibes, head down to Ballymore Stadium for nostalgia-filled dance floor hits from none other than Y2K R&B royalty Kelis (whose milkshake brought the boys to the yard), The Presets, Eurovision-dominating duo Electric Fields, electro-pop icons Haiku Hands and genre-bending DJ dameeeela.
Sweet Relief! is an inclusive festival at the heart, ensuring accessibility and a safe space for everyone who steps onto the dance floor. Explore art, music and performance at this not-to-be-missed Brisbane Festival 2024 event.
Saturday 7th September, 12:00pm
Tickets from $109
Ballymore Stadium, 91 Clyde Road, Herston
So Much Myself: Piano Portraits
Take a step back in time with a musical portrait gallery of female creators, spanning an entire millennium. During Brisbane Festival 2024, virtuoso pianist Sonya Lifschitz and composer Robert Davidson will deliver So Much Myself: Piano Portraits, for Brisbane locals and visitors alike to enjoy.
This audiovisual experience will showcase female artists, scientists and leaders, with their words made musical through Lifschitz and Davidson. You’ll hear the words of Patti Smith, Frida Kahlo, Marie Curie, Nina Simone, Greta Thunburg and many more, joined by Sonya’s narrative voice, including a conversation with her Ukrainian grandmother and great aunt, about their escape from Kyiv in 1941 as Nazi bombs fell.
Tickets from $45
Saturday 21st September, 7pm
Conservatorium Theatre - Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University, 140 Grey Street, South Brisbane
Big Name, No Blankets
Weaving intimate storytelling through rock ‘n’ roll ballands, Warrumpi Band is the first of it’s kind. A First Peoples rock band to sing in language, known best for their anthems “Blackfella/Whitefella”, “My Island Home” and “Jailanguru Pakurnu”.
Staying true to their roots, Warrumpi Band weaves culture from Central Australia and Northeast Arnhem Land to their show, along with ancestral languages Luritja and Gumatj (Yolngu Matha).
Big Name, No Blankets promises to be a heart-filling night of music that will make you move, smile and stomp your feet.
Tickets from $59
Friday 20th September to Saturday 21st September, 7:00pm
Concert Hall, Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Corner of Grey and Melbourne Streets, South Brisbane
With some of the Festival’s events beginning in August, the program will be in full swing from September 1st, and we recommend booking tickets now to prevent any disappointment, as events will sell out fast!
If you’re looking for more of Brisbane’s best events, scroll through our Event Guide to discover what else is happening across the city. If you’re looking for more free things to do in Brisbane, we’ve found 16 fun ways to enjoy the city without spending a dime.
