There’s so much on offer at this year’s Brisbane Festival it is hard not to recommend everything. And we do. But we asked Brisbane Festival artistic director Louise Bezzina to highlight for us 10 shows that we simply shouldn’t miss.
“Brisbane Festival remains a celebration by and for Brisbane so when we bring these global works to Brisbane, we provide opportunities to showcase the incredible talents of our local artists on the world stage,” Bezzina says. “These 10 performances are must-see highlights that you won’t want to miss.”
Jean Paul Gaultier’s Fashion Freak Show Jean Paul Gaultier is set to shake up Australian audiences when his stunning creation, Fashion Freak Show — 50 years of pop culture through the eyes of fashion’s enfant terrible — takes up residence in Brisbane as a sensational centrepiece of this year’s festival. An explosive combination of both a musical revue and fashion show, the production depicts the sensational life of Jean Paul Gaultier against a backdrop of his generation’s most defining political and cultural changes. August 30 to September 15, South Bank Piazza, from $89
GURR ERA OP GURR ERA OP (“the face of the sea” in Meriam Mir) is a celebratory sharing of culture and a call to action in the face of climate devastation, interweaving hybrid Torres Strait Islander contemporary storytelling, movement and spoken word. Join four mainland-born Torres Strait Islander women as they battle against the rising tide threatening their home, culture and identity. September 11-14, Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm, from $25
Big Name, No Blankets Celebrating the phenomenal journey and impact of Sammy Tjapanangka Butcher, one of the founding members of Australian music icons Warumpi Band, in an epic rock’n’roll theatre show. Warumpi Band is the original First Peoples rock band to sing in language, known for their anthems Blackfella/Whitefella, My Island Home and Jailanguru Pakurnu. Big Name, No Blankets is inspired by their rise to the top through their politics, presence and potent rock’n’roll riffs. September 20-12, QPAC, South Bank, from $59
Meet Your Maker This show follows an Indigenous pop artist who goes missing before the biggest show of her career. Set in the fictional universe of Queen’s City, this story re-imagines a world where Indigenous communities were given their land back and shows how pop culture and performance may have evolved. A one-woman tour de force performance that traverses live music, video and monologue forms. August 31 to September 7, Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm, from $25
The Art Boat Step aboard and immerse yourself in an unforgettable voyage through the heart of Brisbane. Against the stunning backdrop of the ever-expanding city skyline, journey along the iconic waterways, tracing the mighty banks that shape the Brisbane River. The Art Boat, reimagined, is chartered and curated by the world-class local legends BRIEFS FACTORY with a collaborating entourage of artists from across the festival. August 30 to September 21, departs Clem Jones Promenade, South Bank, from $35
Private View Having a physical or intellectual disability doesn’t change your sexuality and your desire to express it. Yet, the subject of people with intellectual disability having romantic dreams and sexual desires is still taboo. Private View invites audiences to become voyeurs; to observe people in their domestic spaces and discover their romantic dreams and hidden desires. September 18-21, Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm, from $39
Lighting the Dark A bold new work by Chris Dyke, a Kaurna (Adelaide) based dancer and choreographer living with Down Syndrome. Inspired by Chris’s real-life heroes Banksy, David Bowie and Freddie Mercury, Lighting the Dark shines brightly on Chris’s profoundly moving and life-affirming adventure through the world. Throughout the work, each of these icons acts as a mirror reflecting Chris’s expansive perception and limitless sense of possibility. September 12-14, Thomas Dixon Centre, West End, from $39
Assembly Vol. 1 Dive into an electrifying fusion of music and dance at The Princess Theatre, where Australasian Dance Collective and 4000 Studios are set to collide for an epic one-night-only event. Featuring an incredible assembly of talent, Vol. 1 sees Danny Harley from The Kite String Tangle, Dominik Felsmann from Felsmann + Tiley, Louis Frere-Harvey from $0.003 and the acclaimed dance artists of ADC in the visionary Auto Cannibal created by Stephanie Lake and Robin Fox. September 21, Princess Theatre, Woolloongabba, from $35

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Volcano The multi-award-winning Volcano invites audiences into a voyeuristic journey played out across four performances full of surprise and intrigue. A serialised live performance miniseries spanning four 45-minute episodes, Volcano crosses the boundaries of experimental theatre, contemporary dance and psychological sci-fi thriller. Existing in a liminal space, a living room in disrepair, a room without a door, two characters recreate the greatest hits of old lives: a night at a rave, a favourite game show, an ’80s music-video, passing the time or quietly clinging to distant memories of a life out of reach. August 30 to September 14, Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm, from $95
Eucalyptus – The Opera Eucalyptus is an ageless story of love and longing, about a daughter and a father – Ellen and Holland. Ellen’s overprotective father has created a safe haven from the world – a forest of eucalypts. But is the forest a sanctuary? Or is Ellen, like Rapunzel, imprisoned? Ellen encounters a stranger among her father’s trees – a storyteller with enchanting tales of far-away lands. In this dappled landscape lurks both beauty and wonder. Jonathan Mills’ new opera is based on the Miles Franklin Award-winning novel Eucalyptus by Murray Bail and its score is mysterious and colourful. September 4-5, QPAC, South Bank, from $69
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