Brisbane Festival releases a teaser of the 2018 program

September might be five months away, but that doesn’t mean you can’t already start dreaming of Brisbane Festival. Four events from the program have been released – together with the date for Riverfire – offering a teaser of what’s to come later this year.

Theatre, comedy, opera and music make up the first look of Brisbane Festival for 2018, with two major headline events already released: theatre show Horror and the opera Peter Grimes. Sitcom-worthy comedy and psychedelic beats round out this first offering, and first release tickets are already selling out.

Here is your first look at what’s in store for the 2018 edition of Brisbane Festival.

Horror
Theatre

Cinematic effects, magic tricks and physical movement take this show into a new realm of fright. In creating Horror, acclaimed physical theatre maker Jakop Ahlbom has developed a show with effects rarely seen in theatre, and the result is eerily realistic for a stageshow. This is the first time Ahlbom’s work has been seen in Australia, and his way with black comedy offers moments of light amid the drama.

26–29 September at QPAC

Benjamin Britten’s Peter Grimes
Opera

An international team has been assembled to stage Benjamin Britten’s defining British opera, Peter Grimes. Australian tenor Stuart Skelton is flying in from London to take up the title role, and he will appear alongside an international cast of 18 soloists and the full Queensland Symphony Orchestra and Opera Queensland Chorus for just two epic semi-staged performances.

20 & 22 September at QPAC

Unknown Mortal Orchestra
Music

The first gig announced for the festival is Portland’s Unknown Mortal Orchestra. In Australia to debut new album Sex & Food, the band will deliver their signature immersive psychedelic beat and visuals. The album was released earlier this month, together with the third single ‘Everyone Acts Crazy Nowadays‘, giving you plenty of time to get acquainted with this new offering ahead of the show.

15 September at The Tivoli

David Baddiel – My Family: Not the Sitcom
Comedy

Every family is dysfunctional in its own way, and David Baddiel is not out to downplay the shortcomings of his own relatives. Nor is he interested in preserving their dignity. My Family: Not the Sitcom is a one-man show en-route to Brisbane after a sold-out season in London. It explores memory, ageing, infidelity, moral policing on social media, golf and gay cats, in a side-splitting celebration of Baddiel’s parents’ lives.

13 September at The Tivoli

Riverfire
Fireworks

Details of this year’s Riverfire are limited for now, but a date has been set for your diary. The annual fireworks extravaganza is one of the most technically complex fireworks shows in Australia, and it’s set to round out the month of September.

29 September at South Bank

For the full festival bill, stay tuned for the program release in early July. Last year’s festival brought us more than 60 events, including five world premiere commissions, so there is plenty more to be revealed ahead of September.

KEY DETAILS
Brisbane Festival
8–29 September
More information

Never miss an event again. Subscribe below for weekly updates on everything worth seeing in Brisbane.