Overview
- The festival runs January 8–25 and marks the 50th edition under first-time director Kris Nelson, with tickets on sale and a limited $49 early-bird offer available through November 29.
- The program opens with Jacob Nash’s final Blak Out slate and concludes with Vigil: Belong featuring Nardi and a mass community choir that had about 600 registrations at announcement.
- Headline highlights include Mama Does Derby transforming Sydney Town Hall into a roller-derby arena, two nights by Hot Chip at the Opera House, and a solo show by Khalid Abdalla.
- International centerpieces feature the Australian premiere of Caroline Guiela Nguyen’s Lacrima at Roslyn Packer Theatre and Eun-Me Ahn’s Post-Orientalist Express, alongside experimental works such as the seven-hour live video game asses.masses.
- A new Festival Commons pilot will support emerging First Nations and culturally diverse curators, with cross-festival collaborations sharing productions with Adelaide and Perth to extend reach and reduce touring impact.