Weekend of 18 – 20 September 2026
Brisbane Festival is in full swing this weekend, with a Broadway musical at QPAC, a Jim Henson film score played live, new theatre at the Powerhouse and two major gallery exhibitions running alongside it.
Events are arranged per suburb.
Jon Rafman: Memento Hikikomori
18 – 20 September 2026 | Institute of Modern Art – Judith Wright Arts Centre, Fortitude Valley
Montreal-based artist Jon Rafman surveys digital alienation, collective online experience and the unconscious of contemporary culture through a body of works including Nine Eyes (Google Street View photography), AI-generated paintings, an AI-generated TV channel, and key video works. Open Tuesday–Sunday, 10:00am–5:00pm at 420 Brunswick Street, Fortitude Valley.
Koreaboo
18 – 19 September 2026 | Roundhouse Theatre, La Boite, Kelvin Grove
Michelle Lim Davidson’s playwriting debut stars herself as a Korean-Australian woman navigating a complicated reunion with her birth mother in Seoul, in this Griffin Theatre Company production presented by La Boite in association with Brisbane Festival. 80 minutes; performances at 7:30pm on Friday 18 and Saturday 19 September.
Scorched Earth
18 – 20 September 2026 | Powerhouse Theatre, Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm
Luke Murphy’s part crime-drama, part psychological thriller blurs dance and theatre in an 80-minute interrogation-room confrontation inspired by John B. Keane’s The Field, performed by five international artists. Friday 18 September at 6:30pm; Saturday 19 September at 1:00pm and 6:30pm; Sunday 20 September (check Brisbane Festival for exact time).
Bleachers
18 – 19 September 2026 | Underground Theatre, Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm
Bleachers is a disability-led dance-theatre work by Sprung Ensemble — a collective of 10 d/Deaf and disabled artists — exploring isolation, connection and belonging through a custom-built bleacher set that becomes a living, shifting space. 50 minutes; all performances are Auslan interpreted. Friday 18 September (Audio Described) and Saturday 19 September at 6:00pm.
ANASTASIA the Musical
18 – 20 September 2026 | Lyric Theatre, QPAC, South Bank
ANASTASIA the Broadway Musical plays at the Lyric Theatre, QPAC, starring Georgina Hopson as Anya alongside Robert Tripolino, Joshua Robson, Rodney Dobson, Rhonda Burchmore, and Nancye Hayes AM. The romantic adventure-filled production runs approximately 2 hours 25 minutes including interval.
Jim Henson's Labyrinth in Concert
19 – 20 September 2026 | Concert Hall, QPAC, South Bank
The 1986 cult classic Labyrinth screens on HD while a live band performs the full soundtrack in sync with David Bowie’s vocals. Marking the film’s 40th anniversary, fans are encouraged to dress in costume and sing along. Best availability on Sunday 20 September at 5:00pm.
Not a Cult*
18 September 2026 | Village Green – Festival Village, South Bank
Award-winning techno-troublemakers Counterpilot lead an interactive public spectacle in which audiences don headphones and patriotic robes to follow instructions from an enigmatic voice, conducting a ritual involving wheelie bins, tiki torches and barbecue tongs across South Bank. Friday 18 September, 6:15pm–6:45pm.
The Choir of Man
18 September 2026 | Magic Mirrors Spiegeltent – Festival Village, South Bank
Olivier Award-nominated West End hit The Choir of Man features nine world-class performers — tap dancers, slam poets, multi-instrumentalists and singers — delivering 75 minutes of foot-stomping singalongs featuring music from Queen, Sia, Adele, Guns N’ Roses and more. Friday 18 September at 8:45pm.
Make, Believe, Magic: The Worlds of The Jim Henson Company
18 – 20 September 2026 | Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), South Bank
World-exclusive to Brisbane, this definitive exhibition traces 70 years of The Jim Henson Company across GOMA’s entire ground floor with more than 500 objects — original puppets, animatronic creatures, full production sets from Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock, costumes and drawings from the Muppets, Sesame Street, The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. Opened 12 September 2026 and timed to coincide with Queensland school holidays.
LEGENDS (of the Golden Arches)
19 September 2026 | QPAC, South Bank
Co-created by Joe Paradise Lui and Merlynn Tong, this Brisbane Festival theatre work follows two best friends holding vigil for their dead grandfathers, whose conflicting attitudes toward traditional values drag them into a rip-roaring ride through the Chinese afterlife. Saturday 19 September, 1:00pm–3:00pm at QPAC.
Night Moves: The Scramble
18 – 19 September 2026 | Metro Arts – New Benner Theatre, West End
Choreographer Shaun Johnston fuses contemporary dance with freestyle wrestling in a 50-minute charged physical duet performed by Luther Wilson and Nathan Turtur, exploring male vulnerability and intimacy. 7:30pm Friday 18 September and Saturday 19 September at Metro Arts, 97 Boundary Street, West End.
Performance schedules vary across the weekend and some seasons do not run every day — confirm the date with the venue when booking.
Weekend of 11 – 13 September 2026
Brisbane Festival was in full swing that weekend, with theatre at QPAC and Brisbane Powerhouse, major exhibitions at GOMA and the Museum of Brisbane, and hands-on workshops across the city.
Events are arranged per suburb.
Outer Space Art Auction: Exhibition & Closing Event
11–12 September 2026 | Outer Space, Fortitude Valley
Charity art auction and exhibition supporting emerging/early-career Brisbane artists.
Tiri: Te Araroa Woman Far Walking
11–13 September 2026 | Powerhouse Theatre, Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm
Solo theatre work presented with Brisbane Powerhouse; the Sunday show is Audio Described and Auslan-interpreted.
The Choir of Man
11 & 13 September 2026 | Magic Mirrors Spiegeltent, Festival Village, South Bank
Music/dance cabaret celebrating pub culture and community through song, part of Brisbane Festival.
Shel We
11–13 September 2026 | Cremorne Theatre, QPAC, South Brisbane
Playful contemporary dance work by NZ choreographer Tupua Tigafua for Le Moana, making its Australian premiere, blending humour and family tribute inspired by Shel Silverstein.
Strong Is the New Pretty
11–13 September 2026 | Playhouse, QPAC, South Brisbane
World-premiere drama by Suzie Miller (Prima Facie) about AFLW, legacy and determination, directed by Sarah Giles.
Make, Believe, Magic: The Worlds of The Jim Henson Company
12–13 September 2026 | GOMA, South Brisbane
Queensland-exclusive exhibition of Muppets, Fraggle Rock, Dark Crystal and Labyrinth creations; opening weekend coincides with Brisbane Festival.
Vipoo Srivilasa: Express Yourself
11–13 September 2026 | Children’s Art Centre, GOMA, South Brisbane
Interactive, multi-sensory exhibition inviting kids/families to draw, dance and engage with digital activities. Closes 13 Sept.
Snap Blak: Contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Photography
11–13 September 2026 | GOMA, South Brisbane
Survey of contemporary Indigenous photography asserting visual sovereignty and self-representation. Closes 13 Sept.
Archie Moore: kith and kin
11–13 September 2026 | GOMA, South Brisbane
Major installation by Archie Moore exploring First Nations family history and archives.
Undying: Abdul-Rahman Abdullah
11–12 September 2026 | Griffith University Art Museum, South Brisbane
First Queensland solo show of sculptor Abdul-Rahman Abdullah’s carved/painted works on life, death and the natural world. Closed Sundays.
Introduction to Katazome (Rice Paste Resist) & Indigo Dyeing
12 September 2026 | Woolloongabba Substation, Woolloongabba
Hands-on Japanese textile stencil-dyeing workshop using natural indigo.
Snap Blak and Vipoo Srivilasa: Express Yourself both closed on the Sunday at GOMA, making that weekend the last chance to see either exhibition.
