Events
The Underground Exchange: A Truffle Dinner That Knew Exactly What It Was
Phillipe Blake—3 July 2026·2 min read
Brisbane Powerhouse has unveiled the biggest program in Melt Festival's history, with more than 100 events across over 70 venues set to transform the city into one of Australia's most vibrant celebrations of Queer arts and culture. Melt returns 21 October to 8 November 2026, and tickets are on sale now.
Brisbane Powerhouse has unveiled the biggest program in Melt Festival's history, with more than 100 events across over 70 venues set to transform the city into one of Australia's most vibrant celebrations of Queer arts and culture. Melt returns from 21 October to 8 November 2026, and tickets go on sale today.
"Melt has always been about bringing people together through unforgettable shared experiences, and this year's program does that on a scale we've never seen before," says Louise Bezzina, Brisbane Powerhouse CEO and Artistic Director. "From international public art legend Florentijn Hofman's giant pink duck floating down the Brisbane River for our biggest-ever River Pride Parade, to a major new commission from Brisbane's own Circa, the city will come alive in ways you simply won't experience at any other time of year."
A Landmark Opening Weekend
For the first time, Brisbane Pride's Rally and March and Fair Day will align with River Pride Parade on Saturday 24 October, bringing together Brisbane's largest Queer celebrations in a single day stretching from Fortitude Valley to New Farm along the Brisbane River. As dusk falls, River Pride Parade moves into a new twilight timeslot, with a flotilla of boats — including party boats WET ON DECK, Come To Daddy, Splash Out and FUEL — cruising from West End to Brisbane Powerhouse as crowds gather along the riverbank. The night continues with Melt's free-entry Opening Party at Brisbane Powerhouse.
Presiding over it all is Florentijn Hofman's 15-metre, five-storey-high Rubber Duck, reimagined in Melt's signature hot pink. Having previously captivated audiences in Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Osaka, São Paulo and Pittsburgh, the duck will first appear on the Brisbane River near the CBD ahead of the festival, join the River Pride Parade as a flagship float, then take up residence near Brisbane Powerhouse for Melt's duration.
New for 2026
The inaugural Mr First Nation joins the program, building on the success of last year's Miss First Nation. Produced by Ben Graetz, the competition celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander drag king performers, with two heats leading to a grand final on opening weekend.
Onesie World, a participatory artwork by Adele Varcoe and Queer First Nations artist Dylan Mooney, invites Brisbane locals to get directly involved. Free community sewing workshops run from 5 to 23 October at Brisbane Powerhouse and the State Library of Queensland, helping make 1,000 onesies featuring Mooney's print. On River Pride Parade day, the onesies are released back into the community, free to claim, turning the riverbank into a shared, wearable artwork.
Beyond opening weekend, Brisbane's own contemporary circus company Circa presents the world premiere of Show Me Love, a new Brisbane Powerhouse commission that leads audiences through the hidden corridors of the venue, culminating in a finale inspired by club culture.
Music, Comedy and New Work
The music line-up includes Queensland singer-songwriter Jude York, New Zealand's TEEKS debuting new single My Boy, Grammy-nominated ARIA winner Courtney Barnett on her Creature of Habit tour, and pop icon Melanie C performing songs from her ninth studio album, Sweat.
Returning favourites include Melting Pot, Melt's weekly hub for local Queer voices in collaboration with QUIVR, and the cult-hit Queer PowerPoint, now in a new home at Brisbane Powerhouse. New theatre and performance works include The Huxleys' Bloodlines, curated by Jacob Boehme; Wild Abandon from Sean Dowling, Merlynn Tong and Ian Lawson; Oli Mathiesen's The Butterfly Who Flew Into The Rave; and Cassie Workman's Aberdeen, a surreal reimagining of Kurt Cobain's life. The Trans Theatre Symposium brings together artists and audiences to explore the future of trans storytelling on stage.
Across the festival, Queer the Town extends Melt into Brisbane's restaurants, bars and entertainment precincts — Fish Lane, Fortitude Valley, Howard Smith Wharves and Queen's Wharf — with pop-up moments and hidden performances between shows.
Melt Festival runs 21 October to 8 November 2026. Produced by Brisbane Powerhouse, supported by the Queensland Government and Brisbane City Council. Tickets at melt.org.au.
Image: Brisbane Powerhouse / Florentijn Hofman
