Brisbane comes alive for the Festival
Yes, it costs more than 10 shillings to gain entry into the Brisbane Festival these days, but for the amount of art and entertainment on offer at Brissy’s premier cultural event this year, who’s counting pennies?
Yes, it costs more than 10 shillings to gain entry into the Brisbane Festival these days, but for the amount of art and entertainment on offer at Brissy’s premier cultural event this year, who’s counting pennies?
Brisbane Festival is nearly over, but there are still some amazing performances in store for the final week of Brisbane’s biggest cultural event.
Developed by the Queensland Government and Brisbane City Council in 1996 as an initiative to foster the arts, the Brisbane Festival was held as a biennial festival from 1996 to 2008 and an annual festival from 2009.
The Festival evolved from Brisbane’s Warana Festival, first held in 1961. This was the beginning of Arts Festivals in Queensland and in the early festival days, a trip to the Queensland ballet cost 10 shillings. The theme of the Warana Festival was “entertainment for the people, by the people”. Over the years regular Warana features varied, but included a drama festival and eisteddfod, a writers’ week, a George Street Colonial Fair, a Miss Warana Pageant and various religious, sporting and other outdoors activities.
The festival will officially end on September 24, and the final week will include these theatrical productions:
boy girl wall – La Boite Theatre Company (La Boite’s Roundhouse Theatre, Kelvin Grove until 25 September)
Rhinoceros in Love – National Theatre of China (Powerhouse Theatre, Brisbane Powerhouse until 24 September)
Romeo and Juliet – Bell Shakespeare (QUT Festival Theatre, Plaza, Brisbane Powerhouse until 24 September)
Steampowered – Circus Oz – (Playhouse, QPAC until 25 September)
The Dream Menagerie – Strut and Fret Production House – (The Courier-Mail Spiegeltent, King George Square until 24 September)
Die Winterreise – Malthouse Theatre – (Powerhouse Theatre, Brisbane Powerhouse 28 Sep – 1 Oct)
For more information, visit www.brisbanefestival.com.au
