Adelaide Festival Unveils 2027 Program

The 42nd Adelaide Festival takes over the city from Friday 26 February to Sunday 14 March with another huge program of events.

The second edition of the festival under the stewardship of Artistic Director Matthew Lutton OAM celebrates boundary-pushing art and artistry with performances and events exploring the light and the dark sides of life.

"The 2027 Adelaide Festival promises an adrenaline-fuelled 17 days, bringing exclusively to Adelaide visionary theatre-makers from Brazil, France, Greece and Albania who are defining the new wave of theatre," says Lutton.

"It also includes awe-inducing opera and dance charged with horror and transcendence, electrifying baroque ensembles, soaring Baltic choirs, film and extraordinary visual art exhibitions, as well as the return of Artists’ Week, with every event opening a portal to the extraordinary, the unfamiliar and the unforgettable."

Minister for Arts Kyam Maher MLC adds, "The 2027 Festival presents another program of remarkable scale and ambition, bringing together over 700 artists and including 24 shows exclusive to Adelaide. Audiences will encounter acclaimed international artists alongside exceptional work from around Australia.

"I am especially proud to see so many South Australian artists, companies, galleries and venues contributing to the program in so many ways. Their involvement reflects the depth of creative talent in our state and the Festival’s vital role within our cultural sector."

Next year's program is absolutely stacked and covers everything from theatre, music and opera to dance, film and the returning Writer's Week.

Alongside the already announced Romeo Castellucci's Bluebeard’s Castle, Barrie Kosky's K. and Robert Icke's Oedipus, next year's program also includes Brazilian artist Carolina Bianchi's theatre production The Brotherhood: CADELA FORÇA TRILOGY Chapter II, European baroque ensemble il Pomo d’Oro performing two concerts at Adelaide Town Hall, Belgian violinist Marc Bouchkov and Australian pianist Aura Go and the luminous sound of Latvian Voices, who blend traditional folk songs with exquisite, modern acapella arrangements of pop songs and classical works.

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A celebration of Philip Glass' 90th birthday will feature 10 pianists paying tribute to the extraordinary artist for The Complete Philip Glass Piano Etudes, production First Light includes Mozart's timeless Clarinet Quintet alongside Ravel's Tzigane and a performance of firm Adelaide Festival favourite, the John Bishop Memorial Commission, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and the State Opera South Australia Chorus join selected soloists for the concert performance of Eucalyptus, composed by Jonathan Mills and with a poetic libretto by Meredith Oake and Adelaide-based Australian String Quartet will join Melbourne Chamber Orchestra for The Rave and the Nightingale.

Contemporary music lovers can catch Icelandic composer and musician Ólafur Arnalds, experimental Canadian artist Tim Hecker and Australia's own Grace Cummings, while WOMADelaide will once again take over Botanic Park for four days of music, culture and community.

Adelaide Writers' Week returns to the Pioneer Women's Memorial Garden, with new Director Rosemarie Milsom at the helm. Free events include sessions with Li Cunxin, Trent Dalton, Kate Holden, David Leser, Pip Williams, Behrouz Boochani and Meg Mason. The ever-popular events for young people, Secondary Schools Day and Young Readers' Day, also take place on the opening weekend.

Artists' Week is also back, bringing together leading artists, writers, curators and thinkers across the city and inviting audiences to explore a dynamic calendar of free talks, exhibitions, openings and in-conversations.

The closing weekend is headlined by the Australian premiere and directorial debut of Adelaide's Tilda Cobham-Hervey film It's All Going Very Well..., which stars Cobham-Hervey as Audrey, an art teacher in an aged care home who forms an unlikely bond with resident Harold (The Crown actor Jonathon Pryce).

Adelaide Festival is committed to making art financially accessible to as many people as possible, with audience members aged under 40 able to purchase $40 tickets to the majority of ticketed performances in the program.

Discount ticket schemes for those facing a financial barrier include continuing established Festival initiatives Tix for Next to Nix and Pay What You Can, and an inclusive equity program for category 1 – 4 schools, Festival Connect. Become a Festival Friend for access to the best seats in the house, a 15% discount on applicable adult tickets and a range of special offers. 

Adelaide Festival 2027 runs from Friday 26 February to Sunday 14 March 2027. Find the full program and buy tickets at adelaidefestival.com.au.