Brisbane Festival 2024

This year’s Brisbane Festival program is jam-packed with lots of exciting and engaging shows and events for Brisbane Kids and their families. Officially opening the festival on 31st of August 2024 is the family-favourite Riverfire, which is a night not to be missed.

Running for more than a month, the 2024 Brisbane Festival brings together more than 70 different events to celebrate our city, including Lightscape (29 August to 12 October), Fancy Long Legs (12 to 22 September), Proudfoot & Friends (19 September), and Skylore – The Rainbow Serpent (19 to 21 September).

Brisbane Festival provides a mix of free and ticketed events across lots of Brisbane’s premier entertainment venues, including South Bank, QPAC, Brisbane City Hall, Old Government House, the Judith Wright Centre, Portside Wharf, and Brisbane Powerhouse.

Check out our list of all the family friendly Brisbane Festival 2024 highlights below, appearing in order of starting date.

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Brisbane Festival 2024 Highlights

With a massive lineup of performances and events across the festival, you can check out the full program for Brisbane Festival 2024 here. These are some of the family-friendly highlights:

Lightscape

When: From 5:45pm daily, 29 August to 12 October 2024

Where: City Botanic Gardens, Brisbane City

Tickets: $24 – $58 (bookings essential)

Reimagined for 2024, Lightscape is a multi-sensory experience that will see the Brisbane City Botanic Gardens light up with immersive light installations by local and international artists. This family-friendly event is always popular, so be sure to book well in advance!

For more information, click here.

ANZ Festival Garden

When: 30 August to 21 September 2024 (closed Mondays)

Where: 186 Little Stanley Street, South Brisbane

Cost: Free

Open evenings throughout the Brisbane Festival (excluding Mondays), the ANZ Festival Garden is the heart of the Brisbane Festival and features food and drink, installations, live performances and more.

For more information, click here.

Spectrum of Happiness

When: 30 August to 21 September 2024

Where: Portside Wharf, Hamilton

Cost: Free

Spectrum of Happiness is an interactive swing that invite people of all genders and generations to experience shared moments of happiness together. By swaying on the swings, people activate the movement of the LED ball over their heads, and also create a collaborative music together where their communal joy brightens above the sky.

For more information, click here.

Riverfire 2024

When: Saturday 31 August 2024

Where: All riverside areas, South Bank

Cost: FREE, depending on the location you choose

The iconic Brisbane Riverfire is a not to be missed fireworks spectacular that will officially open the Brisbane Festival in 2024. Families come from all over Queensland to watch this world class display, which features fireworks fired from multiple bridges, barges and city rooftops, set to an amazing soundtrack.

For more information and the best vantage points, click here.

Fancy Long Legs

When: 12 to 22 September 2024

Where: La Boite Theatre, Musk Avenue, Kelvin Grove

Tickets: $29 – $49, plus booking fee (bookings required)

Fancy Long Legs is a brand-new glittery and vibrant musical adventure for children, based on a new picture book by Brisbane’s international tinsel and craft icon, Rachel Burke.

For more information, click here.

Skylore – The Rainbow Serpent

When: 19 to 21 September 2024

Where: ANZ Festival Garden, South Bank

Cost: Free

Head to the ANZ Festival Garden at South Bank or to Queen’s Wharf as 400 drones dazzle over Brisbane’s iconic skyline with a spectacular storytelling of The Rainbow Serpent. This First Nations creation story for Brisbane River as told by Traditional Owner and Tribal Experiences Managing Director Shannon Ruska, brought to life through a carefully choreographed drone performance, with original sound composition by Guy Webster.

For more information, click here.