The Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) has announced the return of Clancestry for 2026, with the First Nations arts and culture festival set to run from 30 July to 8 August 2026 inclusive. Once again, the festival’s calendar is aiming to offer not only a program of music, theatre, circus, and dance – but also proper touchpoints with the first nations community.
The festival’s initial stage performances will take place in the Cremorne Theatre from 30 July to 1 August 2026. During this period, Dale Woodbridge-Brown will perform “Camp Culture” a circus production that explores themes of authenticity and identity through a summer camp narrative. Also appearing at the Cremorne Theatre during these dates is Ya’Djin Spirit Women from The First Creatives This performance integrates dance, theatre, and film to present stories of healing and connection to Country from First Nations women survivors.
On 1 August 2026, the Concert Hall will host Jessica Mauboy for her cabaret performance, “The Story of Me: A Musical Journey Through My Career.” This show, which first appeared at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival last year, serves as a retrospective of the artist’s professional history through music and personal narrative.
The program continues in the Cremorne Theatre from 5 August to 8 August 2026 with “Gunawarra Re-creation“. Written by Isobel Morphy-Walsh and directed by Andrea James of the ILBIJERRI Theatre Company, the work focuses on the preservation of Taun Wurrung stories across three generations. On 6 August 2026, Troy Cassar-Daley will also perform a music and storytelling set accompanied by a string quartet, drawing on his heritage as a Gumbaynggirr and Bundjalung man.
The final days of the festival include “Barragga Yangga” at the Playhouse on 7 August 2026. This project involves the intergenerational Yuin choir Djinama Yilaga and focuses on the use of traditional Dhurga language through song. The festival is scheduled to conclude on 8 August 2026 with a concert by Yothu Yindi. This performance marks the band’s 40th anniversary and the 35th anniversary of their “Tribal Voice” album.
QPAC Chief Executive Rachel Healy described the festival as a significant event that allows First Nations artists to lead cultural conversations and share their contemporary creative practices with the community:
Clancestry brings a different rhythm to QPAC: one shaped by story, memory and voice, while being deeply grounded in culture and community. Each year the festival creates space for First Nations artists to lead the conversation, share new work and bring audiences together through music, theatre, movement and storytelling; its impact is consistently both powerful and joyful. The 2026 program reflects the strength, diversity and contemporary energy of First Nations creativity, from major voices on our largest stages to intimate works that invite reflection and connection. We are honoured to host Clancestry and to continue building a festival that celebrates culture, champions artists and welcomes audiences of all ages to experience the richness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander stories.
Details regarding the festival’s free and lower-cost events are expected to be announced by QPAC in May.
