Opera Queensland’s 2026 season invites audiences into worlds where music and storytelling entwine to illuminate the beauty, mystery and truth at the heart of the human experience.

Under the direction of CEO & Artistic Director Patrick Nolan, the company continues to reimagine opera for today’s audiences, celebrating timeless tales and bold new voices in a program that spans grand productions, intimate recitals and statewide tours.

From enchanted forests and shimmering underwater worlds to the sunlit horizons of the Outback, 2026 is a season of fairytales – stories that connect us through imagination, emotion and song.

Minister for Education and the Arts John-Paul Langbroek said Opera Queensland’s 2026 season will provide audiences across the state with outstanding music experiences, while showcasing some of Queensland’s most talented artists.

“Opera Queensland is one of our state’s great performing arts companies with a reputation for innovation and high-quality programming that activates Queensland communities and enhances our reputation as a leading cultural destination,” Minister Langbroek said.

“The Crisafulli Government is proud to invest in Opera Queensland, its regional engagement and touring program, and its delivery of the Festival of Outback Opera, which in 2026 will feature the award-winning tenor Filipe Manu.

“By delivering uniquely Queensland arts experiences to audiences across the state, Opera Queensland delivers on our 10-year arts and cultural strategy, Queensland’s Time to Shine, and strengthens our state’s reputation as a vibrant cultural destination.” 

OQ CEO & Artistic Director Patrick Nolan said the 2026 season explores how fairytales continue to reveal something profound about our shared humanity.

“This season celebrates the power of storytelling. In these stories we see ourselves in the hopes, fears and courage of the many different characters we encounter,” Nolan said.

“Every opera, every song, every concert in 2026 asks us to imagine what happens when we dream, when we wish, and when we face what lies beyond ‘happily ever after’. These timeless stories remind us that our joy and our grief, lives in the stories we tell.”

Returning for its third year, the Brisbane Bel Canto Festival once again focuses the attention of Brisbane audiences on the art of beautiful singing through a series of concerts spanning centuries of song.

At the heart of the festival is Rossini’s effervescent comedy La Cenerentola (Cinderella), a joyful tale of kindness rewarded, and love discovered. After its 2025 season was disrupted by Cyclone Alfred, La Cenerentola returns by popular demand, following glowing reviews that praised it as “a stunning take on a classic fairytale” (InDaily) and “beautifully performed and superbly timed for comedy” (Limelight). Conducted by Richard Mills and directed by Laura Hansford, the production stars exciting young Turkish tenor Mert Süngü as Don Ramiro.

Also featured in the festival are The Birth of Bel Canto, presented in association with Brisbane ensemble One Equal Music at St Brigid’s Church, Red Hill, which traces the roots of bel canto back to the madrigal; Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle, performed in collaboration with The University of Queensland at QPAC Concert Hall and featuring Liam Viney and Anna Grinberg, where more than 100 performers will bring Rossini’s radiant score for two pianos and harmonium to life in a grand celebration of choral artistry; and Andrew Ford’s Red Dirt Hymns, a contemporary Australian collection of secular hymns with lyrics by some of the nation’s finest writers, offering a modern reflection on faith, landscape and belonging.

Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid, Rusalka is a fairytale opera tells the story of the luminous water nymph Rusalka. Seduced by a Prince, Rusalka abandons her family and everything she knows in the hope of finding true freedom. But all that glitters is not gold.

Dvořák’s score shimmers with sweeping romance and the many colours of Czech folk music, anchored by the spellbinding and much-loved aria ‘Song to the Moon’.

A breathtaking production of grand scale, by the award-winning team who created La Traviata.

Directed by Sarah Giles with designs by Charles Davis and Renée Mulder, this breathtaking new production unites the creative team behind Opera Queensland’s La Traviata and features internationally celebrated Australian soprano Eleanor Lyons as Rusalka, international tenor Rosario La Spina, whose commanding voice has graced opera houses around the world, as the Prince, and soprano Eva Kong, bringing depth and dramatic flair to the role of the Duchess. Conducted by Vladimir Fanshil, one of Australia’s most dynamic and sought-after conductors, Rusalka is an operatic masterpiece of grand scale and unforgettable beauty.

Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Tony Award-winning musical Into the Woods arrives in November, intertwining the stories of Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack, Rapunzel and others in a witty, darkly enchanting exploration of what happens after “happily ever after.”

With a full symphonic orchestra, this landmark collaboration between Opera Queensland, Queensland Theatre and Queensland Symphony Orchestra brings one of the most beloved musicals of all time to the stage in an all-new Queensland production.

When deepest desires are fulfilled, not all wishes are granted without a cost…

Into the Woods dazzles with its unforgettable score, cast of dearly loved characters and a plot that refuses to play by the rules.

Now in its sixth year, the Festival of Outback Opera (FOO) continues to grow as one of Australia’s most distinctive music festivals.

Set against the vast horizons of Queensland’s heartland, the festival brings together world-class performers for a week of concerts, community events and unforgettable moments under the stars. From the intimacy of the pub singalong to the grandeur of open-air galas, FOO embodies Opera Queensland’s vision of taking extraordinary opera to extraordinary places.

Headlining the 2026 festival is acclaimed tenor Filipe Manu. Raised in New Zealand and of Tongan heritage, Manu has emerged as one of the most exciting tenors of his generation. A graduate of the Jette Parker Young Artist Program at London’s Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, Manu has performed with major international opera houses, earning praise for his radiant tone, effortless phrasing and magnetic stage presence.

“There’s nothing quite like the Festival of Outback Opera,” said Nolan, “it creates a space where we can hear the music of the desert, be it the songs of the birds or the exquisite voices of some of the finest singers alive today. It’s storytelling and song in majestic landscapes. A festival that brings audiences and artists together in a way that is utterly unique.

“This year, Filipe brings with him a spirit of generosity and artistry that captures the festival’s heart. His remarkable voice belongs as much to the desert as to the great opera houses of the world.”

Opera Queensland’s Studio Series returns in 2026 with five captivating recitals that traverse centuries and genres.

Highlights include Xenia Puskarz Thomas and David Belkovski in Desire and Longing; Jessica O’Donoghue and Jack Symonds in undead.; Colombian tenor Carlos Barcenas in Alma Latina!; Alexandra Flood in There’s Nothing Like a Dame, a tribute to Dame Joan Sutherland; and launching the annual Young Artist Showcase Viva la Voce, celebrating the next generation of Australian operatic voices.

Each recital transforms Opera Queensland’s South Bank studio into an intimate space where audiences experience the immediacy and emotional depth of live song.

Opera Queensland’s 2026 touring program continues its mission to share opera with audiences across the state.

The Adventures of Figaro—a riotous adaptation of Rossini’s The Barber of Seville by Shake & Stir Theatre Co.—will bring energy, humour and brilliant young voices to schools and regional centres.

Meanwhile, All Together Now! and Bravo! will tour regional Queensland, offering audiences the chance to sing along to beloved classics or experience the thrill of opera’s greatest arias performed by leading Australian artists.

From the magical to the mythical, from QPAC to the farthest reaches of the state, Opera Queensland’s 2026 season reaffirms the company’s belief that every story, when sung, can transform the way we see the world.

Philippa Drynan 0414 724 972
Lucy Childs 0455 557 509