Adelaide Festival

National NAIDOC Week in 2026 observes the theme 𝟱𝟬 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗹𝘆 in tribute to five decades of NAIDOC celebrating the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It’s another great opportunity to learn about First Nations culture, stories and art, and participate in celebrations of the oldest, continuous living cultures on earth.

Congratulations this year to Yankunytjatjara artist 𝗭𝗮𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗵𝗮 𝗙𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 from the APY Lands, whose artwork Paralpi is the official poster for National NAIDOC Week 2026! We remember Zaachariaha’s phenomenal performance in “Floods of Fire”, a collaboration between Electric Fields and the A*O in 2024.

We also recognise the Lifetime Achievement Award posthumously awarded to the late 𝗥𝗵𝗼𝗱𝗮 𝗥𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝗔𝗢, a visionary cultural leader whose influence transformed Australia’s artistic and cultural landscape. Rhoda was a Widjabul Wia-bal woman from Bundjalung Country whose wonderful work “My Cousin Frank” featured in Adelaide Festival 2025.

If you missed out this year, make sure you also check out the music of didgeridoo master 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗺 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗼𝗻, 𝗗𝘆𝗹𝗮𝗻 𝗩𝗮𝗻 𝗗𝗲𝗻 𝗕𝗲𝗿𝗴 and his play 𝗪𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗮 𝗬𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗮 𝗧𝗿𝗲𝗲, and 𝗦𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗿𝗮 𝗦𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 and the Ngarrindjeri women of the 𝗞𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗸 exhibition; all First Nations artists whose work featured in the 2026 program.

You can find local events happening this NAIDOC Week near you via the website here → https://bit.ly/AF26-NAIDOC

Last week, we spent a wonderful evening with the donors, sponsors, industry leaders and government partners who helped make Adelaide Festival 2026 possible.

Guests heard key insights from the Festival's 2026 Impact Report and looked ahead to 2027 through a Q&A with Adelaide Writers' Week Director Rosemarie Milsom and Artistic Director Matthew Lutton.

The countdown to AF27 and AWW27 starts now!

The numbers are in. This year’s Adelaide Festival captivated audiences from interstate, overseas and across South Australia, driving an estimated $40.8 million in gross expenditure for the South Australian economy and generating $29.1 million of new expenditure for the State.

A huge thank you to everyone who made Adelaide Festival 2026 possible!

Read the full 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 here → https://www.adelaidefestival.com.au/news/2026/2026-impact-report