Art + Culture

Fabulous Festivals

Melbourne hosts a busy calendar of festivals which celebrate the best in life; from food and wine to gardens and landscape design, the arts, fashion, design, books and ideas. Every autumn Melbourne resonates with the sounds of laughter at the annual festival of the funny. The Melbourne International Comedy Festival attracts international and local comedians onto stages around the city to entertain almost 500,000 comedy lovers at nearly 300 stand-up and cabaret shows, theatre performances and film screenings.

Melbourne On Stage

A performance is staged every night in Melbourne. From the Melbourne Theatre Company to classical performances staged at the Victorian Arts Centre to all-singing, all-dancing musicals, all thrill their audiences at opulent theatres such as the Princess, Athenaeum, Regent and Her Majesty's. Take the Arts Centre 'behind the scenes' tour to see its fabulous costume collection and a glimpse of performers preparing for the show.

Melbourne is also celebrated for circus, independent and physical theatre, and innovative dance. The internationally acclaimed Australian Ballet stages an exciting annual program, whilst companies like home-town heroes Chunky Move present contemporary performances.

Opera Australia presents its season with a mix of popular international favourites and newly commissioned works by Australian composers. The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra enjoys world recognition and sells out its shows whenever it performs overseas; catch it when it is in town and you won't be disappointed. Musica Viva is Australia's largest presenter of chamber music and regularly visits Melbourne's glorious Concert Hall.

Sporting Capital

To say Melbourne loves its sport is to understate the dedication and loyalty of sports fans. The year is busy with sporting events, from the January Australian Open - the first Grand Slam tournament of the international tennis calendar - to the Boxing Day test cricket match played at the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in December. In the months in between expect high octane thrills at the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix and the Phillip Island Superbike Championship, and over 50 days of horse racing culminating in the internationally famous Melbourne Cup race at the Spring Racing Carnival. From March until the end of winter, fans don their team colours and head to Telstra Dome or the MCG to Australian Rules Football (AFL) matches - the game that originated in Melbourne.

See the icons from some of the greatest moments in Australia's sporting history at the new National Sports Museum. Located on two levels of the new Olympic Stand at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), the National Sports Museum is home to more than 2,300 items from Australia's rich sporting history, honours Australian Rules football, cricket and the Olympic Games and reveals the stories of the history of Australia's spiritual home of sport - the MCG.