Ready to stay up late, Melbourne? Now or Never returns this winter, taking place around Naarm/Melbourne August 19 - 30, 2026 - presented by PBS.
There so much to discover: A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to sleep over at the Royal Exhibition Building, a series of large-scale light installations along the Birrarung/Yarra River, and a homage to world-renowned American composer Philip Glass are at the heart of this year's Now or Never program.
From Wednesday 19 to Sunday 30 August, the City of Melbourne’s multi-award-winning festival of art, ideas, sound and technology returns for its 4th year to light up the city from the inside out.
Across these 12 days, more than 250 local and international artists and creatives will take over iconic venues and public spaces for a city-wide program of over 150 events – with 20 premiere works and festival exclusives.
Highlights include:
- Reimagination of the Royal Exhibition Building as we know it, including:
- A captivating collection of free large-scale light installations along the Yarra River / Birrarung
- Transformation of Melbourne Town Hall
- Headline late night music program at Melbourne Town Hall featuring diverse music shows across 3 nights from local and international artists including: A.Chal, Slim Soledad, LIZZ, Dinamarca and Zalina; Octave One, Sleep D x Hybrid Man, JNETT and Baby G; and Robin Fox, MY DISCO, and Jeho Yun + Kyoungjin So.
- Thought-provoking series of talks
- First Nations Futures – looking at how new worlds are imagined into being through storytelling, visual language and acts of creative resistance, with Axel Garay, April Philips and Allara Briggs Pattison.
Centred around the theme A Whole New World, this year’s festival explores cultural shifts driven by immersive technologies, AI and digital storytelling – blurring the lines between installation, performance, reality and imagination. Explore the program at nowornever.melbourne.vic.gov.au.
Banner Image: Marie Davidson at Melbourne Town Hall, Now or Never 2025
