Melbourne's about to get very weird, very beautiful, and very sleep-deprived with Now or Never.
The countdown is over. Now or Never kicks off this week, taking over Melbourne from 19 to 30 August with light, sound and technology.
Now in its fourth year, the City of Melbourne festival will spread across more than 150 events over 12 days, with over 250 local and international artists descending on some of Melbourne’s most iconic venues, including the Royal Exhibition Building and Melbourne Town Hall.
Now or Never
- When: 19–30 August 2026
- Where: Various venues across Melbourne
- Tickets here
Stay up to date with what’s happening in and around Melbourne here.
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The festival kicks off Wednesday 19 August, with a free light trail switching on along the Yarra River – Birrarung and around Melbourne Town Hall: a projection from Jess Johnson and Simon Ward covering Hamer Hall’s facade; a forecourt takeover beginning with Korean artist Jung Haejung’s Row, Row, Row Your Boat, and Robbie Avenaim’s Shine Caught Blue, a collaboration between human and robotic percussion at Federation Bells.
Melbourne Town Hall also transforms that night, with Chunky Move premiering a laser-lit dance work running through Thursday 20 August.
From Thursday 20 August, the light trail expands with a laser installation from Taiwanese artist AKA Chang at Birrarung Marr, and a piece from local artist Emily Parsons-Lord making Evan Walker Bridge appear to vanish into mist.
Friday 21 August brings a wave of openings at Melbourne Town Hall: Robin Fox takes over the Main Hall with sound and laser, a sculptural exhibition extends the life of late composer Alvin Lucier using his own biological material, and Korean artist HKASON joins the forecourt takeover with Knot Protocol.
The same night, Orchestra Victoria and pianist Maki Namekawa perform a tribute to composer Philip Glass, and Library Up Late returns to the State Library.
Things move to the Royal Exhibition Building on Saturday 22 August, with a breathwork and sound bath session from The Breath Haus, featuring First Nations musicians David and Daniel Wilfred from Hand to Earth, running into that evening’s main event: SOMNIA, an overnight sleep concert under the dome from William Basinski and Bendik Giske, running through to Sunday 23 August.
The talks program picks up mid-festival, with a First Nations Futures panel featuring Axel Garay, April Phillips and Allara Briggs Pattison on Monday 24 August, followed on Tuesday 25 August by sexual historian Mindy Seu at the State Library Victoria and writer Cory Doctorow on the decline of online platforms.
The late-night music program runs across three consecutive nights to close out the festival: Friday 28 August features A.Chal, Slim Soledad, LIZZ, Dinamarca and Zalina at Chuleo Club, alongside Friday Night Social and Queer PowerPoint at Fed Square; Saturday 29 August brings Octave One, Sleep D x Hybrid Man, JNETT and Baby G for Finding Figaro; and Sunday 30 August closes with MY DISCO and Robin Fox.
Returning favourites running across the full festival period include ACMI’s Long March: Restart, an XR program with the Melbourne International Film Festival.
Last year’s festival was estimated to have generated more than $19 million for the local economy, supporting around 1,000 jobs across the city.
With the doors opening this week, tickets are on sale now for a festival running nightly through to 30 August across venues throughout the CBD.
For more information, head here.
Beat is a proud media partner of Now or Never.
