It’s Festival Week! Have you secured your tickets yet?

Friday 5 June – Monday 8 June, 2026

Author

Woodend Winter
June 03, 2026

Australia’s longest running winter arts festival kicks off this Friday!

As we approach our 21st festival, I am filled with both excitement and deep gratitude. Each year, it is a privilege to gather such an extraordinary community, and in 2026 we are especially humbled to attract such a wide-ranging and talented group of presenters and performers, alongside our amazing sponsors and volunteers. Together, they make this festival truly special, and it is incredibly heartening to see that this year is shaping up to be one of our strongest box offices yet.

There is a wonderful energy in the air this week, with conversations, music, and ideas unfolding across every corner of the program. While some events have already sold out, including those featuring David Marr, Hugh Mackay and Alan Finkel, we are delighted that their talks will be recorded for broadcast on ABC Radio National’s What’s the Big Idea.

For everything else, I encourage you not to leave tickets to the last moment – we have so much to discover and enjoy. Keep reading below to discover some of the events that still have tickets available.

Even as we celebrate this year’s festival, I am already in the thick of planning for 2027, inspired by what this community continues to make possible.

Enjoy the festival!

Jacqueline Ogeil, Executive & Artistic Director, WWAF

FAMILY FRIENDLY: 1001 Nights with Inventi Ensemble

Proudly supported by Bendigo Community Bank Gisborne & District

Perfect for children and families, this magical concert invites audiences of all ages to step into a world of stories, heroes and adventure. Scheherazade and the 1001 Nights unfolds through the captivating music of Nikolai Rimsky‑Korsakov, as Inventi Ensemble takes you on a colourful journey filled with brave quests, clever princesses and far‑off lands. With lively storytelling and playful performances, this joyful experience is brimming with imagination, excitement and fun for everyone.

When: Sunday 7 June at 10am
Venue: St Ambrose Hall, Woodend

Tickets: $30 for adults, $15 for children

THEATRE: The Marriage Game by the Highly Strung Players

The Highly Strung Players, an absurdist troupe founded by author Peter Rose, returns to the Woodend Winter Arts Festival with three short plays from Rose’s six-part series The Ones. In these rehearsed readings we meet two married publishers at different stages in their long, brittle relationship. An evening of witty, irreverent repartee is guaranteed.

When: Saturday 6 June at 5:45pm
Venue: St Ambrose Hall, Woodend

PIANO: Jacqueline Ogeil performs Albero

WWAF’s very own Artistic Director, Jacqueline Ogeil, brings the vivid, rediscovered music of Sebastián de Albero to life in this must-see performance. A brilliant yet overlooked 18th‑century Spanish composer and contemporary of Scarlatti, Albero wrote thirty inventive keyboard sonatas of rare beauty. Ogeil champions this vibrant repertoire in a captivating live performance that reveals Albero’s expressive voice to modern audiences. This is an Australian premiere performance.

When: Saturday 6 June at 12pm
Venue: St Ambrose Church, Woodend

BAROQUE MASTERPIECE: Monteverdi Vespers - Ensemble Gombert and Accademia Arcadia

Back by popular demand and selling fast – and performed twice across the Festival weekend – Monteverdi’s magnificent Vespers of 1610 returns to WWAF. Ensemble Gombert and Accademia Arcadia, under John O’Donnell, join tenor soloists Christopher Watson and Christopher Roache for this landmark Early Baroque masterpiece. Radiant choral writing and dramatic virtuosity combine in an unmissable, transcendent concert experience.

When: Two showings - Saturday 6 June at 7.30pm & Sunday 7 June at 3.30pm
Venue: St Ambrose Church, Woodend

Proudly sponsored by The Peggy & Leslie Cranbourne Foundation

VCASS VCE STUDENT RECITAL: Ensemble Area 57 – Young Virtuosos

AREA 57 is a dynamic collective of young musicians blending jazz‑trio energy with the richness of classical cello. Formed at Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School in 2025, their Woodend Winter Arts Festival program spans jazz and classical works by Claude Bolling, David Baker and more – showcasing remarkable versatility and virtuosity.
Tickets are free for children and just $10 for adults.

When: Sunday 7 June at 2:15pm
Venue: St Ambrose Hall, Woodend

Anna Goldsworthy on AI, culture and the self

Author and pianist Anna Goldsworthy explores AI, culture and the self. Drawing on her forthcoming Quarterly Essay, she explores the implications of AI for art, culture and the self and how it forces a confrontation with what it means to be human. Anna shares her perspectives on this complex issue live in conversation with WWAF’s Artistic Director Jacqueline Ogeil.

When: Monday 8 June at 10am
Venue: Woodend Community Centre

Make the most of your weekend in Woodend

Woodend will be a hive of activity all weekend long. Pop into the Woodend Community Farmers’ Market on Saturday morning. The market brings together growers, producers and makers from across the region, making it an ideal place to start the day with great coffee, fresh local produce and a taste of the Macedon Ranges before heading to festival events.

Or browse through hundreds of books at the Woodend Book Fair, held from Saturday through to Monday at the Woodend Scout Hall.

For an inside guide on the best places to eat, drink and shop in Woodend, pick up a copy of the handy long weekend guide, put together by Woodend Business, Tourism & Community Inc. You can grab one at the WWAF Box Office or the Woodend Visitor Information Centre.

The Woodend Winter Arts Festival is a registered charity. All donations over $2 are tax deductible. Donate here or visit our website for more information on how to donate.