Family Fiesta

MPAC’s Family Fiesta returns from 1–4 July 2026, transforming Monash University Performing Arts Centres into a vibrant, campus-wide celebration of live, participatory art and performance for children, with more than half the program free and the rest low-cost.

This year’s theme, Step into the Forest, invites families to journey through layered ecosystems, from soaring canopies and forest creatures to the hidden worlds of fungi, microbes and soil life—through an imaginative mix of theatre, dance, live music and hands-on science experiences created in collaboration with artists, Monash researchers and leading cultural partners.

Across four days, audiences can experience major highlights including Dream Swamp by award-winning choreographer Melanie Lane, a surreal dance and puppetry work exploring transformation and imagination; Beneath Our Feet, a brand-new immersive theatre experience by Where the Snails Go Theatre Co developed with Monash soil scientists, revealing the microscopic networks that sustain life underground; and Peter and the Wolf performed by the Monash Classical Collective with special guest narrator Lucy Durack, offering a playful introduction to orchestral music for young audiences.

Families can also enjoy Leonard the Lyrebird, a gentle storytelling concert featuring cello, piano and clarinet, and Fungi Town, a colourful installation by Kathy Holowko that celebrates the essential role of fungi as decomposers and forest collaborators.

The program extends across campus with free, drop-in and hands-on experiences including Plant Power Discovery with Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, where children can explore native plants, bushfoods and create their own herbal tea blend; Scienceworks: In the Forest, offering playful experiments that explore how forests grow and thrive; Precious Plastic with Monash Engineering, where children can turn recycled plastic into forest-inspired keepsakes; and UnderStory, an immersive forest-floor play space filled with oversized plants, fungi and creative activities. Cultural storytelling continues through Biik Bundjil (2–4 July), led by Jaeden Williams-Briggs, sharing Boonwurrung culture through dance, story and connection to Country.

At The Count’s, families can also enjoy a daily program of live music, from the elegant European folk stylings of Swing Valse to the fiery Romani energy of Vardos, the West African kora mastery of Amadou Suso, and the rich jazz, bossa nova and chanson influences of Sonya Veronica and Diego Villalta. Throughout the festival, families can relax with food, drinks and free babychinos available on campus, creating welcoming spaces to pause and connect between experiences.