We Think. We Move. We Feel. We Connect. We Hurt. We Love. We Live. It's All That We Are.

Vanguard Theatre Festival 2026 celebrates the complexity of the human experience through a wide collection of original works, adaptations, devised performances and physical theatre pieces. Across three nights, audiences are invited to explore the stories, emotions and relationships that shape our lives, as seen through the eyes of the next generation of theatre-makers.

At its heart, Vanguard remains theatre for students, by students. Every performance featured in this festival has been developed, rehearsed and presented by University of Queensland Drama students. Vanguard provides a space for experimentation, collaboration and creative risk-taking. Each ten-minute work stands as a unique reflection of its creators, united by a shared desire to tell stories that matter.

The festival itself is a collective effort and behind every lighting cue, scene transition and audience experience is a dedicated team of students working both onstage and behind the scenes. This spirit of collaboration reflects the festival's theme: 'All That We Are' and how connections bind us together. Through moments of joy, grief, humour, reflection and discovery, the works presented in Vanguard 2026 remind us that theatre is, above all, a shared human experience.

Over the three nights skin, blood and bone, we wanted to represent the strength but also fragilitiy of the human experience, in turn representing 'All That We Are'. We invite you to join us in the Avalon Theatre as we come together to think, feel, connect and experience the power of storytelling.