La Mama Hope Punk Climate Festival to debut in Melbourne
La Mama Theatre in Melbourne will host the Hope Punk Climate Festival from 1 to 20 September, featuring nine experimental shows and free events. The festival aims to empower independent artists to contribute to the climate conversation through art, embracing 'hope as a verb and punk as a culture.' It follows a hiatus after La Mama was denied multi-year operational funding from Creative Australia for the second consecutive year. Highlights include Cold War 2.0 by DOPPELGÄNGSTER, Pulse by Susan Bamford Caleo and Elissa Goodrich, Our Last Tree by Nelipot Collective, Soapboxed by Megan Herbert, and How To Eat Rabbit by Pillow Fight Collective and Jamila Main. Free events include an opening night party, the final La Mama EMERGE show for young theatre-makers (18–26), panels with Griffith University's Performance + Ecology Eco Lab, and site-responsive activations. Show times are staggered to allow multiple daily attendance. Festival organiser Dora Abraham stated, 'Hope is a radical concept these days. In hope we find action.'
Key facts
- La Mama Hope Punk Climate Festival runs 1–20 September in Melbourne.
- The festival features nine feature shows and free events.
- La Mama re-opened its venues in late 2025 after a year of rest and reflection.
- La Mama was denied multi-year operational funding from Creative Australia for the second year running.
- The theatre was gutted by fire in 2018 but resurrected with community support.
- Highlights include Cold War 2.0 by DOPPELGÄNGSTER, Pulse by Susan Bamford Caleo and Elissa Goodrich, Our Last Tree by Nelipot Collective, Soapboxed by Megan Herbert, and How To Eat Rabbit by Pillow Fight Collective and Jamila Main.
- Free events include opening night party, La Mama EMERGE final show, panels with Griffith University's Performance + Ecology Eco Lab, and site-responsive activations.
- Festival organiser Dora Abraham said hope is a radical concept and artists are well-placed to shape important conversations.
Entities
Artists
- Dora Abraham
- Susan Bamford Caleo
- Elissa Goodrich
- Megan Herbert
- Jamila Main
- Alannah Sue
Institutions
- La Mama Theatre
- Creative Australia
- DOPPELGÄNGSTER
- Nelipot Collective
- Pillow Fight Collective
- Griffith University
- Performance + Ecology Eco Lab
- ArtsHub
- ScreenHub
- Time Out
- Limelight
- Urban List
- Sydney Opera House
Locations
- Melbourne
- Australia