Imagine a place where scientists grace centre stage, microscopes live on bar tables, and late-night conversations have the potential to change the world. Welcome to Beaker Street Festival, where science brings us together.

Each August, thousands of visitors from across the country and beyond descend on Tasmania to dive into big ideas, deep discussions, and wild adventures—all set against the raw beauty of Tasmania's winter landscape.

For nearly a decade, our program has featured some of science's biggest names – from Nobel Laureate Brian Schmidt and Australian astronaut Katherine Bennell-Pegg, to TikTok star AstroKirsten and legendary environmentalist Prof Tim Flannery, alongside legends of science communication like Dr Karl, Tegan Taylor, Robyn Williams, Adam Spencer, Wendy Zukerman, and many more.

Our 2026 program will be announced in May.

What's on:

Events and points of interest around Hobart.

8 Feb 2026 - 1 Apr 2026
Van Diemen’s Land Circumnavigation Cruise
The Van Diemen's Land Circumnavigation Cruise is an internationally well-regarded yachting adventure in which a maximum of forty five yachts.
20 Feb 2026 - 24 May 2026
Maritime Museum Tasmania presents Sue Pedley’s ‘Prevailing Gales’
Maritime Museum Tasmania presents a remarkable new exhibition by Tasmanian-born artist Sue Pedley.
20 Mar 2026 - 2 May 2026
Fighting Spirit: The Art of Boxing
Arising from postwar disaffection, combined with the political and countercultural youth movements of the 1960s, the European avant-garde rejected the cinematic conventions of the past.
11 Dec 2025 - 26 Apr 2026
Hobart Current: Here
Hobart Current: Epoch is a thought-provoking contemporary program and exhibition, featuring new works created by 10 artists in response to the theme of ‘epoch’.
6 Feb 2026 - 31 May 2026
Restoring the Past
Step into the world of art conservation and discover the intricate process of preserving history.
5 Mar 2026 - 28 Mar 2026
Stephanie Tabram | “The River” | Exhibition
This highly anticipated exhibition by Stephanie Tabram traces the River Derwent from its rugged source on Tasmania's Central Plateau.
25 Mar 2026 - 25 Mar 2026
Ravel, Mahler and Beethoven
From its whip-crack opening, Ravel's Piano Concerto in G is famously fun for the audience and notoriously difficult to play.
26 Mar 2026 - 28 Mar 2026
Things I Know To Be True
Tasmanian Theatre Company and Mudlark Theatre's Things I Know To Be True is a tender portrait of the fragility and strength of familial bonds.
6 Jun 2025 - 6 Apr 2026
Arcangelo Sassolino: in the end, the beginning
Italian sculptor Arcangelo Sassolino brings his experiments with force, change and some very hot steel to Mona.
26 Mar 2026 - 26 Mar 2026
WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU MAKES YOU FUNNIER – Comedy Show
“What if life’s most awkward, chaotic, and downright terrifying moments weren’t just survivable… but hilarious?
All events