Matthew Lutton OAM Appointed as Artistic Director of Adelaide Festival

The Adelaide Festival Corporation Board announced today that Matthew Lutton OAM has been appointed as Artistic Director, Adelaide Festival 2026 – 2028. 

Lutton will take the creative leadership of Australia’s pre-eminent cultural event after nine years as Artistic Director and co-CEO of the acclaimed Malthouse Theatre in Melbourne. His appointment follows an extensive global search and significant interest from candidates both internationally and within Australia. 

Lutton will come to Adelaide following his groundbreaking tenure at the helm of one of Australia’s most innovative cultural institutions. During his time as Artistic Director and co-CEO, Lutton elevated Malthouse Theatre’s reputation as a space where classic works are reinterpreted, and visionary worlds are brought to life. Lutton’s leadership shaped Malthouse into a hub of theatre, opera, and dance, captivating audiences and pushing the possibilities of artistic expression to new heights.

Crucially, Lutton also brings a wealth of global collaborative experience to Adelaide Festival, Australia's International Festival. His international connections and partnerships with renowned institutions, including the Royal Lyceum in Edinburgh, the Lyric Hammersmith in London, and the Barbican have elevated the voices of Australian creatives on the global stage.

Lutton's directing credits at the Malthouse Theatre include the first stage adaptation of Picnic at Hanging Rock, which was invited to Edinburgh and London; the international collaboration on the science fiction work Solaris; the Australian premiere of Tom Waits' musical The Black Rider; Australia’s largest immersive theatre production during the COVID pandemic, Because the Night; and the co-direction of the large-scale First Nations work, The Returnby John Harvey, alongside Yora Yora director Jason Tamiru for the RISING Festival.

The annual presentation of a major opera as Adelaide Festival’s centrepiece draws significant attention and excitement to South Australia, and Lutton's deep passion for this art form, coupled with his impressive directorial credits, played a pivotal role in his appointment as Artistic Director. His opera directing credits include: Make No Noise for the Bavarian State Opera, Strauss’ Elektra for Opera Australia and West Australian Opera, and Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman for New Zealand Opera. In 2022 he directed Kurt Weill’s Happy End for Victorian Opera.

Previously, Lutton was Malthouse Theatre’s Associate Director, and Artistic Director of the Perth based independent company, ThinIce.