The Mardi Gras Party is back for 2027, moving underground beneath Allianz Stadium, and tickets start selling on Monday
The Sydney Mardi Gras Party, cancelled weeks before this year's parade after years of losses, will return on Saturday 6 March 2027 in the tunnels beneath Allianz Stadium. Mardi Gras members can buy tickets from 11am AEDT on Monday 9 November, the lineup is due on Tuesday, and general sales open on Thursday 12 November. It anchors a 24-day festival, the longest yet, in the run-up to Mardi Gras's 50th anniversary in 2028.
Three things to know
- The party runs from 10pm on parade night, 6 March 2027, until 6am, in the tunnels under Allianz Stadium (Sydney Football Stadium), presented with promoters Kicks Entertainment and Bizarro.
- It was scrapped in early 2026 after what Mardi Gras called a significant financial loss over two years; it had been running at a deficit since 2020 and was costing about $2 million, more than the parade itself.
- Tickets: member presale 11am AEDT (8am AWST) Monday 9 November; lineup Tuesday 10 November; general sale 11am AEDT (8am AWST) Thursday 12 November.
Sydney’s biggest night of the queer calendar has its after-party back. Mardi Gras chief executive Jesse Matheson has confirmed the Mardi Gras Party will return on Saturday 6 March 2027, straight after the 49th parade, in a venue it has never used before: the tunnels beneath Allianz Stadium in Moore Park.
The party will run from 10pm to 6am. Mardi Gras members get the first chance at tickets from 11am AEDT on Monday 9 November, and the full lineup, including the headliner, will be revealed on Tuesday 10 November. General sales open at 11am AEDT on Thursday 12 November through the Mardi Gras website. Prices have not yet been published.
Matheson told the festival’s launch that he knew how much people had missed the party, and that he had missed it too.
Why was it cancelled?
The party was axed just weeks before the 28 February 2026 parade. Matheson said at the time that it had caused a significant financial loss over two years and had been running at a deficit since 2020. The 2026 event was estimated to cost about $2 million, more than the parade itself, and organisers lost their headline act over the Christmas break before its replacement also pulled out. He described uncertainty over new sponsorship as an existential threat to Mardi Gras.
That is a long way from the party’s peak, when it hosted Kylie Minogue, Cher and Dua Lipa and was a major earner that helped pay for the parade.
What is different this time?
The 2027 party is presented in partnership with promoters Kicks Entertainment and Bizarro, and moves into a new space under the stadium. Kicks and Bizarro director Ryan Sabet said the party was where many in the queer community “found their people”.
What else is on in the 2027 festival?
The festival runs for 24 days, from 12 February to 7 March 2027, a week longer than usual, under the theme Hyperbloom. Highlights announced so far:
- Fair Day at Victoria Park on Sunday 14 February, headlined by Rogue Traders, with Zipporah, Becca Hatch, Jett Blyton and Dizzy Days.
- A new free Rainbow Road Street Fair in Darlinghurst on 20 February, the same night as the ninth Sissy Ball at Sydney Town Hall.
- Rufus Wainwright with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, reworking songs from Want One and Want Two.
- Ultra Violet at Carriageworks on 26 February, headlined by KUČKA, who also wrote and produced the festival’s theme song.
- The 49th parade along Oxford Street on 6 March, free to watch, on a route added to the National Heritage List this year.
- Laneway on Sunday 7 March, closing the festival with Clementine Douglas.
More than 100 more events are planned under the Mardi Gras+ community program.
What does it mean for visitors?
For interstate and overseas visitors, parade night is a two-part event again: the free parade on Oxford Street, then the party until dawn. Tickets are on sale four months out, so anyone planning a Sydney trip for 6 March can lock in both now. For readers in the west, member presale opens at 8am AWST on Monday.
How we got here
The key moments that brought this story into focus. Open any moment for detail.
1978First Mardi Gras
The first Sydney Mardi Gras march is held on Oxford Street.
2020Losses begin
The party starts running at a deficit, Mardi Gras later says.
January-February 2026Party cancelled
Organisers scrap the 2026 party weeks before the parade, citing significant financial losses.
28 February 2026Parade without a party
The 48th parade goes ahead on Oxford Street.
5 November 20262027 program launched
Mardi Gras announces the Hyperbloom festival and the party's return beneath Allianz Stadium.
What happens next
Member presale opens at 11am AEDT on Monday 9 November, the party lineup is announced on Tuesday 10 November, and general sales open at 11am AEDT on Thursday 12 November. The festival begins on 12 February 2027 and the parade and party are on Saturday 6 March 2027. Mardi Gras marks its 50th anniversary in 2028.
Sources
- VNN
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