WA Showcase Puts Performing Arts Audiences at the Forefront in 2026
WA Showcase, Western Australia’s largest annual performing arts market and conference, returns to Subiaco Arts Centre from 4 to 7 August with an audience-focussed program designed to build capacity and support engagement with performing arts audiences across the State.
Hosted and delivered by CircuitWest, WA Showcase brings together over 200 presenters, producers, artists and arts workers from across Western Australia for four days of collaboration and capacity building.
This year’s program opens with Kyle Morrison’s keynote presentation A Boy Like Me, exploring his 30-year journey in the arts industry and his work championing Noongar language and challenging perceptions of classical Western performance traditions through a First Nations lens, and its impact on audience connection and storytelling.
Bringing her experience across the arts, culture and social impact sectors, Patternmakers Director Tandi Palmer Williams will lead a series of sessions introducing a new approach to audience development. Delegates will explore practical strategies grounded in systems thinking and collaborative models of growth, including how to look beyond existing audiences, strengthen partnerships, and take actionable steps to better understand and engage key audience segments in a changing environment.
Delegates will also hear key findings from Shifting Seats: Trends in Live Event Attendance and Ticket Buying, new research released by CircuitWest and Culture Counts that highlights the changing audience expectations and shifting consumer habits reshaping how Western Australians are engaging with the performing arts.
Philippa Maughan, Executive Director of CircuitWest, says this year’s WA Showcase program equips delegates with practical tools to grow and retain audiences across Western Australia.
“This year, WA Showcase puts audiences at the centre of how we think about the future of the performing arts sector. The program is focused on building the skills and knowledge needed to grow audiences, strengthen engagement and support long-term participation across Western Australia.”
WA Showcase’s performing arts market will feature more than 40 tour-ready pitches from artists and companies seeking to engage audiences across the State. This year’s line-up includes Black Swan State Theatre Company, Marrugeku, and Australian Baroque and new works from Goolarri Media, Co3 Contemporary Dance Australia and Barking Gecko Arts, as well as a range of new artists developing fresh work for Western Australian audiences.
Early Bird registrations will close on 19 July 2026 and are now available at About WA Showcase – Registration
To view the full WA Showcase 2026 program, visit: About WA Showcase – Program
WA Showcase is proudly supported by our venue partner, Arts and Culture Trust, and the WA Government through the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport and the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.
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Media Contact:
Weng-Si Cheang, Manager, Research and Audience Development
Phone: 08 6202 1045
Email: wcheang@circuitwest.com.au
Image: WA Showcase 2025. Photo by Infinite Productions.