What to expect at Gold Dust, Canberra’s boutique music festival

Posted on 13 February, 2026

Live music, morning yoga, tarot reading, communal art and more – this is what you can expect from Canberra’s boutique music festival, Gold Dust.

First joining Canberra’s festival circuit in 2024, Gold Dust is the brainchild of 28-year-old Hayden Starr and 27-year-old Callum O’Donnell. And if you haven’t heard of it yet, you’d be forgiven.

Running at Gold Creek Station amongst the gumtrees, the 400-person, two-day festival has built a reputation for being an ‘if you know, you know’ event, with many attendees discovering it through word of mouth.

Built from the ground up by and for the community, Gold Dust isn’t about dancing (although there is plenty of that) and drinking – its focus is on the whimsy and magic of art in all forms.

And as Hayden and Callum prepare for its third iteration on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 February, this year’s program is packed with live music, artistic installations, workshops, performances and more.

For Hayden – who became friends with Callum after he “rocked up in the living room one day” – the stories that come out of Gold Dust are almost as important as the night itself. Because while the festival may end, the experience often lingers long after the final set is played.

“The mantra of Gold Dust is community, care and connection. There’s so much beauty in bringing people together on a big and small scale – especially in such an online world,” he explains.

“To create a space where people can dance, laugh and express themselves through how they move their body, or how they dress and to create a space that feels really safe for people to be able to do that like that; that’s really powerful.”

Starting at 12 pm on the Saturday and running until 4 pm on the Sunday, Gold Dust is unlike any other festival in Canberra.

Founders and organisers Hayden Starr and Callum O’Donnell.

As well as featuring musical performances from the likes of Seki (2025 ACT DJ of the Year), CHERIII (a feature of renowned clubs across Europe, including Le Sucre, Sala Apolo and Berghain) and Julie Desire (a French performer who embodies a new queer wave on the European electronic scene), there are also workshops ranging from life drawing and somatic dance to introductions to ecology.

A mini market also will pop up across the event selling clothing and trinkets, a licensed bar will be pouring drinks, and there will also be some hearty meals to keep attendees fuelled so they can enjoy the experience of Gold Dust to its fullest.

“Bringing in visual artists, sculptors and various shenanigans has made it [Gold Dust] into what it is now, with a really unique identity, personality and feel,” says Hayden.

“Our tagline is ‘A boutique festival for old and new friends’…it’s a space that’s designed to facilitate meeting other people. The second day is less about dancing your heart out and more about the creative workshops.”

“It’s just to give people a chance to chat to each other after the chaos of the evening.”

Encouraging attendees to actively participate in a story (with immersive storylines and characters), artwork, or activity, it’s a model that’s worked well for Gold Dust since its inception.

One of Hayden’s favourite stories about the festival and the connections it helps people form happened just last year.

“Someone came to the festival who had just moved to Canberra, and he didn’t know anyone. He saw us posting in a Facebook group and volunteered.”

“I bumped into him months later…he was with a few friends, and he said, “These are all my best friends in Canberra now. I met them all at Gold Dust.”

Taking place on his family’s property in Gold Creek, Hayden admits that even when they saw the festival come to fruition, they never expected it to become an ongoing event.

Working with hundreds of people – from artists to volunteers – for both founders, “it makes it all worth it when you have the privilege of facilitating joy.”

“It’s been really cool to have an idea that doesn’t exist in the world yet, and then to see it come to fruition – especially an idea that involves hundreds of people coming together and having a really nice time,” says Hayden.

“After the first one, like, I was blown away.”

Tickets to Gold Dust include free camping at Gold Creek Station, allowing attendees to sleep in their car, pitch a tent or hang a hammock – whatever it takes to keep the magic going until morning.

With limited tickets available, get in fast before it sells out for the third year in a row.

Photography: Cassie Abraham.