We had some good and bad news to start the year.
The bad news was that our first batch of unredeemed culture vouchers expired on 31 December 2025. Giving Culture launched in December 2022, so the very first vouchers we issued had just reached their three-year expiry date. It’s not surprising that some of our vouchers weren’t used – research from Finder last year estimated that $1.25 billion worth of gift cards are being left untouched by Australian consumers.
The good news is that the money from our expired vouchers didn’t disappear into thin air; instead, it was shared amongst the partners we had on board at the time the vouchers were issued – so more than $1500 was disbursed as donations to our founding partners ATYP, ACO and SFF.
While it’s a shame to see these vouchers unused, the great thing is that for any unredeemed culture vouchers that expire in the future, their value will be shared amongst our partner arts organisations. That’s got to be a unique business model for a gift voucher business!
In other big news for 2026, we’ve just launched our latest partner: Ensemble Offspring! EO is Australia’s leading new music group, standing at the forefront of musical innovation for over 30 years. Led by renowned percussionist Claire Edwardes OAM, the ensemble unites the country’s most fearless and virtuosic instrumentalists.
This from Claire: “Giving Culture stood out to us as a chance to reach beyond our existing community of supporters and make some exciting new connections. We love the idea that this partnership could introduce new music to people who might have never thought it was for them!”
If you’d like more information about Giving Culture, contact us or sign up to our monthly emails at givingculture.com.au/contact. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn for other updates and posts on what’s happening at Giving Culture, and in the arts and culture scene in Australia.
Ensemble Offspring
Giving Culture is offering two EO packages with performances starting at the end of February 2026. Avant Gardens Summer is for silver voucher holders, offering two tickets for one of two social salon concerts taking place in Sydney in a lovely private home of generous EO supporters. An Avant Gardens Subscription gives gold voucher holders tickets to all three Avant Gardens concerts in Sydney in 2026 – one each in summer, autumn and spring. Throughout each concert the musicians and composers share stories and background on the works. Afterwards, audience members, musicians, composers and our wonderful hosts can chat over provided drinks and snacks.
Australian Theatre for Young People
In a sweltering small town in Wangaratta, eight-year-olds Maddy and Luke first meet. Maddy’s sure her mum is a famous rockstar — and if she searches long enough, she’ll find her. Over twenty-five years, their story unfolds: past, present, future, and all the painful, beautiful moments in between.
This March, ATYP presents The Last Train To Madeline, showcasing six performers aged ten to twenty-six in this premiere production in ATYP’s new performance space – The Popsy. Following its success in 2024 with Fever103 at The Meat Market in North Melbourne, this stunning new Australian play from award-winning playwright Callum Mackay unfolds on a Sydney stage for the first time. Electric, enchanting and visually stunning, audiences will be propelled back to the nostalgia of first love, the complexities of friendship and the sadness of letting go.
Contact us at info@givingculture.com.au or on (02) 4872 4981 to find out how you can redeem your gold or silver voucher for tickets to this show.
Australian Chamber Orchestra
ACO Up Close: Olli Mustonen plays Beethoven Sonatas
Saturday, 7 March 2026 – one show in Sydney only
Celebrated for his technical mastery and inventive artistry, Mustonen performs the works that transformed piano music for generations. A longstanding friend of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, this talented virtuoso is unmissable in a one‑night‑only appearance in the intimate surrounds of The Neilson at ACO On The Pier.
You can redeem either an ACO – Gold Voucher or ACO – Silver Voucher to put towards tickets for this performance.
The Australian World Orchestra
Following the resounding success of AWO’s 2025 season, Alexander Briger returns with Australia’s finest for an unforgettable 2026 program. The AWO celebrates its 15th anniversary with two 20th-century masterpieces and the world premiere of Songs for a Stranger — a song cycle inspired by the opera Eucalyptus by Jonathan Mills, featuring Australian tenor Michael Petruccelli.
Stravinsky’s Petrushka bursts with colour and vitality, its tragic puppet hero glowing through dazzling orchestration. Mills’s Songs for a Stranger fuses modern textures with emotional immediacy, evoking the Australian soundscape. Finally, Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony, written in Stalin’s shadow, surges from darkness to blazing triumph.
The concerts will be held at Hamer Hall, Arts Centre Melbourne on 19 August and in the Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House on 20 August. You can redeem your gold voucher now for two B Reserve tickets or your silver voucher for two C Reserve tickets to either the Sydney or Melbourne performance.
Sydney Film Festival
The countdown is on – the Sydney Film Festival returns June 3-14. Use your Giving Culture voucher to secure your Flexipass now and get first access to tickets when all 200+ films are announced and on sale on May 6. Plus, you’ll be invited to free preview screenings year-round and get first access to glitzy out-of-season Australian premieres (which last year included nine-time Oscar nominee Frankenstein!). Sydney’s biggest celebration of cinema is just around the corner!
Incognito Art Show
2025 wasn’t just another year for Incognito; it was a landmark. It was its biggest show ever and probably the largest art show in the world by participation. The scale was unprecedented with more than 10,000 artists contributing their talent, and more than 22,000 artworks were exhibited, with 90% sold. As a result, Incognito contributed $210,000 to fund important programs at Studio A and The Art Factory.
Keep an eye out for upcoming announcements from Incognito: its 2026 Sydney venue, which will be its biggest to date, and also the possibility that Incognito might also be popping up in a new city!
In preparation for this year’s exhibition, you can redeem already for an Incognito Art Show – Gold Voucher or an Incognito Art Show – Silver Voucher.