Melbourne Festival is one of Australia's leading international arts festivals and has an outstanding reputation for presenting unique international and Australian events in the fields of dance, theatre, music, visual arts, multimedia, free and outdoor events over 17 days each October.
First staged in 1986 under the direction of composer Gian Carlo Menotti it became the third in the Spoleto Festival series—joining Spoleto, Italy, and Charleston, United States. Known as Spoleto Melbourne - Festival of the Three Worlds, it changed its name to the Melbourne International Festival of the Arts in 1990. In 2003, the Festival was renamed Melbourne International Arts Festival, and is now commonly known as Melbourne Festival.
| 1986—88 | Gian Carlo Menotti |
| 1986—91 | John Truscott AO |
| 1992—93 | Richard Wherrett AM |
| 1994—96 | Leo Schofield AM |
| 1997 | Clifford Hocking AM |
| 1998—99 | Sue Nattrass AO |
| 2000—01 | Jonathan Mills AO |
| 2002—04 | Robyn Archer AO |
| 2005—08 | Kristy Edmunds |
| 2009—12 | Brett Sheehy AO |
| 2013—15 | Josephine Ridge |
| 2016+ | Jonathan Holloway |