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Stonefest

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Stonefest (sometimes referred to as Stone Week) is an annual festival held at the University of Canberra during week eleven of the second semester to celebrate the laying of the university's Foundation Stone. Stonefest is run by UC Live - the music and live entertainment division of the UCX (the University of Canberra Union), who have been responsible for the event for its entire life span.

History

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Stone Day started as a celebration at the University of Canberra held annually to mark the laying of the foundation stone by Prime Minister John Gorton on 28 October 1968. This founded the Canberra College of Advanced Education, which became the University of Canberra in 1990.

The first foundation celebrations were held in 1971. In 1973 Stone Day celebrations were held over two days, which was expanded to take up a whole week in 1976. In the 1980s and 1990s Stoneweek became a popular Canberra entertainment event. In the 1990s it was given themes such as "Return to Woodstock", "Circus", "Back to the Beach", "Alien Abduction", "Oktoberfest", "Halloween" and "Stoneage". In the year 2000 the festival became Stonefest.

For many years Stonefest was the largest music festival in Canberra and a popular one in Australia. In recent years other festivals have made their way onto the Canberra scene, including Groovin' The Moo (also on the University of Canberra Campus) and Foreshore Summer Music Festival, contributing to declining numbers for Stonefest. In 2012, organisers made the decision to return the festival to its roots as a university celebration, re-branding the event as Stone Day, giving it a fresh new look and feel and returning tickets to the student-friendly price of $25.

In June 2019, Stonefest social media channels became active after a long hiatus, teasing the festival's return. On 11 June the lineup for Stonefest 2019 was announced, featuring artists from the local Canberra area, wider Australian music scene and a notable international artist in Example.

Stonefest re-appeared in 2022 post-covid in a smaller capacity on UC Lawns with a star-studded lineup with Vera Blue and Ruby Fields headlining and again in 2023 this time with heavy hitters Ball Park Music and UK sensation Bakar.

Due to the recent success of the festival and community demand, Stonefest will return bigger and better in 2024 with the lineup due to drop in June.

Past lineups

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2001

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"Super Heroes".

2002

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"A New Frontier".

2003

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"Batteries Included".

2004

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"The Proud, The Loud, The Many" (featuring an oriental theme).

2005

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Stonefest 2005

"Your Own Wonderland" headlined by The Living End.

2006

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"Your Own Backyard" headlined by Hoodoo Gurus headlined the 2006 festival.

2007

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"Carnivàle"

2008

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"Celebrating 40 Years"

2009

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"Halloween"

  • Saturday 31 October
  • Superstage (Oval 1), The Bally (Circus and Freakshow performances)
  • In 2009 Stonefest turned into a one-day festival in order to deliver a lineup that competed with the other 1 day music festivals recently introduced into the Canberra market in Trackside and Foreshore Summer Music Festival.
  • Artists included:

2010

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"Turn Up The Heat"

2019

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2022

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2023

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2024

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