Venues

Australia’s major performing arts venues

If you’re planning a trip around a performance, the venue is half the experience. A Sibelius symphony in the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall hits differently to the same programme in the Adelaide Town Hall — and that’s not just about acoustics. Here’s our guide to the major venues that the major companies use, what they’re best for, and what to know before you book.

Sydney

• Sydney Opera House — the Concert Hall (home of the Sydney Symphony, recently re-engineered for acoustics) and the Joan Sutherland Theatre (Opera Australia, The Australian Ballet). Plan the night: dinner at the Bennelong, the one-hour bar at the Opera Bar, and stay in The Rocks or Circular Quay so you can walk back at intermission if you forgot something.
• Roslyn Packer Theatre — Walsh Bay. Sydney Theatre Company’s main mainstage. Walk it from Wynyard.
• Seymour Centre — University of Sydney, Camperdown. Bell Shakespeare’s Sydney home; smaller-house theatre.
• City Recital Hall — Angel Place, Sydney CBD. Australian Chamber Orchestra and Brandenburg.

Melbourne

• Arts Centre Melbourne — Hamer Hall (MSO), State Theatre (Opera Australia Melbourne, The Australian Ballet), Playhouse and Fairfax. Whole precinct, easy walk from Flinders Street.
• Southbank Theatre — Sumner. MTC’s home venue. Adjacent to the Arts Centre.
• The Malthouse — Sturt Street, Southbank. Beckett Theatre and Merlyn — Malthouse’s home.
• Melbourne Recital Centre — Sturt Street, Southbank. The country’s best-engineered chamber music hall; Musica Viva and ACO regulars.
• Palais Theatre — St Kilda foreshore. Victorian Opera and touring acts.

Brisbane

• QPAC (Queensland Performing Arts Centre) — South Bank. Concert Hall (QSO), Lyric Theatre (touring musicals, Opera Australia), Playhouse (Queensland Theatre), Cremorne Theatre. South Bank cultural precinct walks straight in from the river.
• Thomas Dixon Centre — West End. Queensland Ballet’s headquarters and small-house performance space, recently renovated.
• Bille Brown Theatre — South Brisbane. Queensland Theatre’s flagship.

Adelaide

• Adelaide Festival Centre — Festival Theatre, Dunstan Playhouse, Space Theatre. The hub for Adelaide Festival, State Theatre Company, State Opera SA. River-side precinct, walking distance from the CBD.
• Adelaide Town Hall — King William Street. Adelaide Symphony Orchestra’s Symphony Series home.
• Her Majesty’s Theatre — Grote Street. Major refurbishment 2020; mainstage musical and opera house.

Perth

• His Majesty’s Theatre — Hay Street, Perth CBD. WA Opera and WA Ballet. Edwardian opera house, beautifully restored.
• Perth Concert Hall — St Georges Terrace. WASO’s symphony home. Currently slated for major redevelopment.
• State Theatre Centre — Cultural Centre, Northbridge. Black Swan State Theatre’s home, plus Heath Ledger Theatre.

Hobart

• Federation Concert Hall — Davey Street. Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra’s home.
• Theatre Royal — Campbell Street. Australia’s oldest continuously operating theatre (1837).
• Salamanca Arts Centre — Salamanca Place. Smaller-scale; key Dark Mofo and Ten Days on the Island venue.

Canberra

• Canberra Theatre Centre — Civic Square. Touring point for major companies; Canberra Symphony’s home.
• Llewellyn Hall — ANU School of Music. Acoustic standout; Musica Viva and chamber circuits.

Regional

Many majors tour to regional centres. The big regional venues we follow are Civic Theatre Newcastle, Empire Theatre Toowoomba, Cairns Performing Arts Centre, Geelong Arts Centre, Wollongong Town Hall, and Albury Entertainment Centre. Our regional touring guide tracks who’s heading where.