QPAC — Queensland Performing Arts Centre

QPAC — Queensland’s flagship performing arts venue

The Queensland Performing Arts Centre — universally known as QPAC — is the principal performing arts venue in Brisbane and the headquarters of cultural performance in the state. The complex sits at the southern end of the Cultural Centre on South Bank, on a site shared with the Queensland Art Gallery, the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), the Queensland Museum and the State Library of Queensland. QPAC opened in 1985 to a Robin Gibson design and has been progressively expanded since, most recently with the Glasshouse Theatre, QPAC’s fifth theatre, which opened in March 2026. It is the home of the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Queensland Theatre, Queensland Ballet (mainstage seasons), and the touring point for Opera Australia, The Australian Ballet, Bell Shakespeare and the major musical-theatre tours.

The rooms

• Concert Hall — 1,500 seats (up to 1,800 with the on-stage choir balcony). The Queensland Symphony Orchestra’s home, also used for choral, organ recitals (the Concert Hall houses the Klais Grand Organ, with about 6,500 pipes), and the touring orchestral acts. Acoustically warmer and more enveloping than Hamer Hall in Melbourne — the room rewards Romantic-period repertoire particularly well.
• Lyric Theatre — 2,000 seats. The principal mainstage for opera, ballet and large-scale theatre. Queensland Ballet’s full-length productions, Opera Australia’s Brisbane touring opera, and the major musical-theatre tours all use this room. Excellent sightlines for the size of the room.
• Playhouse — 850 seats. Queensland Theatre’s principal mainstage. Used also for smaller-scale dance and chamber-format opera.
• Cremorne Theatre — Up to 274 seats. Configurable space for contemporary theatre, cabaret, and small-scale touring work.
• Glasshouse Theatre (opened March 2026) — 1,500 seats, with an automated fly system and QPAC’s most flexible orchestra pit. It sits between the Lyric and the Playhouse in size and takes ballet, opera, theatre and major musicals (Queensland Theatre has used it too).

Acoustics and seat selection

Concert Hall: front-half stalls or circle middle. The rear stalls hold up better acoustically than the equivalent Hamer Hall position; the room is shallower. Choir stalls behind the orchestra are the cheap-seat option.

Lyric Theatre: front-half stalls and dress circle middle. The room is well-engineered for opera and ballet but the dress circle has a slightly better sound balance than the stalls for symphonic-scale opera (Verdi, Wagner). Avoid the upper levels at the side.

Playhouse: smaller and more intimate; excellent sightlines throughout. Stalls front-half is ideal.

Getting there and what to do nearby

Train to South Brisbane station, directly opposite QPAC on Grey Street (one stop from Roma Street, two from Central). Bus on the Cultural Centre busway. Walk across Victoria Bridge from the CBD (10 minutes). The on-site car park is the easiest option for a Brisbane visitor — book online. CityCat ferry to South Bank is the most pleasant approach if you have time.

Pre- and post-show dining: the on-site QPAC restaurants (Lyrebird is the flagship, with more casual options in Cascade Court and beside Melbourne Street Green) are the standard pre-curtain options. South Bank’s Grey Street and Little Stanley Street precincts are dense with restaurants, and the CBD is a ten-minute walk across Victoria Bridge.

Good to know

QPAC’s accessibility programme is one of the most developed in the country — Auslan-interpreted, audio-described and relaxed performances, tactile tours, Auracast assisted listening in the Lyric, Concert Hall, Glasshouse and Playhouse, and excellent wheelchair access. Backstage tours run on selected days; book through the website. The Cultural Centre precinct location means a single-day pairing easily covers QPAC matinee, GOMA exhibition, and the Queensland Art Gallery in walking distance. The Lyric Theatre and Concert Hall bars open 90 minutes before curtain (the Playhouse and Cremorne bars 60 minutes); order interval drinks at the bar before the show to skip the queue.

Correction, 11 November 2026: We corrected factual errors in this article, including details such as dates, figures, names and venue information, after an editorial review.