Powerful stories to be brought to life at Geelong Arts Centre

Trying to pick a standout from the Geelong Arts Centre’s coming season would be the equivalent of picking a favourite child, chief executive and creative director Rhys Holden said.

Unveiled last month, the program contains a variety of thrilling and world-class performances this year, with reimagined stories, celebrated classics and innovative new works all on the roster.

Much of the program has been locked in for the past year, meaning Holden will have to wait a little longer to unveil his first full program after stepping into the top job in July 2024.

“What we’re trying to do with Season 2025 is really just give an incredible experience to Geelong [and] give the community shows that wouldn’t otherwise be able to tour here – just great stories, do what theatre does best,” Holden said.

“We can often get a bit lost in the day-to-day and I want this to be an escape for people, a place where they can spend two hours sitting with friends, family, colleagues and have an escape.

“What art does so well is show us ourselves but in a different format, in a different context and I think these stories, particularly the ones that are classic, that we keep returning to, they give us hope.”

The first of the season’s nine core performances will begin in March with the Sydney Theatre Company’s The Dictionary of Lost Words, the critically acclaimed stage adaption of the best-selling debut novel by Australian writer Pip Williams.

A fictionalised tale of a true event, The Dictionary of Lost Words follows the making of the Oxford English Dictionary. When the editor’s daughter Esme discovers words in common use, particularly those used by and about women, are not being included, she begins to compile her own dictionary.

Holden said the production exemplifies what the 2025 season is all about: an extraordinary tale, beautifully produced, in this instance with stunning costumes and sets.

It will be joined on the program by Peter Evans’ celebrated take on Romeo & Juliet, Opera Australia’s portrayal of La Bohème – the original bohemian love story that inspired RENT and Moulin Rouge – and coming-of-age drama Looking for Alibrandi, based on the generation-defining 1992 novel of the same name by Melina Marchetta.

“[They’re] just these wonderfully powerful stories that we, as a human, as a community, we keep coming back to,” Holden said.

The Malthouse Theatre’s rendition of The Birds promises audiences a frightening night of theatre when it hits Geelong Arts Centre in June, while Duck Pond offers an exuberant circus take on Swan Lake and The Light Inside brings together two of the world’s great First Nations for a work that honours their mother countries and the spirit that calls them home.

The 2025 season will also see the return of the Family Magic program, which will feature seven heartfelt performances aimed at sparking a lifelong long of the arts in children, while Delightful Days and Matinees will offer six daytime experiences over the course of the year, including a tribute to Dionne Warwick and the songs of Burt Bacharach on February 19.

Now in its third year, the REWIRE program is also back for Geelong Art Centre’s 2025 season and will spotlight five vibrant, daring and unconventional new voices that push the limits of imagination.

Outside of the 2025 season, as Holden continues to make his mark on the arts centre, developing local talent and creating new connections between that talent and professional artists is high on the agenda.

“I love the community aspect of this centre,” he said.

“There’s so many incredible community theatre groups and community dance groups that use this centre.

“How can we bring them into a professional setting? How can they come and work with some of the incredible artists that we have coming through the centre?”

Tickets for the 2025 Geelong Arts Centre season are available at geelongartscentre.org.au

“Try to come and see something new,” Holden said.

“If you see something that delights and inspires you, come.

“Come and see something different, but most importantly, just come.”