Excitement builds for Geelong Arts Centre opening night

GEELONG crowds are set to get a taste of the city’s new arts centre later this year when it opens its doors to a month-long entertainment festival to celebrate the milestone.

Premier Daniel Andrews was in Geelong last week to announce the August 19 opening date of the redeveloped Geelong Arts Centre.

A four-week festival will follow the opening day as Geelong arts leaders invites the community to experience the city’s new cultural home.

Jessica Mauboy will headline opening night festivities alongside a comedy triple-header that features Dilruk Jayasinha, Lizzy Hoo and Dave Thornton.

Four weeks of events will follow and include performances from national starts like Missy Higgins, Opera Australia and Belvoir St Theatre, a community open day, tours of the new facilities and shows.

A total of 1,000 events are already booked in for the first 12 months of the Geelong Arts Centre.

Mr Andrews last week said he was thrilled to see progress at the $140 million development.

“This will be the most significant and the very, very best regional arts centre anywhere across our country, and that’s exactly what Geelong is entitled to.

It’s about supporting our artists and all those who support them, [because] that creative economy is worth so much to us in tourism, attracting more and more people to regional Victoria.

Geelong Arts Centre chief executive officer and creative director Joel McGuiness said he was thrilled to be reaching the culmination of a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity for the local arts community.

“It really is an incredibly exciting time for us.

“It’s been a long time in the making and the biggest renovation that I’ve ever had – about five years we’ve been building.

“Buildings are important and these facilities that support artists, but we’re really looking forward to seeing how we then support the creative economy, support artists, support people to come here and to make great work.

“[The festival] is a really amazing opportunity for the whole community to get into this space.”

The Little Malop Street redevelopment includes new theatres and performing spaces, an atrium plaza, and dining and hospitality options.

The building’s design also draws on Geelong’s history, the strong and continuing Wadawurrung connections to Country and First Nations culture generally, and the traditions of circus and theatre.

The four-week opening festival will include a combination of free and paid events, but all will be ticketed to monitor capacity.

Tickets go on sale on Monday, May 22 at geelongartscentre.org.au/whats-on/all-events