SA’s creative industries in the spotlight in The Advertiser/Flinders University’s Fearless Conversations series | Watch a full replay

SA has long been known as The Festival State. But is that title at risk? Watch a full replay of today’s Fearless Conversations panel on the future of the arts and creative industries in our state.

Proposals to finally build a concert hall in Adelaide need to be part of a larger, purpose-designed music centre, leading arts industry figures say.

They say the facility should house rehearsal, studio and education spaces, as well as the concert hall for performances by the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, chamber ensembles and contemporary musicians.

The arts were the topic of the latest Fearless Conversations forum held by The Advertiser and Flinders University.

Panellists were SA Film Corporation chief executive Kate Croser, Festival Centre chief executive Douglas Gautier, Fringe director Heather Croall and Flinders’ Assemblage Centre for Creative Arts director Garry Stewart.

“We are looking toward having a new concert hall, which would be brilliant,” Professor Stewart said.

“But it should be … also for electronic music artists and also have recording studios and rehearsal studios, so it’s a whole, total ecosystem.”

For decades, the ASO has called for a dedicated acoustic concert hall to be built. The state government has a new $176,000 report on whether a concert hall should be built but won’t release it before June.

Mr Gautier said Adelaide needed a concert hall with “good acoustic qualities” but that should be part of “a much broader centre for music”.

In 2015, Adelaide was designated as Australia’s only UNESCO City of Music.

“That’s not easy to come by. You really have to prove that the city and community has been involved in music making of all kinds for a long time, and doing it well,” Mr Gautier said.

International examples of music centres include the Sage Gateshead complex in northeast England, as well as the proposed new London Centre of Music collaboration between the Barbican performing arts centre, London Symphony Orchestra and the Guildhall School of Music.

“That’s got all those sorts of facilities and it’s got a remit to look at community involvement as well,” Mr Gautier said.

Ms Croser said one of the difficulties faced by the film industry, and others in SA, was retaining and attracting talent, and facilities were a key to that.

Because people can now work from anywhere, “we need to make Adelaide a really vibrant and fantastic place to live and work,” she said.

While small venues and simple “black box” theatre spaces were also an integral part of the Fringe mix, Ms Croall said these often fed off the existence of larger complexes.

“Music centres and central, state-of-the-art places are really critical in the ecosystem,” she said.

SA ‘The Festival State’ but for how much longer?

Is South Australia still the festival state? It’s a fearless question worth asking – although Adelaide Fringe director Heather Croall is firmly in the affirmative camp.

Ms Croall said while big events were “popping up all over the world”, a full calendar – including many open access programs such as SALA – helped ensure Adelaide remained a “brilliant festival” destination.

Adelaide Fringe director and chief executive Heather Croall. Picture: Supplied

“We can still proudly call ourselves the festival state,” she said.

“There are festivals everywhere, but there are deeper layers to the experience in Adelaide at certain times of the year that are unique.

“It’s all about the alchemy – the creativity comes together with innovation, which comes together with risk-taking and entrepreneurship and then, boom: Adelaide audiences come out in such big numbers.”

Heather Croall with Fringe performers ahead of this year’s successful event. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Naomi Jellicoe

Ms Croall said Adelaide Fringe had been the biggest festival in the world in 2020 – when it wrapped up just before Covid-19 restrictions came into place across SA – and this year, even though performer numbers were down due to the lack of international and interstate artists.

Renowned choreographer and outgoing Australian Dance Theatre artistic director Garry Stewart described the Festival State tag as “interesting”.

Australian Dance Theatre artistic director Garry Stewart, who is also the director of Flinders University’s Assemblage Centre for Creative Arts. Picture: Roy Van Der Vegt

“Every city today has its own festival or multiple festivals but I think what distinguishes Adelaide is the number of them – and the impact on the community, given we’re a small state in terms of population,” Mr Stewart, who has been the director of Flinders University’s Assemblage Centre for Creative Arts since the start of last year, said.

“It’s not a bad moniker to hold on to and aspire towards but we also need to think about the local arts organisations that are making work that aren’t necessarily within the festival context.”

Adelaide Festival Centre chief executive Douglas Gautier on the Queens Theatre stage last year. Picture: Roy Van Der Vegt

Ms Croall and Professor Stewart will tackle a number of arts-related issues during the 12th Flinders University Fearless Conversations forum, to be held this week.

The campaign, in partnership with The Advertiser, has been bringing together leading South Australian voices to tackle some of the big questions facing the state.

Other creative industry figures participating in Wednesday’s 45-minute discussion – to be co-hosted by The Advertiser arts writers Patrick McDonald and Anna Vlach – include Adelaide Festival Centre chief executive and artistic director Douglas Gautier and South Australian Film Corporation chief executive Kate Croser.

SA Film Corporation chief executive Kate Croser. Picture: Supplied

Aside from SA’s reputation as the Festival State and the impact of Covid-19, other issues on the Fearless agenda are likely to include branching out from Mad March, the future of the South Australian film industry and the need for new performing arts venues.

Streamed live on advertiser.com.au on Wednesday from 10.30am, the series encourages the community to engage in the debate about SA’s future. Questions can be submitted through advertiser.com.au or on Twitter via #fearlessconversations