By Cara Waters
Arts companies are scrambling for venues to host productions in Melbourne after the State Theatre shut its doors at the Arts Centre for a three-year renovation.
Opera Australia and the Australian Ballet will both stage some performances at the Regent Theatre, which is being reconfigured to accommodate the required orchestra space, but there are concerns the city could miss out on some productions.
The State Theatre at the Arts Centre has closed for a three-year renovation.Credit: Mark Gambino
Producer John Frost, who has both Wicked and Chicago running in Melbourne, said the flow-on effect meant Melbourne would miss out hosting shows during the renovation.
“It will mean that certain shows won’t be able to open in Melbourne, or come to Melbourne permanently, or just won’t happen,” Frost said. “You take out the State Theatre and that tightens the screws a lot.”
Frost said the renovation of the State Theatre – which will be renamed after philanthropist Ian Potter – would benefit future audiences and producers, but in the meantime it made life very difficult for the arts in Melbourne.
“Can you imagine the uproar if the MCG was closed down for three years?” Frost said. “It would be a nightmare. They would hang you, they would lynch you.”
He said he had some existing bookings at Melbourne theatres, but would have to wait until late 2027 or 2028 if he wanted to stage a new show.
The State Theatre closed this month for the renovation, which is part of the $1.7 billion redevelopment of the Melbourne Arts precinct and is scheduled to be completed in 2027.
A spokeswoman for the Melbourne Arts Precinct Corporation (MAP Co) said the renovations would provide access for people with mobility issues, improve lighting and sound, install new flooring and seating, expand the loading dock and create a new rehearsal room, studio space, stage door and two new hospitality venues.
Opera Australia staged its last production at the State Theatre last year and there is no room for the company at the Regent Theatre this year. So it will stage Tosca at Margaret Court Arena in May, The Magic Flute at the Geelong Arts Centre and Eucalyptus, a new Australian opera based on Murray Bail’s book, at the Palais Theatre with the Victorian Opera.
Opera Australia will stage Tosca at Margaret Court Arena while it cannot use the State Theatre.Credit: James Glossop
Opera Australia chief executive Fiona Allan said the company had managed to get into the Regent in 2025, but the theatre posed problems as it was “not a natural opera or ballet venue”.
“It makes it really tricky,” she said. “The Regent is a lovely theatre. I don’t want to be seen to be disparaging of the Regent. It’s great. We’ve had a successful run of musicals in there, it just doesn’t work at the sort of scale that you put opera on.”
Allan said that very little of Opera Australia’s existing repertoire could fit in the Regent and the company would be unable to alternate productions there overnight, which was its usual practice. Instead, it would have nights off, referred to as “dark nights”.
Even before the State Theatre’s closure, Opera Australia faced criticism for an imbalance in programming between Melbourne and Sydney.
Opera Australia chief executive Fiona Allan says little of the company’s repertoire can fit in the Regent Theatre.Credit: Pamela Raith
“We are trying to stay positive about it all, but it’s a major disruption for three years for us,” Allan said. “The generous compensation that we are receiving [from MAP Co] won’t even start to cover the material impact we will be looking at over three years. But we are trying to look for silver linings.”
Australian Ballet executive director Lissa Twomey said the shutdown presented a “range of opportunities”, including the creation of new work specifically for the Regent Theatre, such as the world premiere of Oscar, a ballet choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon based on the life and stories of Oscar Wilde.
Twomey said this was “an exciting coup” for the company but also acknowledged there were challenges ahead.
“The move adds a level of complexity for our technical teams, who will have to manage freight access from the busy Flinders Lane and complex technical requirements in a much smaller theatre,” she said.
The Australian Ballet’s production of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was the last performance at the State Theatre before it closed for renovations.Credit: Jason South
The Melbourne Theatre Company would not be affected by the renovations, a spokesman said.
Both the Australian Ballet and Opera Australia are being compensated for being unable to use the State Theatre, but MAP Co declined to comment on the amount. This was due to “commercial in confidence”, a spokeswoman said.
The Marriner Group is also receiving funding to reconfigure the Regent Theatre for the opera and ballet, and works include elevating the stage and making changes to back of house to ensure it can accommodate extra people.
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