MELBOURNE: Arts Centre extended
Work to upgrade and expand Arts Centre Melbourne’s iconic Theatres Building has reached a major milestone.
Colin Brooks (pictured), Minister for Creative Industries, last week inspected the site, which extends the basement of the Theatres Building to make way for new and expanded facilities, increasing the centre’s capacity to host world-class performances.
Excavation behind the Theatres Building has resulted in the removal of 15,644m3 of earth and reached the required depth of approximately 14 metres underground.
This will create space for a new flexible rehearsal space and studio, with an adjoining function room, which will support the successful staging of performances and provide new amenities for creative workers and performers.
The expanded loading dock – twice the size of the current dock – will include two new scenery truck lifts, allowing faster and safer bump-in-and-out times for productions, which will mean the centre can add even more performances to its already busy calendar of shows.
This extension increases the space of the Theatres Building by around 16 per cent. Upgrades inside the State Theatre will result in improved accessibility, acoustics, theatre technology and comfort.