Melbourne Arts Precinct
Encyclopedia
The Melbourne Arts Precinct (also referred to as Ngargee, which is a Bunurong
word for describing "gathering for celebration") is a series of galleries, performing arts
venues and spaces in Melbourne
, Victoria
, in Australia
. The precinct is situated less than 1 km from the Melbourne city centre
in Southbank
and is centred around, and near, St Kilda Road
. It differs from the Melbourne theatre
district in the city centre, as most of the galleries and venues in the precinct are publicly funded
.
The precinct is also a prime location for the administrative offices, broadcast studios, schools and training institutions of many arts organisations.
In 2008, it was announced by the Government of Victoria the precinct would receive a A$
128 million upgrade, with the major refurbishment of Hamer Hall as its centrepiece. The combined Melbourne Recital Centre
and MTC Theatre complex, which opened in February 2009, recently won the Moore Stephens Award for Public Buildings at the Property Council of Australia - the country's highest award for a public building.
Bunurong
The Bunurong are Indigenous Australians of the Kulin nation, who occupy South-Central Victoria, Australia. Prior to European settlement, they lived as all people of the Kulin nation lived, sustainably on the land, predominantly as hunters and gatherers, for tens of thousands of years...
word for describing "gathering for celebration") is a series of galleries, performing arts
Performing arts
The performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
venues and spaces in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The precinct is situated less than 1 km from the Melbourne city centre
Melbourne city centre
Melbourne City Centre is an area of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia. It is not to be confused with the larger local government area of the City of Melbourne...
in Southbank
Southbank, Victoria
Southbank is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia located direct south of the Yarra River opposite Melbourne's Hoddle Grid. The northernmost area is considered part of the Central Business District and Central Activities District of the city. Its Local Government Area are the...
and is centred around, and near, St Kilda Road
St Kilda Road, Melbourne
St Kilda Road is a street in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is part of the locality of Melbourne which has the postcode of 3004 and along with Swanston Street forms a major spine of the city....
. It differs from the Melbourne theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
district in the city centre, as most of the galleries and venues in the precinct are publicly funded
Public sector
The public sector, sometimes referred to as the state sector, is a part of the state that deals with either the production, delivery and allocation of goods and services by and for the government or its citizens, whether national, regional or local/municipal.Examples of public sector activity range...
.
The precinct is also a prime location for the administrative offices, broadcast studios, schools and training institutions of many arts organisations.
In 2008, it was announced by the Government of Victoria the precinct would receive a A$
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
128 million upgrade, with the major refurbishment of Hamer Hall as its centrepiece. The combined Melbourne Recital Centre
Melbourne Recital Centre
The Melbourne Recital Centre is Melbourne's second largest auditorium for classical music . It was opened in 2009, as part of the Melbourne Recital Centre and MTC Theatre complex, and is located on the corner of Southbank Boulevard and Sturt Street in the Melbourne Arts Precinct,...
and MTC Theatre complex, which opened in February 2009, recently won the Moore Stephens Award for Public Buildings at the Property Council of Australia - the country's highest award for a public building.
Public venues and galleries
- The Arts CentreThe Arts Centre (Melbourne)The Victorian Arts Centre is a performing arts centre consisting of a complex of theatres and concert halls in the Melbourne Arts Precinct, located in the inner Melbourne suburb of Southbank in Victoria, Australia....
, including Hamer Hall, the State TheatreState Theatre (Melbourne)Melbourne's original State Theatre was built in 1929 to seat 3,371 patrons and is situated on Flinders Street. It was conceived as an "atmospheric auditorium", a novelty in Melbourne at the time. Another notable feature was the dual-console Wurlitzer organ, the first to be built "west of Chicago",...
and other venues - National Gallery of VictoriaNational Gallery of VictoriaThe National Gallery of Victoria is an art gallery and museum in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is the oldest and the largest public art gallery in Australia. Since December 2003, NGV has operated across two sites...
- Various venues at the University of MelbourneUniversity of MelbourneThe University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...
's Southbank campus (formerly the Victorian College of the ArtsVictorian College of the ArtsThe Faculty of the VCA and Music is a faculty of the University of Melbourne, in Victoria . VCAM is located near the Melbourne central business district, on two campuses, one - the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music - on the Parkville campus of the University of Melbourne, and the other - the...
), including Space 28, and the Margaret Lawrence Gallery - MTC TheatreMelbourne Theatre CompanyThe Melbourne Theatre Company is a theatre company based in Melbourne. Founded in 1953, it is the oldest professional theatre company in Australia, and has its own theatre, The MTC Theatre – which houses the 500-seat Sumner Theatre and the 150-seat Lawler Studio – located in Melbourne's Arts...
- Melbourne Recital CentreMelbourne Recital CentreThe Melbourne Recital Centre is Melbourne's second largest auditorium for classical music . It was opened in 2009, as part of the Melbourne Recital Centre and MTC Theatre complex, and is located on the corner of Southbank Boulevard and Sturt Street in the Melbourne Arts Precinct,...
- Iwaki Auditorium at the ABC Centre
- Australian Centre for Contemporary ArtAustralian Centre for Contemporary ArtThe Australian Centre For Contemporary Art is a contemporary art gallery in Melbourne, Australia. The gallery is located on Sturt Street in the Melbourne Arts Precinct, in the inner suburb of Southbank....
(ACCAAcca-ACCA as an abbreviation:ACCA may refer to:In Biology* Acetyl-CoA carboxylaseIn Business:* American Corporate Counsel Association, now Association of Corporate Counsel , is a group for attorneys who practice in the legal departments of corporations, associations and other private-sector...
) - Chunky MoveChunky MoveChunky Move is an Australian contemporary dance company from Southbank, VictoriaIt was founded in 1995 and debuted at the Melbourne International Arts Festival with artistic director Gideon Obarzanek....
(part of ACCAAcca-ACCA as an abbreviation:ACCA may refer to:In Biology* Acetyl-CoA carboxylaseIn Business:* American Corporate Counsel Association, now Association of Corporate Counsel , is a group for attorneys who practice in the legal departments of corporations, associations and other private-sector...
) - Malthouse TheatreMalthouse Theatre, MelbourneMalthouse Theatre is the resident theatre company of the Malthouse performing arts complex in Southbank, part of the Melbourne Arts Precinct....
- Sidney Myer Music BowlSidney Myer Music BowlThe Sidney Myer Music Bowl is an outdoor performance venue in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is located in the lawns and gardens of Kings Domain, close to the Arts Centre and the Southbank entertainment precinct...
Arts administration and education
- The Australian Ballet, including the Australian Ballet SchoolAustralian Ballet SchoolThe Australian Ballet School was founded in 1964 as the primary training facility for The Australian Ballet by Dame Margaret Scott. It is part of the Australian Ballet Centre, which is located in the Melbourne Arts Precinct, Southbank in Melbourne, Victoria...
- Chunky MoveChunky MoveChunky Move is an Australian contemporary dance company from Southbank, VictoriaIt was founded in 1995 and debuted at the Melbourne International Arts Festival with artistic director Gideon Obarzanek....
at ACCAAcca-ACCA as an abbreviation:ACCA may refer to:In Biology* Acetyl-CoA carboxylaseIn Business:* American Corporate Counsel Association, now Association of Corporate Counsel , is a group for attorneys who practice in the legal departments of corporations, associations and other private-sector... - Melbourne Symphony OrchestraMelbourne Symphony OrchestraThe Melbourne Symphony Orchestra is an orchestra based in Melbourne, Australia. It has 100 permanent musicians. Melbourne has the longest continuous history of orchestral music of any Australian city and the MSO is the oldest professional orchestra in Australia...
(MSOMSOMSO is an abbreviation that may stand for:Orchestras* Madison Symphony Orchestra, of Madison, Wisconsin, USA* Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia* Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA...
) at the ABC Centre - Melbourne Theatre CompanyMelbourne Theatre CompanyThe Melbourne Theatre Company is a theatre company based in Melbourne. Founded in 1953, it is the oldest professional theatre company in Australia, and has its own theatre, The MTC Theatre – which houses the 500-seat Sumner Theatre and the 150-seat Lawler Studio – located in Melbourne's Arts...
(MTCMTCMTC may stand for:*Magnetic Torquer Coil, an interface used in satellite to control its finer movements*Management and Training Corporation, a contractor known for its private prisons*Mandarin Training Center at National Taiwan Normal University...
). - Victorian College of the Arts Secondary SchoolVictorian College of the Arts Secondary SchoolVictorian College of the Arts Secondary School , is a state government selective school in Victoria, Australia; a leading school and trainer of talented young dancers and musicians. Located in Southbank, within the Melbourne Arts Precinct, VCASS teaches students from Year 7 to 12...
(VCASS) - Australian Broadcasting Commission at the ABC Centre
- Arts Victoria
- Arts Access Victoria
- Malthouse TheatreMalthouse Theatre, MelbourneMalthouse Theatre is the resident theatre company of the Malthouse performing arts complex in Southbank, part of the Melbourne Arts Precinct....
- Melbourne Opera Centre, offices of Opera AustraliaOpera AustraliaOpera Australia is the principal opera company in Australia. Based in Sydney, its performance season at the Sydney Opera House runs for approximately eight months of the year, with the remainder of its time spent in the The Arts Centre in Melbourne...
- University of MelbourneUniversity of MelbourneThe University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...
, Southbank campus - Musica Viva
- More Than Opera