Arts Centres in Rural NSW Towns: Call for Information
Dates
Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:00 am - Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:00 am
Are you involved in an arts centre in a town or village in rural and regional NSW?
If so, we need to hear from you.
UTS Shopfront Community Program and the UTS Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences are currently undertaking research to map arts centres in small towns, describe the role they play in the cultural economy of rural NSW, and report issues affecting their sustainability.
Are you part of a local arts centre supporting local visual arts and crafts, performance, production, design, community arts, learning and teaching, collaborative making and/or retailing?
Are you located in a small town or village of regional NSW with less than 15,000 people?
If so, we need to speak to you.
Please contact Flora Suen, Researcher, Arts Centres in NSW Rural Towns Project, or Lisa Andersen, UTS Shopfront, or call 02 9514 2902.
Please pass on this information.
Contact name Flora Suen
Contact phone 02 9514 2902
Contact email flora.m.suen@student.uts.edu.au
Type Research/ Publication/ Report
Type (other)
Address Line 1
Address Line 2
Town/City/Locality
Suburb
State/Territory
Postcode
Comments
Opera in the Pig Shed This
Opera in the Pig Shed
This morning I spoke to David Fahey who is the publican at Morundah (pop. 20) in the Riverina region of southern NSW.
A few years ago David and the local community converted a pig shed into an opera house – the Paradise Palladium Theatre - that seats around 500 people. Since then have staged an annual opera that attracts up to 1,000 people over two performances. The audience comes from 'most of the town's population' - David wouldn't name names about who didn't attend! - the surrounding area and also from Sydney and Melbourne with even some international visitors.
Ticket sales begin many months before the event - one performance sold out in 3 hours - and it has always turned a profit. The opera and the town have received national and international media coverage over the years (including: http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/morundah-pub-its-next-to-the-damn-opera-...).
Because of the theatre, the town’s infrastructure has improved. There has been new curbing and guttering and wider culverts installed. The main street has been redeveloped and improved with public art, including ‘the most interesting horse sculpture in the world’.
Visitors to the area who used to just drive through the town now tend to stop at the park to look at the artwork and take pictures – around 30 to 40 people per day.
Nearby communities have also benefited with increased numbers of visitors and accommodation provision when the opera is on.
More info at: http://culturalawards2008.lgsa.org.au/projects/24-performance-by-victori...