To celebrate the reopening of the Ian Potter State Theatre, Arts Centre Melbourne has announced that Victorians are invited to Housewarming (9 – 12 October), a series of spectacular free performances putting the spotlight on some of the state’s best performing artists.
18,000 free tickets will be available to the fast-paced high-energy theatre experience, specially commissioned to reopen the Ian Potter State Theatre. Housewarming features dance, circus, music and theatre from leading performing arts companies and artists, directed by the acclaimed Melbourne theatre-maker Michael Kantor.
“The reopening of our renewed Ian Potter State Theatre is a huge milestone for Arts Centre Melbourne and a great achievement for all who have worked to make it a reality,” said Arts Centre Melbourne Chief Executive Officer Karen Quinlan, AM.
“This refurbishment means there is a future for our beloved theatre to showcase world-class performances, and we are delighted to welcome our resident companies home. We can’t wait to welcome audiences back into the theatre and for the community to enjoy all it has to offer.”
In Housewarming, award-winning musical comedy star Jude Perl will take audiences on a journey in search of the mysterious Lyrebird missing from the theatre’s iconic red curtain. Perl is joined by Principal Artist Brett Chynoweth (The Australian Ballet), singer-songwriters Emma Donovan and Eliza Hull, as well as dancer, roya the destroya, Circus Oz, Opera Australia (The Magic Flute), The Australian Ballet (Choreography by Tim Harbour), Melbourne Theatre Company (My Brilliant Career) and Bell Shakespeare (Mackenzie).
Also featured are The Australian Ballet School (Butterfly), Stephanie Lake Company (The Chronicles), a new commission by Robin Fox, Melbourne children’s choir The Yarra Voices, Cypher Culture x Jungle City, and musical theatre students from the Victorian College of the Arts.
Family-friendly performances have been scheduled to mark the iconic theatre’s reopening, with much-loved performers The Listies taking the stage on Sunday 11 October as part of the Housewarming line-up, to ensure fun for all ages.
On Monday 12 October shows for schools have been scheduled. All performances are free and with tickets expected to be in high demand members of the public are encouraged to book online from 10.00am to secure a seat. Housewarming has been made free for Victorians through the generosity of donors to Arts Centre Melbourne.
Entry to ENCORE! – a new exhibition at AMPA celebrating 50 years of the Australian Performing Arts Collection will be free across the Housewarming weekend. Visitors can also enjoy free guided tours, DJ sets, and roaming performances from Born in a Taxi.
A line-up of food trucks will roll into the Forecourt serving delicious authentic Italian woodfired pizza, flavourful Korean and Japanese street food, and premium Greek doughnuts all weekend. Also on offer will be a Connoisseur ice cream pop-up and treats from Arts Centre Melbourne’s Protagonist Cafe and The Barre.
In addition, over two nights – 9 October and 10 October – visitors can experience a dazzling laser light show, Spire Alight, on the iconic Theatres Building Spire. Using cutting-edge laser-light technology to trace every striking architectural detail – including its iconic ‘ballerina’ steel skirt – the Spire will be transformed from a static metallic tower into a breathtaking animated artwork, glowing to life in a spectacular laser-mapped light show.
Arts Centre Melbourne’s Ian Potter State Theatre is reopening six months ahead of schedule following its first major refurbishment since opening in 1984.The theatre, which closed for upgrades in March 2024, will be the first completed milestone of the Victorian Government’s city-shaping Melbourne Arts Precinct Transformation project. The first performance at the upgraded theatre will be a world-premiere First Nations-led concert, Gugu Dindi Gunyah (Many Rivers. One Home) on Saturday 3 October.
“We can’t wait to reopen the doors of the Ian Potter State Theatre’s to thousands of Victorians, free of charge. This landmark redevelopment will strengthen Victoria’s creative economy and kickstart the next chapter for the precinct,” said Minister for Creative Industries Vicki Ward.
The extensive refurbishment has made the theatre more accessible by allowing audience members with mobility challenges for the first time to choose seating across all levels. Two new lifts will also assist patrons to access the new wheelchair positions in the Stalls. New aisles have been introduced in the Stalls and Circle, and new rows were added to the Balcony.
The upgrades have also made the theatre a more comfortable place for audiences through improved heating and cooling. There have also been technical upgrades to lighting and sound systems, as well as a careful preservation of the theatre’s heritage grandeur originally designed by John Truscott.
Bigger than four tennis courts, the Ian Potter State Theatre stage is the largest stage in the Southern Hemisphere. It’s also the home of resident companies, the Australian Ballet and Opera Australia. After the theatre reopens, works will continue throughout the Arts Centre Melbourne Theatres Building, including the construction of a new and accessible stage door, space for a new flexible rehearsal area and two new food and beverage offerings.
Following Housewarming, the Ian Potter State Theatre reopening program will continue with Opera Australia’s The Wagner Gala Concert on 16 October, The Australian Ballet’s season of Sir Peter Wright’s The Nutcracker from 24 – 31 October and the first musical in the upgraded theatre, Opera Australia’s 70th Anniversary production of My Fair Lady from 14 November 2026 – 17 January 2027.
Arts Centre Melbourne also announced that the Ian Potter State Theatre stage will host an epic free concert Soundtrack to Our Lives on 18 April 2027. Created by Joseph O’Farrell (JOF) the new participatory work is a Betty Project, an initiative creating large-scale community experiences.
From 22 – 24 April 2027 an exhilarating high-flying spectacular, The Next Big Thing, will take the stage, a new intergenerational show from Circus Oz and the Flying Fruit Fly Circus, exploring what we can learn when generations defy gravity and expectation together.
For more information about Arts Centre Melbourne, visit: www.artscentremelbourne.com.au for details.
Images: Jude Perl, Emma Donovan, Brett Chynoweth and Circus Oz will perform at Housewarming – photo by Daniel Boud | Brett Chynoweth – photo by Daniel Boud | Olivia Newton-John on Olivia, ABC-TV, 1978, Photographer unknown, Purchased, 2020, Australian Performing Arts Collection, Arts Centre Melbourne | Costume worn by Kylie Minogue in Spinning Around video, 2000, Gift of Kylie Minogue, Cultural Gifts Program, 2004, Australian Performing Arts Collection, Arts Centre Melbourne | Hugh Jackman as Peter Allen in The Boy From Oz, 2006, Photograph by Jeff Busby | Ossie Ostrich puppet from television program Hey Hey It’s Saturday, c 1972. Designed by Axel Axelrad. Gift of Ernie Carroll, 1998. Australian Performing Arts Collection, Arts Centre Melbourne | Arts Centre Melbourne at night (supplied)