Victorian Opera one step closer to becoming major company

Already focused on becoming an opera company for the 21st century, Victorian Opera will soon move into a new state-of-the-art facility in West Melbourne.

Artist impression of Victorian Opera’s new home; image supplied.

In 2019 Victorian Opera will become a major performing arts company as per one of the 118 recommendations of the 2016 National Opera Review. As part of its plans for future growth, the company has secured a long-term lease on new premises in West Melbourne.

The building, a former commercial plasterboard warehouse located some 200 metres from the current North Melbourne train station, will be transformed into a state-of-the-art facility. It will provide Victorian Opera with a second rehearsal studio, dedicated coaching rooms for artists, an artist green room, a music library, and a multimedia suite for live streaming.

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Richard Watts OAM is ArtsHub's National Performing Arts Editor; he also presents the weekly program SmartArts on Three Triple R FM. Richard is a life member of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, a Melbourne Fringe Festival Living Legend, and was awarded the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards' Facilitator's Prize in 2020. In 2021 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Green Room Awards Association. Most recently, Richard received a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in June 2024. Follow him on Twitter: @richardthewatts