51 Best Performing Arts Venues in Australia

An acclaimed Aboriginal modern dance company, Bangarra Dance Theatre celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2020. The company stages dramatic productions based on contemporary Aboriginal social themes. The performances are described as a fusion of contemporary dance and storytelling; some will have you transfixed by the sheer energy, lighting, and special effects.

Watching a movie beneath the stars while relaxing on canvas deck chairs with a glass of wine at this outdoor, 400-seat movie theater is one of Darwin's quintessential experiences. Australian, foreign, art house, or classic films are screened every night from April through November. Gates open nightly at 6 pm, and picnic baskets (no BYO alcohol) are permitted, although there is a hot food kiosk and a bar. The first movie usually screens at 7:30 pm, with a second showing at 9 or 9:30 pm on Friday and Saturday nights offered for A$10 instead of the usual A$16. Make sure you hold onto your belongings—especially your food!—while you're watching the movie, as there are possums that roam the grounds and love to rummage through things.

The permanent home of the acclaimed Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, this 1,100-seat tiered auditorium welcomes touring musicians and speakers and is adjacent to the Hotel Grand Chancellor. The acoustics here are excellent.

With music, fireworks, indigenous performances, and world-famous artists, this energetic, big-name summer festival brings the city to life. The highly anticipated festival is held February and March in venues throughout the city, and its more highbrow shows are tempered with the raucousness of the Perth Fringe World Festival, which runs in January and February. While most shows for both festivals are ticketed, there are also plenty of free outdoor performances. PF is Australia's oldest and biggest annual arts festival, running for more than 50 years.

Perth’s first—and only—rooftop cinema opened after a summer trial run sold out night after night. It's now one of the city's anticipated seasonal venues. Crowning a seven-story car park, it shows mainstream blockbusters—with the odd cult or classic film thrown in for good measure—on a giant movie screen. It's the perfect date night, complete with a romantic sunset. There's a booze, food, and candy bars, but self-packed picnic baskets are welcome. No BYO alcohol. 

Movies run each night, except Monday, during the warmer months of November through March, weather permitting.

A steel whale's tail sticking out of the ocean and retro kettles cunningly disguised as penguins strapped to a huge rock being lashed by waves are some of the imaginative artworks that have wowed visitors to the annual show called Sculpture by the Sea. Since 1996, artists have positioned more than 100 sculptures on and under rocky outcrops and on hilltops along the much-trodden Bondi-to-Bronte Coastal Walk. This free exhibition runs for two weeks beginning in late October.

State Theatre is the grande dame of Sydney theaters. It operates as a cinema in June each year, when it hosts the two-week-long Sydney Film Festival; at other times this beautiful space hosts local and international performers. Built in 1929 and restored to its full-blown opulence, the theater has a vaulted ceiling, mosaic floors, marble columns and statues, and brass and bronze doors. A highlight of the magnificent theater is the 20,000-piece chandelier that is supposedly the world's second largest, which Robin Williams once likened to "one of Imelda Marcos's earrings." Even if you don't see a show here, it's worth popping into the lobby for a look around, or join a guided tour to get a good look at the theater's many treasures (A$25).

This venue showcases all the performing arts in its five theaters, one of which is devoted to opera. The Australian Ballet, the Sydney Dance Company, and the Australian Opera Company also call the Opera House home. The complex includes two stages for theater and the 2,700-seat Concert Hall, where the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and the Australian Chamber Orchestra perform. The box office is open Monday to Saturday 9–8:30 and until 5 on Sunday.

This vibrant arts center is housed in a trio of repurposed World War II–era oil storage tanks in Cairns's lush Flecker Botanic Gardens, 4 km (2 miles) north of the Cairns city center. It has become a vital creative hub for the region, showcasing everything from dance and theater troupes to local folk, blues, jazz, and Indigenous artists. The Centre hosts a colorful arts and food market, with live music and free kids' activities, on the last Sunday of the month from April to November.

Wharf Theatre, on a redeveloped wharf in the shadow of Harbour Bridge, is the headquarters of the Sydney Theatre Company (STC), one of Australia's most original and highly regarded performance groups. Contemporary British and American plays and the latest shows from leading Australian playwrights such as David Williamson and Nick Enright are the main attractions. The company also performs at the Sydney Opera House and at the new Sydney Theatre just a few doors away, located opposite Pier 6/7 at No. 22 Hickson Road.

This is the city's major venue for the performing arts. The Festival Centre programs four major festivals and the State Opera, the State Theatre Company of South Australia, and the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra also perform here regularly. Performances are in the Playhouse, the Festival and Space theaters, the outdoor amphitheater, and Her Majesty's Theatre at 58 Grote Street. The box office is open weekdays 9–6.

Australia's oldest arts festival takes place annually for 2½ weeks in February and March. It's a cultural smorgasbord of outdoor opera, classical music, jazz, art exhibitions, film, a writers' festival, and cabaret presented by some of the world's top artists; it's held across the city at a variety of venues.

The Fringe Festival, held over four weeks during mid-February and mid-March, is the second largest of its kind in the world. It's an open-access arts festival, featuring cabaret, street performances, comedy, circus, music, visual art, theater, puppetry, dance, and design, all across Adelaide and its surroundings, while regional offshoots take the party all around the state.

In the 2,000-seat State Theatre at the Arts Centre, the Australian Ballet stages six programs annually, and presents visiting celebrity dancers from around the world.

This agency sells tickets for most live performances: ballet, comedy, dance, theater, and more.

Belvoir Street Theatre has two stages that host innovative and challenging political and social drama. The smaller downstairs space showcases a lineup of brave new Australian drama. The theater is a 10-minute walk from Central Station.

Housed in a grand, former coal power station, the Heritage-listed Brisbane Powerhouse hosts frequent, often-free, art exhibitions, live performances, and children's events in its flexible 200- and 400-seat theaters. Cafés, restaurants, bikeways, boardwalks, and picnic areas complement the spacious, contemporary riverside hub, which also adjoins beautiful New Farm Park. A recent renovation added a new café-bar, a roof terrace, and enlarged theater spaces.

Thirty minutes out of the city, the Bungendore Wood Works Gallery exhibits the work of Australian wood artists, whose sculpture and contemporary furniture are made from the finest native timbers.

This precinct combines two performing arts spaces: the Cairns Performing Arts Centre and the Munro Martin Parklands. Munro Martin Parklands hosts audiences in its open-air amphitheater surrounded by lush tropical gardens, while the CPAC features two indoor theaters. Each showcases local and international talent performing across many genres from dance to theater, ballet, music, and comedy.

The city's main live performance space has two different theaters that host productions by the Australian Ballet Company, touring theater companies, and overseas and local artists.

This century-old city landmark was refurbished with such modern refinements as fiber-optic ceiling lights that twinkle in time to the music. The 2,000-seat theater specializes in Broadway blockbusters, such as The Lion King and Mary Poppins, and also hosts pop and rock concerts. Guided behind-the-scenes tours are available (A$38.50); bookings are essential.

Revues and plays are staged at the Comedy Theatre, which along with the Princess, Regent, and Forum theaters is owned by the Marriner Group and uses the same telephone numbers.

Darwin Entertainment Centre has hosted some of the biggest shows from around the world, including many Broadway-level productions. Tickets generally start around A$35 and go up to A$100 depending on the show.

Smaller stage and musical companies perform at neighborhood venues like this one.

A cutting-edge, not-for-profit theater, visit for independent theater, cabaret, and exhibitions.

This ticket booth sells tickets to theater attractions at half price on performance days. It's open Tuesday--Friday, 11 am--4 pm. Phone for information about shows on sale (recorded message), or see listings on the website.

The Australian National University's School of Music has classical recitals and modern-style concerts on-campus at Llewellyn Hall. The Australian Chamber Orchestral also performs here six times a year.

The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra performs year-round in the 2,500-seat Hamer Hall.

Australia's oldest professional theater company stages up to 12 productions per year in various venues around the city, including the Southbank Theatre and the Arts Centre in St. Kilda Road.

Opera Australia has regular seasons, often with performances by world-renowned stars. The length and time of seasons vary, but all performances take place within the Arts Centre.