Her Excellency Professor the Honourable Margaret Gardner AC, Governor of Victoria makes first official visit to Geelong Arts Centre

Her Excellency Professor the Honourable Margaret Gardner AC, Governor of Victoria made her first official visit to Geelong Arts Centre on Thursday 3 April.

Geelong Arts Centre Chair, Lesley Alway and CEO & Creative Director, Rhys Holden hosted a special tour of Geelong Arts Centre, highlighting the Centre’s cultural, community, and economic impact on the Geelong region.

Geelong Arts Centre continues to cement its place as Australia’s biggest regional arts centre and the creative heart of Geelong, delivering world-class productions while fostering deep local accessibility and championing emerging talent.

In 2024, audience visitation to Geelong Arts Centre surged by an impressive 80% year-on-year, reflecting its growing draw as a cultural destination with expanded capacity and programming following the Victorian Government backed $180 million redevelopment in 2023.

The tour itinerary included a construction site visit to Geelong Arts Centre’s Church Redevelopment, with internal refurbishment underway for its transformation into Geelong’s new home for live music, comedy, theatre, dance, and performance.

The Ryrie Street-facing heritage church, dating back to 1857, was restored during and revealed as part of the Victorian Government redevelopment in 2019. The new Church venue is in partnership with local community and enabled by the generosity of numerous donors.

Set to open in early 2026, the redeveloped church on Ryrie Street will be a space for independent and emerging artists, providing an intimate, artist-led, affordable venue to nurture diverse voices and support sustainable regional artistic careers.

The Governor also enjoyed a tour of the state-of-the-art studio spaces that support Geelong Arts Centre’s Creative Engine initiative. A program designed to support and nurture local and emerging artists by providing them with the resources, space, and funding needed to develop new work.

Reinforcing its commitment to nurturing local artistic talent, Creative Engine has provided over $1.3 million in funding and in-kind support to more than 850 emerging artists since 2019, fuelling the next generation of local performers, playwrights, and creatives.

“With more than 40 years of creative expression, the Geelong Arts Centre has a proud history of delivering music, theatre and performances for regional Victorians.”

“It was a pleasure to tour the Centre, which is more than bricks and mortar – it’s a vital and deserved cultural asset for Geelong and the broader region.”

Quotes attributable to Her Excellency Professor the Honourable Margaret Gardner AC, Governor of Victoria

"We are honoured to welcome Her Excellency Professor the Honourable Margaret Gardner AC, Governor of Victoria to Geelong Arts Centre on her first official visit to the region.”

Quotes attributable to Chair, Geelong Performing Arts Trust, Lesley Alway

“What a wonderful opportunity to share our rich history and the vital role Geelong Arts Centre plays as a regional cultural leader, serving local communities and supporting emerging artists to thrive.”

Quotes attributable to CEO and Creative Director, Geelong Arts Centre
Rhys Holden