As Sydney’s most iconic piece of cultural infrastructure, the Sydney Opera House, prepares to mark its 50th anniversary, the venue’s chief executive Louise Herron asked if Sydney could build something as bold as the Opera House today.
This is a very live, and urgent, question confronting government, developers and those who create culture in this incredible city.
Michael Honeyman looking sharp as Sharpless in Madama Butterfly.Credit: Louise Kennerley
Sydney has much to offer and to celebrate: our wonderful harbour, beaches and natural environment, some of the world’s best restaurants and experiences including our impressive galleries, library, museums plus our first-class sporting facilities.
Thriving international cities are the combination of many things, but Bradfield Oration governor Tony Shepherd some years ago summed up beautifully that a great city can have the best infrastructure, the best facilities and the best location – but it is the city’s culture that is its heartbeat and creates its vibrancy.
Much has been written over the past decade regarding the lack of suitable theatre infrastructure in Sydney, and when the opening of a yet another major hit musical happens in Melbourne, it adds further fuel to an often-told story: Moulin Rouge!, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Come From Away, Kinky Boots, The Book of Mormon and, recently, & Juliet.
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Over the past decade, report after report has been generated by the government and major professional firms to analyse the need for enhanced theatre development, with the consistent recommendation being that Sydney needs more cultural infrastructure to ensure audiences can enjoy the very best theatre productions in its own backyard. The loss of the Regent Theatre in 1988 and Her Majesty’s Theatre in 2000 means Sydney has fewer theatres than Melbourne suitable for staging long-running shows. It will be soon on a par with Brisbane, which next year opens its second Lyric Theatre at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre.
But it isn’t just about having a place to put on shows, it is about culture and great cultural sites being at the very heart of what it is to be a world-class destination. It is about the way culture contributes to the soul of a city, how it views itself and how it is viewed by others. Melbourne proudly celebrates its iconic theatre district as part of its identity. Sydney must do the same if it is to encompass the bold vision, the brave thinking and the determined resilience it took to create the jewel in Australia’s cultural crown – the Opera House.
The world’s most successful producer, Cameron Mackintosh, recognised the importance of cultural places being at the very centre of a city’s culture and has invested more than £250 million ($468 million) in restoring London’s architectural jewels to be enjoyed for generations to come. His eight theatres form part of what is a thriving entertainment district in central London that support not only the city’s cultural life, but the many thousands of businesses around it.