Navigating Arts Centre Melbourne: What you Need to Know
Most Melburnians know Arts Centre Melbourne by its spire, but I’ve found that even regular visitors are often surprised by just how much sits underneath it. Between the Theatres Building, Hamer Hall and the Sidney Myer Music Bowl, there are six different stages here (though one is currently closed for refurbishment, more on that below), and knowing which one you’re heading to, and how to find it, makes the whole outing far more relaxing.
Related reading: see our Melbourne Concerts guide and Melbourne Theatre guide for more on what’s showing across the precinct.
About Arts Centre Melbourne
Arts Centre Melbourne is Australia’s largest performing arts centre, hosting more than a thousand performances a year across opera, ballet, theatre, comedy, classical and contemporary music.
It’s made up of three main buildings: the Theatres Building under the iconic spire (home to the Ian Potter State Theatre, Playhouse, Fairfax Studio and The Show Room), the freestanding Hamer Hall on the riverbank, and the open-air Sidney Myer Music Bowl in the Kings Domain Gardens nearby.
It’s also home to the new Australian Museum of Performing Arts (AMPA), housed inside Hamer Hall, and the free Australian Music Vault, tucked under the spire in the Theatres Building.
The Venues, One by One
Four of these venues sit under the spire in the Theatres Building: the Ian Potter State Theatre, Playhouse, Fairfax Studio and The Show Room. Hamer Hall and the Sidney Myer Music Bowl are separate buildings, so it’s worth knowing which one you need before you set off.
Ian Potter State Theatre is currently closed for a major refurbishment, having shut its doors in March 2024. It reopens on 3 October 2026 with a world-premiere First Nations concert, Gugu Dindi Gunyah (Many Rivers. One Home), created and led by Mutti Mutti, Nari Nari, Yorta Yorta Songman Kutcha Edwards and sung entirely in the Aboriginal languages of Song Keepers from across Victoria. It’s a significant choice for an opening night on a stage that sits on the ancestral lands of the Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung people, and by all accounts one worth getting tickets for. Opera Australia and The Australian Ballet return to the stage later that October and November. The upgrade adds wheelchair positions and two new lifts in the Stalls, new aisles through the Stalls and Circle, upgraded seating, and improved sound, lighting and climate control, while keeping the heritage features people love, including John Truscott’s original gold-leaf ceiling design. Before the closure, it seated around 2,000 and had one of the largest stages in the world, bigger than four tennis courts, which is part of why it suited large-scale opera, ballet and musicals so well. Until it reopens, Opera Australia and The Australian Ballet are performing at the Regent Theatre instead.
Playhouse is an 884-seat theatre under the spire, used for a wide range of theatrical productions, including many Melbourne Theatre Company shows.
Fairfax Studio is the most intimate of the spire venues, a 376-seat space often used for smaller, more experimental or close-up work.
The Show Room is the newest addition under the spire, an intimate 150-seat studio theatre tucked between the Playhouse and Fairfax Studio, which opened in 2024.
Hamer Hall is the largest venue overall and the city’s premier concert hall, seating around 2,500 people, in its own building on the riverbank. It’s the regular home of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and a favourite stop for the Australian Chamber Orchestra and touring artists. We’ve written a separate guide to visiting Hamer Hall if that’s where you’re headed. It’s also where you’ll find the new Australian Museum of Performing Arts (AMPA), and where Morning Melodies, Melbourne’s much-loved monthly daytime concert series, is held.
Sidney Myer Music Bowl is the outdoor option, set in the Kings Domain Gardens a short walk from the main precinct. It holds around 12,000 people on the lawn and 2,150 in reserved seating, and is used for everything from orchestral performances to major contemporary concerts. We’ve also written a separate guide to visiting Sidney Myer Music Bowl if that’s where you’re headed.
Terrie’s review
One of our readers, Terrie, sums up the feel of the place nicely:
“Love this venue, very stylish. It can be a little confusing but lots of helpful, friendly ushers to show you the way. The seats in the theatre are very comfortable.
Tip: You can pre-order your interval drink at the bar before the show and avoid the queues at interval!
They have a wonderful children’s program during the school holidays, we’ve been to a few times and love the performance which is often followed by a small craft activity in the foyer for kids to get the most out of it.”
What’s on at the Arts Centre
Booking your tickets: Most people book online through the Arts Centre Melbourne website, where you can preview your seat before committing. If you’d rather speak to someone, phone bookings run Monday to Saturday, 9am to 4.30pm, on 1300 182 183. There are two Box Office locations if you’d prefer to book in person: one at Hamer Hall and one under the spire in the Theatres Building, both open Monday to Saturday, 11am to 4pm.
What’s typically on: The calendar runs across classical music, opera, ballet, theatre, comedy, musicals, contemporary music, circus and magic, and dedicated kids’ and family programming, with resident companies including the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Opera Australia, The Australian Ballet, Melbourne Theatre Company, Victorian Opera, the Australian Chamber Orchestra and Bangarra Dance Theatre.
There are also regular festivals and series throughout the year, including the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, RISING, Now or Never, and Morning Melodies, alongside free events, exhibitions, talks and workshops.
It’s worth checking the What’s On page for current dates rather than assuming a favourite show or series is on when you visit.
Make it a proper visit
There’s enough here to fill an afternoon even without a ticket to a show, so it’s worth arriving early rather than rushing in just before curtain up.
The Australian Museum of Performing Arts (AMPA) is the newest addition, housed inside Hamer Hall, with rotating exhibitions on Australia’s performing arts history. The next exhibition, ENCORE! Is set to open in September.
If you’re after something free, the Australian Music Vault sits under the spire in the Theatres Building and tells the story of Australian music through memorabilia and recordings, no ticket required.
Arts Centre Tours
If you’d rather have someone show you around and tell the stories behind the building, our behind-the-scenes review of the Arts Centre Melbourne Tours covers what to expect, including cost, timing and accessibility. Available most days, it’s a nice way to see parts of the building you wouldn’t otherwise get into, and pairs well with a Morning Melodies concert or another matinee. On Sundays, the Collection Store Tours take you behind-the-scenes of the largest performing arts collection in Australia.
Terrie’s review
Going on a “Behind the Scenes” tour of Hamer Hall and the Arts Centre in Melbourne was quite a thrilling experience. We were taken into offside rooms and nooks and crannies that you don’t know about if you just attend a performance at one of the theatre rooms. We also learnt about the history of the buildings and the architect.
Read also: Arts Centre Melbourne Tours: a Peek Beneath the Spire
Eat & Drink
If you’re after a pre-show dinner, The Barre sits on the ground level of the Theatres Building, beneath the spire, with a seasonal modern Australian menu, full drinks list and a happy hour from 4pm to 6pm daily. It stays open late, so it doubles as a spot for a post-show drink too. On Morning Melodies performance days, The Barre puts on a special lunch menu just for that crowd, so it’s well worth wandering over after the concert finishes at Hamer Hall.
For something quicker, Protagonist is an al fresco café right out the front of the Theatres Building, and Allegro on Level 5 offers similar light fare, sandwiches, wraps and salads, with both serving coffee and a range of drinks. Foyer bars are dotted through every level of both the Theatres Building and Hamer Hall, handy for a pre-show drink or snack.
Over at Hamer Hall, two partner restaurants make the most of the river views: Saké for modern Japanese, and Teatro for Mediterranean cuisine and tapas. Both are worth booking ahead if you’re planning a sit-down meal either side of a concert.
The whole precinct is cashless, so bring a card rather than cash for any of these.
Insider tips for your visit
- Check which building you need. “Arts Centre Melbourne” covers several separate buildings, so double-check whether your show is in the Theatres Building (under the spire) or Hamer Hall (the round building on the river), as they have separate entrances.
- Use the seat preview tool when booking online. It gives you a look at the view from your seat before you commit, which is handy if legroom or sightlines matter to you.
- Allow extra time for parking. Ongoing precinct construction means it’s worth budgeting an extra 30 minutes for getting in and out of the car park. On-site parking starts from $17. We recommend public transport, more info below.
- Pre-order your interval drink. One of our readers swears by ordering at the bar before the show starts, so there’s no queue to fight at interval.
- Photography is fine in the foyers, not during performances. Check with staff if you’re ever unsure of the policy for a specific show.
A bit of history
The site has a long entertainment history that goes back well before the Arts Centre itself. In the early twentieth century, it was home to Wirth Brothers’ Circus, an amusement park, a cinema and even a dance hall, with names like the Olympia Dancing Palace and the Glaciarium ice-skating rink giving a sense of just how lively the area already was.
Planning for what became Arts Centre Melbourne began in earnest in the 1960s, with a building committee chaired by Kenneth Myer overseeing a project that would take decades to come to life. Hamer Hall (then the Melbourne Concert Hall) opened first, on 6 November 1982, with the Theatres Building, including the State Theatre and Playhouse, following in 1984.
The spire above the Theatres Building has become one of the most recognisable landmarks on Melbourne’s skyline since it first went up in 1984, though it’s had a more complicated structural history than most visitors would guess. Hamer Hall itself was renamed in 2004 in honour of former Premier Sir Rupert Hamer, before undergoing a major redevelopment that closed it for two years and reopened it in 2012 with new foyers, improved acoustics and a new riverside entrance.
The State Theatre is now going through a similar chapter. It closed in March 2024 for its first major refurbishment since opening in 1984, and reopens as the Ian Potter State Theatre in October 2026, six months earlier than originally planned. The renovation keeps the heritage features intact, including John Truscott’s celebrated ceiling with its roughly 75,000 brass spheres, while modernising accessibility, sound and seating throughout.
Sources: Arts Centre Melbourne — Our History; for a detailed look at the architecture and the stories behind both buildings, ArchitectureAu’s 40th anniversary piece is well worth reading.
Accessibility
- All of Arts Centre Melbourne’s major venues are wheelchair accessible with ramps and lifts, and fitted with an assistive hearing system. Note the State Theatre is closed for refurbishment until October 2026, after which accessible seating will be available across all three levels for the first time.
- Wheelchair spaces are available at all events, subject to availability, and can be booked online or by calling 1300 182 183.
- Accessible theatre seats, for those wishing to transfer out of a wheelchair, are available in the Fairfax Studio and Hamer Hall with a minimum of 24 hours’ notice.
- Companion Cards are accepted across all ticketed events.
- Accessible toilets are located throughout the Theatres Building (Levels 3, 5, 6 and 8) and in Hamer Hall (Levels 2 and 3).
- A Changing Places facility is available on Level 3 of Hamer Hall, accessible 24/7 with an MLAK key.
- Assistance animals are welcome throughout the precinct, with water bowls available on request.
- Complimentary loan wheelchairs for getting around the building can be booked ahead by calling 1300 182 183.
If you have specific access needs, it’s worth calling ahead of your visit, especially if you need a seat transfer, as this requires advance notice.
Getting there
- Public Transport: Flinders Street Station is the closest train station, about 500 metres away. Exit towards Swanston Street, then cross the Yarra via Princes Bridge. The Arts Precinct tram stop on St Kilda Road is serviced by routes 1, 3, 3a, 5, 6, 16, 64, 67 and 72.
- Driving: The Arts Centre Melbourne car park is open 24/7, with entry from Southbank Boulevard or Kavanagh Street (the Kavanagh Street entrance closes annually from 10 February to 29 March for ongoing works). The Australian Ballet car park on Kavanagh Street and the Southbank Car Park on Southgate Avenue are nearby alternatives.
- Drop-off: The St Kilda Road service lane outside the Theatres Building and Hamer Hall is currently closed to private vehicles and taxis, so there’s no direct drop-off zone at present. Allow a short walk from the nearest available set-down point.
Arts Centre Melbourne 100 St Kilda Road, Melbourne For Box Office enquiries, visit Hamer Hall or the Theatres Building (under the spire), both open Monday to Saturday, 11am to 4pm, or phone 1300 182 183, Monday to Saturday, 9am to 4.30pm.
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