The stage is almost set for world-class shows and entertainment as construction of the Gippsland Performing Arts Centre (GPAC) nears completion ready for the March 2022 opening.
Gippsland Performing Arts Centre is launching with OPEN: a four-day festival celebrating the completion of Gippsland's new home of the arts featuring the best in music, comedy, live performance and plenty of fun for everyone.
The festival will put a spotlight on all the venue offers, including The Big Family Weekender, a large free outdoor public program running from Saturday 5 - Sunday 6 March 2022 designed for families and children.
The opening event TOGETHER on Thursday 3 March will highlight Latrobe City-grown performers in a community celebration winding through the new precinct.
This will be followed by a world-class program across the weekend with performances from Client Liaison and the OPEN Comedy Gala headlined by Dave Thornton and Peter Helliar.
"The opening festival is a chance for our whole community to explore and feel welcome in the Gippsland Performing Arts Centre, as we lift the curtain on this amazing new facility and celebrate what it has to offer," said Mayor of Latrobe City, Councillor Kellie O'Callaghan.
"The Gippsland Performing Arts Centre will also make a significant contribution towards the ongoing recovery of our creative industries and visitor economy from the challenges of COVID-19.
"Councillors were lucky to have a site tour in late 2021, and were blown away by the scale and quality of the building and the range of spaces available that our community will enjoy for decades to come," said Cr O'Callaghan.
The $42.1 million project has been made possible by collaborative investment from the Victorian Government ($12 million), the Australian Government's Community Development Grants Programme ($10 million), and Latrobe City Council.
Tickets for the OPEN four-day festival are on sale now from the new Gippsland Performing Arts Centre website: https://gpac.latrobe.vic.gov.au/
