Community
9 June, 2023
Additional space for creativity
A $110,000 extension to Warrnambool’s Goodwin Hall has allowed for greater storage room and creativity for two of the city’s popular theatre companies.
The extension has enabled both the Warrnambool Theatre Company and Holiday Actors to utilise additional space to create award-winning sets and store a wide range of costumes, props and equipment.
The extension to the building, located at Friendly Societies Park, was funded through Warrnambool City Council’s small infrastructure fund.
The 9x20 metre extension has allowed Holiday Actors, who previously stored items at a site in Dennington, to cohabitate the space. With running water connected to the hall, set painting and clean-up is now an easier task for both groups.
Holiday Actors and Warrnambool Theatre Company have been working increasingly closely in recent years, with their first joint production of ‘Les Miserables’ staged in 2019, followed by ‘Cats’ and ‘Shrek’, with ‘The Wizard of Oz’ to take centre stage next month. Warrnambool Theatre Company president and The Wizard of Oz producer, Ailiche Goddard-Clegg, said she was proud of the theatre partnership model in Warrnambool.
“In Warrnambool we have Primary Performers for primary school aged children, Holiday Actors for adolescents up to 21 and then Warrnambool Theatre Company for all ages,” she said.
“We see theatre as a theatre pipeline in Warrnambool and this infrastructure really supports all of those theatre companies to make great theatre.
“I want to thank Warrnambool City Council for its support through the small infrastructure fund for this extension of Goodwin Hall.” Ms Goddard-Clegg also thanked the council for its recent support (through the community development fund) of the upcoming Wizard of Oz production, which will take to the stage of the Lighthouse Theatre between July 15-22.
“We thank the councillors and especially the recreation and culture team for shepherding this project for us and for giving us a lot of support,”
Ms Goddard-Clegg said. Holiday Actors treasurer Lyle Russell agreed that both companies working in tandem made sense.
“The idea is to get a big enough space for both companies to fit in under this roof and share the space,” she said.
“It was to try and create enough space so that we could build a set that would fit on an 8x8 stage, but then also have room to store all of the machinery, equipment and other pieces of set, props and costumes.
“It enables us to have everything we need for a show under one roof.”
Warrnambool deputy mayor Cr Max Taylor said the small infrastructure fund was all about helping community groups continue their good work in enhancing the social fabric of Warrnambool.
“It’s great to be able to provide these funds to assist the Warrnambool Theatre Company and the Holiday Actors to come together and share this space,” he said.
“Both groups are an important part of Warrnambool and we are happy to help so many community members getting involved in theatre.”
Tickets for The Wizard of Oz are on sale now and can be purchased at www.lighthousetheatre.com.au or the Lighthouse Theatre box office.
