Her Majesty's Theatre

Her Majesty's Theatre is one of Australia's most historic theatres, and one of the busiest performing arts centres in regional Victoria. It opened in 1875 and is the oldest purpose-built theatre building in Australia to have been continuously used as a live theatre venue. The building is a fascinating mix of old and new, with a beautifully renovated 959 seat, double-balconied auditorium which offers both comfort and elegance, while boasting state of the art lighting, sound and safety equipment. The Theatre offers an annual Season of touring professional theatre productions, representing a selection of performances from some of Australia's leading theatre companies. The Theatre is hired by commercial entrepreneurs for tours by popular artists. It is also a community facility and is hired by local amateur companies and groups for the presentation of their productions, including musical comedies, school concerts and ballet recitals. Since 1965, Australia's largest and longest-running eisteddfod, the Royal South Street Competitions, have called the Theatre home and occupy the building between mid-August and early November every year. The Theatre also houses a 1937 Compton Theatre Organ and boasts many interesting artefacts. The Long Room Bar, overlooking Lydiard Street, is the theatre's gracious licensed bar. Tours of the theatre are popular with groups but need to be pre-arranged. Her Majesty's Theatre has been owned and operated as a business unit of the City of Ballarat since 1990. Today around 300 performances are presented each year, to audiences of more than 70,000 people. Tickets are sold through MajesTix, the Theatre Box Office, and information is available on the Theatre's website.