Building Description

Arts Centre Melbourne’s Australian Performing Arts Collection is the national leader amongst specialist performing arts collections in Australia. Established in 1975, it is formally recognised as a State collection and encompasses the history of circus, dance, music, opera and theatre.

The Collection features over 780,000 items including costumes, designs, photographs, set models, puppets, props, posters, programs and archives. These items are used regularly for exhibition and research by curatorial staff, historians, performers, publishers, researchers and other collecting institutions.

Take a journey through Australia’s performing arts history

CONTRIBUTOR LINK

Images: (1-2) Australian Performing Arts Collection, courtesy Arts Centre Melbourne. (3) Dame Joan Sutherland costume for the title role of Lucrezia Borgia, The Australian Opera, 1977. Designed by Kristian Fredrikson and made by William Paterson. Gift of Opera Australia, 2019 Australian Performing Arts Collection, Arts Centre Melbourne.