Light’s up! Civic Theatre to receive a new lighting upgrade

Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre will be undergoing an upgrade to the auditorium overhead stage lights.

The 491-seat theatre presents a wide variety of events each year, including theatre, live music and entertainment, functions and conferences.

Manager Civic Theatre Claire Harris says this is an exciting opportunity for the theatre to upgrade the technical lighting infrastructure in a rapidly changing industry and ensure patrons to the theatre continue to have a great experience.

“The Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre is a central hub of Wagga Wagga and a meeting place for our community to come together and connect,” Ms Harris said.

“Every year, around 60,000 patrons come through our doors as audience members, and just under 3,000 are performers.  A large chunk of those performers are local emerging artists.

“Our local community and our region’s young people are integral to the sustainability and vibrancy of our theatre. We hold a sense of pride and responsibility to ensure all our community users, young people and audience members have access to experiences on par with metropolitan areas.”

“In 2023, the Civic Theatre commenced a traineeship program in partnership with The Melbourne Arts Centre. It is part of a broader plan to up-skill and train technical staff here at the theatre.

“This lighting upgrade will better position the Civic Theatre as a technical training ground for local young people and enable our community and touring companies to deliver works at a higher technical level, keeping pace with Australia’s leading metropolitan venues.”

Civic Theatre Technical Coordinator Russell Stewart says the upgrade to the current lighting system will also enhance the theatre’s lighting efficiency and technical offering.

“Upgrading the lighting system will provide modern and safe training opportunities to align with industry standards and increase productivity,” Mr Stewart said.

“The proposed lighting upgrade from halogen lighting to LED will also ensure energy efficiency, decreasing the Civic Theatre’s energy consumption by 37 percent.”

This aligns with Council’s Corporate Net Zero Emissions Strategy, a documentwhich outlines a series of actions and pathways Council may implement to reduce its carbon footprint to meet the 2040 net zero target.

The project totalling $180,000 is funded by Council and $90,000 received from an Office of Responsible Gambling Clubgrants Category 3 Infrastructure: arts and culture grant.

The project is on track to be completed by 30 June 2024.