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The
background: Swan Hill takes on the artistic challenge
A decade
ago, the Swan Hill Town Hall was a pretty typical regional
centre town hall hosting debutante balls, weddings and small
conventions as well as some big name acts from Melbourne
as part of their regional circuit. The needs of the older
people were being met but, typical of a country town, there
wasn't much happening in the way of performing arts for
young people, families or ethnic groups with special interests.
Sport and videos were the main entertainment.
Following
the merger of the local rural councils, Swan Hill Rural
City Council was established in 1995 to serve Swan Hill
and surrounding areas totalling 6200 sq km with a population
of 21,700. The council set a new charter to more seriously
explore and meet the performing arts and artistic needs
of the greater community and appointed John Fowler, the
current Performing Arts Director of the council.
At the
same time, the Kennett Government conducted surveys into
the performing arts needs of the state and set aside $17m
for those Councils who could demonstrate a commitment to
cultural endeavour and who would be prepared to contribute
to the cost of upgrading local artistic facilities (a commitment
which was continued by the current Labor Government).
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Assessing
community needs
In
1997, the Swan Hill Council embarked on an extensive qualitative
& quantitative community research program and appointed
a consultant to produce a Marketing Strategy to assess
the artistic and cultural need of the greater Swan Hill
region. The results confirmed that:
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Young people, particularly, were hungry for artistic
outlets to complement the already strong sports activities
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The needs of families were not being met
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Cultural groups (ie Tongan, Italian & Koori peoples),
while having their own vibrant culture, were not being
given the opportunity to contribute their culture to
the broader community
-
And, most importantly, the Town Hall facility was not,
in its current form, a good venue to meet the diverse
cultural requirements and was, in fact, limiting the
kinds of performances able to be staged.
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Revitalising
the creative arts
Armed
with the research findings and the drive of the Arts Director,
the Swan Hill Rural City Council committed to make Swan
Hill the cultural centre of the region. Specific strategies
were implemented and a vibrant program of cultural activities
was put in place including:
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Creation of the George Fairfax Memorial Schools Drama
Festival, a Festival which has grown to become a week-long
event taking place across 3 towns involving 12 regional
schools and a diverse program of very high quality performances
written, performed and staged by the local students.
As a result of taking part, some students are already
studying drama at tertiary level - unheard of a few
years ago The festival is now entering it's seventh
year of operation.
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A diverse calendar of high quality performing arts activities
catering to a wide range of ages, interests including
musical performance, drama, opera & rock. Highlights
of the 18 shows staged over the last two years include
Bell Shakespeare Company The Tempest, Centenary of Federation
Garden Party, The Australian String Quartet, Melbourne
Symphony Orchestra, performances by the International
Comedy Festival Roadshow, Bud Tigwell in a comedy play
The Carer and The Big Note Festival now about to enter
it's second year.
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New
pressures on the Swan Hill Town Hall
While
growing a vibrant program of artistic activities for the
people of the municipality, the issue of unsuitability
of the current Swan Hill Town Hall had to be addressed.
Built
in 1937, and situated McCallum Street, the stage design
of the Town Hall and the older sections of the building
had become out-moded for the kinds of demands placed by
today's performances - and by the growing artistic expectations
of the Swan Hill audience. Problems included;
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Loading Facilities
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Small Stage Area
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Small Foyer
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No dedicated ticketing booth
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No meeting Rooms
An
assessment of the facility was conducted and a budget
of $3.3 million proposed to upgrade the facility into
a modern Performing Arts & Convention Centre.
Having
proved that they were committed to meeting the cultural
needs of the regional area - and in fact revitalising
the cultural environment of the Swan Hill - the Swan Hill
Rural City Council became one of the first regional municipalities
to receive a $2 million grant to upgrade the Town Hall
facility. The council has met the shortfall to raise the
required $3.3 million
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