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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2007-10-17 Daily Xml
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PUBLIC WORKS COMMITTEE: DUNSTAN PLAYHOUSE

Ms CICCARELLO (Norwood) (11:12): I move:

That the 271st report of the committee, entitled Adelaide Festival Centre (Dunstan Playhouse Refurbishment), be noted.

The Adelaide Festival Centre Trust is responsible for encouraging and facilitating artistic, cultural and performing arts activities throughout South Australia, as well as maintaining and improving the building and facilities of the Festival Centre complex. I can advise the house that $8 million was allocated in the 2006-07 budget towards the refurbishment of the Dunstan Playhouse and other parts of the drama centre. The overall project comprises the following two parts:

a refurbishment project, which includes front of house works, back of house works and infrastructure/building code works; and

a production project, which is the sound and light upgrades and new stage drapes.

Also, $6.5 million has been assigned to the refurbishment project and $1.5 million to the production project. This project will replace ageing plant and equipment to increase patron comfort, reduce operational and maintenance costs, minimise occupational health, safety and welfare risks and provide more efficient ESD outcomes. The Dunstan Playhouse will get refurbished seats, carpets and auditorium lighting, and access issues will be addressed for disabled and ambulant patrons. Also, work in the Dunstan Playhouse foyers will mean there will be refurbished carpet, signage and way finding. It will also address access issues for disabled and ambulant patrons, as well as fire safety issues and occupational health, safety and welfare risks. The Tutto Ku Bistro will be provided with upgraded airconditioning, kitchen building works and temporary roof protection works to address critical safety issues and also provide an interim solution for patron comfort. This project will also incorporate removal of some asbestos known to exist when the building was constructed in the 1970s.

The concept plan for this project also aims to provide a long-term vision for the ongoing refurbishment of the Dunstan Playhouse in relation to materials and finishes. The original design architect was consulted to ensure that respect for the original vision for the centre was maintained when refurbishing the playhouse. That architect provided advice which was consistent with and reinforced the objectives of the Festival Centre Conservation Management Plan.

The Dunstan Playhouse needs refurbishment of the ageing finishes, which are now visually dated and degraded. Many are now risks that must be addressed to mitigate or eliminate the possibility of injury to patrons or staff and also to address the exposure of the Adelaide Festival Centre to compliance-related claims. The proposed works provide the opportunity to support a vibrant, active facility with a refurbishment that respects the original vision of this iconic venue. The project aims are to:

repair, restore and recreate the venue to improve its functionality and the visual appearance of the Dunstan Playhouse;

contribute to redefining the Festival Centre as the home base for premier performing arts companies;

improve the safety, accessibility and amenity of the Festival Centre for patrons and staff;

enhance the adaptability and technical capabilities of the playhouse; and

improve the use of the Festival Centre as a gathering place and gateway to the Riverbank Precinct.

In so doing the project would:

increase community pride in the facility;

increase patron comfort and satisfaction; and

eliminate compliance risks.

The net present value analysis favours the project in comparison to the 'do nothing' case. This is largely due to the significant increase in operating costs and reduction in venue hire revenues that would occur if existing assets were allowed to deteriorate further. The centre has nominated a window in its production program between December 2007 and February 2008 for the major auditorium works to be carried out so that the auditorium will be functioning in time for the 2008 Adelaide Festival and also the preceding Australian Performing Arts Market. This program will require that all work be commenced before the Christmas/New Year period, and allowance has been made for this. The main risk which the committee saw in the program is the lead time for delivery of the seats and carpets, but we have been assured that on the best advice available adequate time has been allowed for this.

The committee was concerned about the works' potential to interfere with the use of the Dunstan Playhouse during the 2008 Festival of Arts. However, it accepts that the project will avoid this possibility by:

ensuring that the facilities are not required between December and the timing of the Festival so that replacement of carpets and seats will not affect the operational needs of the playhouse;

staging the works so that the infrastructure components and disability seating changes will occur after the Festival; and

allowing sufficient contingency time in the project schedule to ensure that any asbestos removal can be dealt with without threatening timely completion of the work.

The committee was concerned to ensure that the quality and expected life of the new work and materials have not been adversely effected by budget limitations and that high priority works will not be neglected. The committee accepts that the work will be of high quality and that other priority work is expected to occur in the future. Consequently, the work in this stage has not been compromised for budgetary reasons. The committee also accepts that there is a limit to the amount of work which can occur and funding which can be expected in any given year without requiring the centre to close down completely. It recognises that it is the centre's strong preference to remain functional while improvements and upgrades occur. Based upon the evidence presented to it, pursuant to section 12 of the Parliamentary Committees Act 1991 the Public Works Committee reports to parliament that it recommends the proposed public work.

Mr PISONI (Unley) (11:19): I, too, commend the committee, and the cabinet for bringing this submission to the committee. I was pleased to note the increased access for wheelchairs in the building. At present the Dunstan Playhouse has very limited space and very little choice for those people in wheelchairs who wish to attend shows that are performed at the playhouse. I am very pleased to see that that has been a major consideration in the revamping of the playhouse.

Of course, it is very important that our entire Festival Centre—and the playhouse, in particular—is kept up to date and retained as the premier arts facility here in South Australia. There are so many opportunities that we can offer our young people entering the arts in South Australia and we want to ensure that, not only do they enter the arts here but that they also remain. It is very difficult being a city of only 1.2 million people: when people get better in this field and become more famous, they move to Sydney, Melbourne, New York—Broadway—and Hollywood. But they need a starting point, and it is important that South Australia is seen as that springboard. We have had some very successful national and international artists who started their days at the Festival Centre—and at the Playhouse, in particular—and that brings me to recount my experience at the Playhouse. A lot of people, when they think about the arts, think about the performers, but there is so much that happens behind the scenes. In about 1983, I was fortunate to be offered a couple of weeks of work building sets at the Playhouse for the play Guys and Dolls.

Mr Hanna: Were you in the show as well?

Mr PISONI: I was not in the show, although I did attend. Back in those days, when I attended the opening party, I was an avid gym goer; I attended the gym regularly—and I think I even entered a body building competition or two back in those days. My best mate at the time and my training partner (who was also a body builder and who went on to become Mr Teenage and Mr Junior South Australia), accompanied me to this evening of Guys and Dolls. You can imagine the scene it must have created when these two body builders came as a couple—

Mr Griffiths interjecting:

Mr PISONI: —no steroids; thank you, member for Goyder—and attended the opening of Guys and Dolls. The point I am making is that the Festival Centre is a proud asset for South Australia, and I thank former premier Hall for his vision in getting it moving back in the late 1960s, and also previous governments that have continued their commitment to the arts. I think it is important that this centre is kept up to date and that as many people as possible have the opportunity to visit the Festival Centre, and the playhouse, in particular. The playhouse puts on some great shows—not necessarily commercial—and it gives lots of young people both on the stage and behind the scenes opportunities to use their skills and express themselves.

I was particularly pleased to see that the seating will be refurbished rather than installing brand new seating. In this day and age, when one looks at how disposable furniture has become, because of cheap manufacturing in Asia, and so forth, it is good to see that this Australian made seating, which was made 30-odd years ago, can be reused and revamped, and all that work will be done in Adelaide. That was a very good thing to see. Patrons and visitors to the playhouse were able to give an opinion on what seating they preferred, and I thought that was another good way of involving the public in the preservation and restoration of this important asset.

There are two things that I think we saw with this $8 million expenditure. We saw an expansion of choice for those with a disability, who can go to see shows and sit in more comfort now than was previously the case. We are also seeing an updating of safety, but we are still preserving the icon of the 1970s architecture, although some would argue that it may not be worth preserving. I am reminded of the 1970s every time I use the members' lounge as the chairs look as though they have been made from railway sleepers. They are very much an icon from the 1970s. The committee was pleased to support this refurbishment and I was pleased to be part of that process.

Mr PENGILLY (Finniss) (11:26): I speak in support of the upgrade and refurbishment of the Dunstan Playhouse. I will suggest in my concluding remarks that we change the name of it. My interest down there was great in that it was a good opportunity to have a look around. There was no question that it needed a facelift. There was no question, as the member for Unley indicated, that the disabled provisions were a categorical disaster and I was pleased, along with other members of the committee, that this problem was picked up on. The members for Unley and Norwood spoke about the seating. The general ambience of the playhouse will be improved no end with the general upgrade that will take place in that area. It is used regularly, and over the past few months we have had large numbers of schoolchildren and groups using that facility for educational purposes and doing their cultural activities.

I do not visit it all that often and, as I am no great admirer of Mr Dunstan, I suggest that it be renamed the 'Ted Chapman playhouse'. Picking up on what the member for Unley said, the late Hon. Ted Chapman was an artistic person in his own right. The member for Unley was talking about body building: we could have world championship wrestling and shearing competitions and all sorts of things in there—that would be fantastic. Ted was renowned for admiring all things beautiful, and did so on regular occasions. He had artistic talent for beautiful things like I have never seen before. Ted Chapman really enjoyed belly dancing. I attended his sixtieth birthday at which there were belly dancers on the tables in front of the then premier (Hon. Dean Brown), Ted Chapman and a few others. Renaming the Dunstan Playhouse the 'Ted Chapman playhouse' would be a great way to go. I look forward to the government picking up my idea and following through on it. I support the member for Norwood's motion to note the report and I look forward to the completion of the playhouse.

Ms BREUER (Giles) (11:29): I also commend the report. The arts are an important part of our society, particularly for young people growing up. It was part of my youth certainly and has been part of my life, apart from what is happening now, but I intend to go back to that area when I have finished in this place. The member opposite talked about belly dancing. I have belly danced at the Middleback Theatre in Whyalla in a pantomime production and people still come up to me and remember that momentous occasion. I can show members the photos. I have done some amazing things on that stage that I hope people forget when it comes to voting time, but the theatre has been an important part of my life. I take this opportunity to congratulate Country Arts SA for the work it does in our regional cities and towns. It plays a major role in those areas in bringing the arts to country people. Ken Lloyd, the CEO, is certainly very active in this role and we are privileged to see a lot in country areas because Country Arts SA is able to bring it to us

It looks after the three main country theatres: the Keith Michell Theatre in Port Pirie; the Sir Robert Helpmann Theatre (which many of us attended during the sitting of parliament, and we were most impressed with the facilities); and, of course, one dear to my heart, the Middleback Theatre in Whyalla.

It is interesting that the upgrade has occurred to the Dunstan theatre. That is very good, but I put in a word that consideration be given to our country theatres. Some upgrading has been done, but they are now approaching 20 or 30 years old, and we need to continue their maintenance and upgrading, because some of them are looking very tired. The Middleback Theatre in Whyalla is good, but we do need to do some work there. In recent years, we have put in a movie theatre as part of the old TAFE complex adjacent to the Middleback Theatre. That has been extremely successful, and I congratulate everyone on it. I must admit that initially I thought that it may not have been the best move, but it certainly has proved me wrong, and it has been very successful. We are now able to access movies when they first come out and not have to wait for months, as we have had to do in the past in country regions. Country Arts has done incredible work in bringing in opera and dance. We see a lot of ballet companies, major theatre productions and individual artists come to our cities, and it has been wonderful for young people to see them and become involved. Very often when these productions come to our country areas, they pull in students and young people from our communities to work with professional artists, which is great for their development.

Today I also want particularly to mention something that happened recently in Whyalla—the opening of the Don Winton Foyer in the Middleback Theatre. Unfortunately, I was not able to attend, and I was very sad about that because Don Winton is very dear to my heart. He has been part of Whyalla arts for well over 50 years, and he established the Whyalla Players over 50 years ago last year. He has been an integral part of the arts in Whyalla and has played a major role in letting us have a major theatre company in the Whyalla Players and in bringing many acts and performances to our community. He helped set up and was in charge of the Middleback Theatre when it was originally built in Whyalla. Through his canniness, he was able to save lots of money and have things put into the theatre we might not have had without the work he put in.

He also played a vital role in the refurbishment of the theatre when it was unfortunately burnt down a few years after it opened. In Whyalla, Don Winton's name is synonymous with the arts, so I was very proud that Country Arts chose to name the foyer in the Middleback Theatre after him. I believe it was a wonderful day; I have spoken to Don since, and he was thrilled to bits. Incidentally, Don is 88 years old and lives in a nursing home in Whyalla, but he is still very active and gets to as many productions as he can. It was very fitting that this foyer be named after Don, and I thank Country Arts for giving him that honour and enabling his name to live on.

Once again, I commend the report. I am very happy to see this, but I still put in a good word for theatres in country regions. They are essential for our country young people particularly, as well as we older ones who appreciate the arts and who would not have that opportunity without these major country theatres. When there are productions at the Middleback, people come from all over Eyre Peninsula to see them, and I know that similar things happen at Port Pirie, as I am sure they do in Mount Gambier as well. It gives us an opportunity to see major productions that would be very expensive for us to come to Adelaide to see. I commend the report and hope that similar things can happen in our country regions.

Ms CICCARELLO (Norwood) (11:34): I thank members for their contribution and support of the refurbishment of the Dunstan Playhouse. In doing so, I commend the CEO and artistic director, Douglas Gautier. Since he has taken on the task at the Festival Centre, he has certainly reinvigorated the whole place with a very vibrant program—

The Hon. S.W. Key interjecting:

Ms CICCARELLO: —thank you, member for Ashford—that brings along many people to the Festival Centre, to the Dunstan Playhouse and to the Space, who have not previously been there. Any time one goes down there one can see a whole lot of activities. We have just had the OzAsia Festival, which was a wonderful initiative. On the opening night it was great to see thousands of people enjoying an event that was organised in the space of a few months.

I have to say that both governments (our current government and also the previous government, under arts minister Diana Laidlaw) over the past few years have spent a lot of money on the Festival Centre. The Public Works Committee has approved quite a considerable number of changes there. The area between the Playhouse and the car park has been opened up so that natural light is now going into the Festival Centre. There is now a bridge which goes from the casino across to the plaza so that people can access from North Terrace not only the Festival Centre but also the river bank, including the Convention Centre, the Hyatt and all the other facilities along the river.

I am sure that the member for Finniss had tongue firmly in cheek when he was talking about the renaming of the playhouse. I was very proud to be there on the day that the Premier renamed it the Dunstan Playhouse. At the moment, there is a bust of Don in the foyer which I had had commissioned when I was the mayor of Norwood. It has been on loan to the Dunstan Playhouse and I did indicate to the CEO that, once the refurbishment has been completed, I would be very happy to donate the bust to the Festival Centre in honour of Don Dunstan. With those remarks, I commend the report.

Motion carried.

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