City of Port Phillip and Live Nation are working with the Palais Theatre to help community groups, who otherwise might not be able to access the venue normally due to venue hire costs, create magic in this iconic theatre by providing reservations for a reduced venue hire cost of just $1.

Successful applicants will still need to cover operating costs, but this is a unique opportunity for small and medium sized, non-commercial organisations to have access to this extraordinary venue.

The Palais Theatre is an iconic part of St Kilda’s vibrant cultural heritage and is a highly sought-after venue for artists, community groups and event producers across a range of performances from all genres of music, through to opera and dance, comedy, gala events and more.

As the Palais Theatre’s venue size and associated expenses can make it inaccessible for non-commercial operators, the Community Reservations initiative aims to change that by providing up to eight Community Purpose Reservations per year for dates in 2022.

Increased community usage of this much loved, iconic theatre will:

• increase access to the Palais Theatre for community groups, artists and event organisers who may not otherwise be able to hire the venue for financial reasons
• increase access to the Palais Theatre for the wider community as audience members, through ensuring a diverse range of events is programmed that caters to broad audiences
• maintain and grow the sense of community ownership of, and engagement with, the Palais Theatre
• provide opportunities to local organisations, performers and producers within the City of Port Phillip, and attract or retain events locally to ensure a balanced events calendar year round
• encourage programming of low ticket-cost events increasing audience access to Palais Theatre.

Applications are now open until 12 midnight (AEDT) Sunday 13 March 2022.

To find out if your group is eligible, check available dates and for more information, visit the Palais Theatre Community Reservation page.