A view of the stage of Regent Theatre set for the musical 'Wicked'.
Credit: Tini Sara Anien
Melbourne has plenty to offer art enthusiasts. The city’s vibrant graffiti, world-class museums, and magnificent theatres will surely impress any art lover in Australia’s cultural capital. A day trip featuring visits to a graffiti art lane, a century-old theatre, and a gallery showcasing historical works will undoubtedly transport you back in time. Here’s a quick run-through.
Theatre calling
In the heart of the city is Regent Theatre — one of the oldest theatres in Melbourne. Located on Collins Street, Regent opened in 1929, amidst a formative time across the world. It closed in 1970 due to the influence of cinemas and was around (without being demolished) for 26 years, before being renovated and reopened in 1996, with the likes of musicals like ‘Sunset Boulevard’, which had Hugh Jackman and Debra Byrne in its cast. Since then, the theatre hasn’t looked back.
Jason Marriner, CEO of Marriner Group, which owns five of Melbourne’s iconic theatres, live music, and event venues, says that “Regent is a part of the city’s cultural history”. “We are lucky to have beautiful buildings that are still relevant in the 21st century — Regent is the grandest of them all,” he says. The theatre went through a refurbishment again in 2019, and is now all about “live performances and the mainstay has been musical theatre”.
In the last restoration, leather lounge chairs were brought to the space. Jason recollects a story that has been doing the rounds: Many people courted their wives in the 1940s at the theatre, and if they were keen to pursue the relationship, upgraded to the lounge chairs.
Apart from a mesmerising glittering chandelier, a theatre organ (a pipe organ that was used during the 1900s in silent films) can be found at the theatre. It is still occasionally used like it was in the musical ‘King Kong’ a while ago.
The building in all its grandeur will amaze one, with its technological updates, narrow lanes behind the performance area (where actors change their costumes between scenes) and run through to deliver their lines on stage, a room with several musical instruments, and more. On my visit to the theatre, the team of the musical ‘Wicked’ was present. Apart from a peak at the grand costumes and props, and wigs stocked on the racks, it was a delight to see all the work that goes behind each show — multiple cables and prop pieces hung above the stage, numbers painted subtly on the stage to show where each actor should stand, tracks on stage for props to move...
Street art
The city of Melbourne has several lanes dedicated to graffiti and street art. A walk around AC/DC lane, named after the legendary Australian rock band, is covered with music-themed graffiti tributes, where works overlap on top of each other. The sign to the lane features a lightning bolt much like the one in the band’s name. Our tour guide mentioned that around the U-turn in the lane was a Banksy piece (a stencil artwork), showing a ‘flying rat’ (a rat with a parachute), which no one had painted over yet.
The lane also houses windows of iconic live menu space, Cherry Bar, which was shut down, and a 3D sculpture of Bon Scott jutting out of the wall.
Gallery walkthrough
For those who appreciate how art has transformed over the years — the National Gallery Victoria (NGV) is a spot to stop by. Housing more than 75,000 permanent works, it is one of the largest art museums in Australia. From crockery to fashion and even a restoration wing, the NGV is an encyclopedia.
Located on St Kilda Road, it offers a window to international art, especially collections in European, Asian, Oceanic, and American art. Founded in 1861, the museum’s current building, which opened in the late 1960s, it houses several permanent artworks.
A museum representative pointed out that the museum tries to source works by most popular artists including the likes of Peter Paul Rubens. “Some of our best collection areas are Dutch art. We even have works by the still art painter Maria van Oosterwyck who barely worked on 30 works or so in her lifetime,” he said. It also has works by Dutch Golden Age painter Rembrandt, including one of his earliest works that depicts “two people arguing over the scripture showcases incredible brushwork, wonderful use of light, and texture”. The NGV is “lucky to also have his second-last portrait too”, he added.
During the brief visit, I also got a sneak peek of the museum’s conservation department, where a painting conservator was working on an artwork by Rubens from the 17th century. “The beginning of the treatment involved cleaning and removing varnish and retouching it with tiny brushes,” she said. She explains that she is using reversible paints that can be reworked easily by the next restorer in the future.
The museum hosts exhibitions throughout the year. The representative shared about the current exhibition, ‘Pharoah’, which “includes around 500-odd objects”. The exhibition, celebrating 3,000 years of ancient Egyptian art and culture, is being held in collaboration with the British Museum.
(The writer was in Melbourne recently on an invitation from Tourism Australia and Visit Victoria.)