Red Earth Arts Precinct opens in the Pilbara

The City of Karratha's Red Earth Art Precinct (REAP) has opened with a community open day that drew thousands of people to see what the new venue has to offer.

After seven years since the closure of the former Walkington Theatre, the $56 million precinct includes 450-seat theatre, rooftop cinema, an outdoor amphitheatre and gallery space.

In opening the precinct, City of Karratha Mayor Peter Long said REAP would be a “game-changing” facility for the arts.

Mayor Long stated “the Walkington Theatre, when it was built in 1986, was actually the best regional theatre in Western Australia, and of course it flooded out, and we didn’t know what we were going to do.

“It has been seven years in the making for this theatre.

“This will be a symbol of Karratha for decades to come, and we feel very fortunate that we’ve got this facility.

“It’s a facility for the arts, for theatre, for dance and, of course, it’s a wonderful library too.

“It will be a focal point for our community, a place to share our creativity and showcase the City to a wider audience.

The long-awaited precinct was funded by the City of Karratha, the Federal Government through the National Stronger Regions Fund, the Western Australian Government through the Royalties for Regions program administered by the Pilbara Development Commission, Lotterywest, Woodside and Rio Tinto.

Among the first arts acts to perform in the facility were local groups the IF Foundation, Terre Rouge Ballet, DANCEFX, Lea Cullen Performing Arts, singer duo Kym and Michelle, Colours of India and Karratha Senior High School musicians, as well as visiting acts Ricochet Circus, Jye Whitman and the Pierce Brothers.

The venue will host the 32nd PAC Australia Performing Arts Conference and Performing Arts Exchange from 2nd to 6th September, aligning with the city’s Red Earth Arts Festival.

Click here for more information on the 2018 PAC Australia conference in the Australasian Leisure Management industry Calendar. 

Images: The Red Earth Art Precinct (top), its stage (middle) and community members in the event space during the recent opening day (below).

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