Minderoo announces record donation for WAAPA

28 Oct 2024 – Minderoo Foundation has announced a record $30 million donation to the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) as part of an historic 25-year philanthropic partnership with Edith Cowan University to advance Australian arts and culture on the world stage.

Minderoo’s gift, the largest philanthropic contribution ever made to Australia’s performing arts sector, will support WAAPA’s bold vision to deliver nation-leading, state-of-the-art performance and learning venues within the new ECU City campus, as well as internationally distinguished performance training for emerging artists.

Incorporating the specialist fit out of WAAPA’s performance spaces and an endowed fund, Minderoo’s donation will help WAAPA deliver its long-term strategic programming for decades, and have a transformational impact for students, staff, artists and audiences by connecting all Western Australians with the arts.

Minderoo’s specialist fit-out grant – worth $23 million – will equip WAAPA’s six public performance venues and two performance-capable rehearsal spaces with advanced acoustics, box-in-box engineering and best-in-class technology. With cutting-edge design inspired by the world’s best theatres, the facilities will create exceptional opportunities for students to hone their craft.

The groundbreaking agreement also includes a $7 million investment from Minderoo in a new Premier Visiting Artists Fund, which is intended to foster deep, sustained training for WAAPA students across residency programs, teaching and other high-impact formats, led by world-renowned artists. The fund will enable the delivery of an ongoing program of teaching excellence that attracts the best talent to Perth’s doorstep, building WAAPA’s global profile.

The Minderoo Foundation gift builds on the significant $853 million investment made between ECU, the WA Government and Federal Government in the new ECU City campus through the Perth City Deal, amplifying the activation and vibrancy it will bring to Perth for the benefit of all Western Australians.

The partnership, which was announced by ECU Vice Chancellor Professor Clare Pollock, Premier Roger Cook and Minderoo CEO John Hartman, recognises the significance and ambition of the new ECU City campus, which is currently under construction in Perth’s CBD and on track to open in semester one of 2026. ECU City will bring more than 300 public performances a year to world-class theatres in the heart of Perth.

As the centrepiece of the $1.7 billion Perth City Deal, ECU City will bring together creative industries, business and law, and emerging technologies. The 65,000m² university is set to invigorate the Perth City Link precinct and the Perth CBD by introducing a community of more than 10,000 staff and students to stimulate economic activity and patronage for surrounding businesses.

WAAPA’s performance venues include a Recital Hall, Playhouse Theatre, Dance Theatre, Jazz and Contemporary Music Studio, Flex Theatre and Aboriginal Theatre, as well as Music Rehearsal and Playhouse Theatre Rehearsal spaces.

The $30 million agreement will increase the WA arts and culture sector’s access to global talent and networks and will help position WA as a leading destination for creative talent and the arts.

”I am proud that Minderoo Foundation can support Edith Cowan University’s visionary approach for WAAPA to be one of the world’s best performing arts institutions,” said Nicola Forrest AO.

”By enabling new generations to experience the transformative power of performance, we can harness the extraordinary ability of the arts to inspire, unite and uplift communities.”

Dr Andrew Forrest AO said Minderoo Foundation had long held the belief that the arts could bring communities together and foster social cohesion.

“It also has an incredible ability to create awareness and challenge ways of thinking – indeed, art has proved time and again that it can change the world,” Dr Forrest said.

“Minderoo is proud to support the next wave of groundbreaking WAAPA artists at this new world-class facility. This will be the birthplace of ideas that motivate people, companies and governments to act, reassess their behaviours or start a movement.”

Professor Clare Pollock said the unprecedented partnership would unlock extraordinary opportunities that will impact generations of young people from Western Australia and the region.

“The investment will support the world’s best in stage engineering, acoustics, lighting and audiovisual technology to deliver eight new world-class performance venues within WAAPA, which will further bolster Perth’s burgeoning cultural precinct,” Professor Pollock said.

“It will also support bringing world-leading artists to WAAPA to train and perform with our emerging talent on the screen and stage.

“We are immensely proud of WAAPA, and deeply honoured to receive this generous gift from Minderoo Foundation. This investment takes our enduring relationship to new heights and will deliver enormous benefits for students, the arts and the community, with impacts that our State can take great pride in.

“We will continue to build on the transformational vision and benefits that will be delivered by the ECU City campus with our partners, and as part of our valued collaboration with the Australian and Western Australian Governments under the Perth City Deal. An exciting future is ahead for Western Australia, Perth and ECU.”