Traction is finally being made on repairs to the theatre after the City of Ballarat signed off on an almost $735,000 contract to replace ailing seating.  

The seats were installed in 1940 and were second-hand from Tivoli in Camberwell. 

They were last restored in the late 1980s. 

Ballarat Cr Samantha McIntosh said the works were more than a decade in the making.

Cr McIntosh said the theatre had been a central part of cultural life in the Central Goldfields region since it was established in 1875.

She said the theatre had been a springboard for young stars who performed in Ballarat before going onto to grace stages across the globe and attaining worldwide acclaim. 

“It deserves to continue with its premier status given what it has delivered to this city over time,” Cr McIntosh said. “Renowned sopranos including Dame Kiri Te Kanawa started their performing arts careers in this city.”

Cr McIntosh said the price tag to complete all the works required to completely revive the theatre was estimated to be more than $28 million.

“This is just a small chunk of what it required for the much bigger picture we have in mind but it is a fabulous start,” she said. 

The City of Ballarat said in a statement the first allocation of funding would be used to replace seating, carpet, realigning foot warmers and urgent repairs to ceilings and rear walls.  

The repairs are part of the $1.2 million allocated to the theatre in this year’s council budget.  

Works will commence after the last performance in December.

All works will be completed by the end of February and undertaken during the theatre’s usual maintenance shut-down period.

The council said the next stage of works was dependent on future budget allocations.