Submissions for the Emerging Artist Award 2025 are now open and will close Monday 19 May. The Emerging Artist Award at fortyfivedownstairs is a proven catalyst for ongoing recognition and professional development and allows audiences the privilege of accessing early-career works by exciting emerging artists. Entry is open to anyone in an early stage of…
Mark Chew's documentary photographs in 'Fuck Loss Kiss' showcase the complex and diverse lives of women and children in the urban slums and refugee camps of East Africa. This exhibition is accompanied by the video art piece 'Living Room' by Archie and Alicia.
'Analogue' by Jamieson Miller responds to the rise of the digital world by returning to the analogue process of carving, where the marks and imperfections illustrate the physicality, idiosyncrasies, and inner experiences of its maker.
'Out of the Orchard' by Cecilia Cairns is an exhibition celebrating her 60 years as an artist and teacher. Paintings, drawings, and prints depict the orchard, backyards, interiors, the bush, the beach, and the people who are part of her life.
In 1897, from the solitude of his prison cell, Oscar Wilde poured his heart into a searing 50,000-word letter to his estranged lover Lord Alfred 'Bosie' Douglas. Blistering with anguish and fury, De Profundis is Wilde’s unfiltered outpouring of pain, betrayal, and self-revelation – a plea for truth, a meditation on art, and a journey toward forgiveness. This powerful letter has echoed through time, and now, in an intimate special event crafted with director Dino Dimitriadis (Overflow, Arts Centre Melbourne) and featuring a live cello accompaniment by Conrad Hamill, the iconic Paul Capsis reads Wilde’s anthem for the right to love and live authentically, no matter the cost.
Experience two electrifying weeks of world-class music from May 5–18, under the direction of acclaimed pianist Coady Green. Beethoven takes centre stage with five symphonies, his stirring Egmont with narration by Paul English, and Liszt’s monumental two-piano arrangement of the Ninth Symphony featuring Green and legendary Australian pianist Michael Leslie. Discover Holst’s original two-piano version of The Planets with percussion ensemble, and masterpieces by Scriabin, Liszt, and Mozart. This year’s festival ventures beyond the classical canon: journey through Chile’s turbulent past with the music of Violeta Parra, and explore Australian voices with works by Linda Kouvaras, Meta Cohen, Kevin March, and Sally Whitwell—including a powerful new piece by Kouvaras inspired by Gwen Harwood’s poetry, performed by Helen Morse. Experience Dimity Shepherd’s dynamic Opera Closets and join Sally-Anne Russell and Glenn Riddle for a night tracing the lineage from Beethoven to Czerny to Liszt. Don’t miss The Parlour’s fresh perspective on Beethoven through the eyes of Caroline Unger, and The Crossing Machine’s striking rendition of Elvis Costello’s The Juliet Letters with new arrangements for quartet of music from Fleetwood Mac.
Edward Coleridge's 'Letterbox Landscapes' will feature a collection of expressive oil paintings that capture the beauty of the Victorian countryside and cities, presented in a 1:4 horizontal format.
Hamish Tobias's exhibition explores the effects of warped self-perception on mental health and challenges conventional beauty standards through a multidisciplinary practice spanning painting, drawing and sculpture.
Following the acclaimed and twice sold-out Krapp’s Last Tape, legendary performer Max Gillies will again collaborate with director Laurence Strangio (L’amante anglaise) on another foray into “wistfulness, embarrassment, desire and regret” (The Age, 2018). Bringing together monologues by three inimitable playwrights, ENDGAMES is a bittersweet elegy to posterity and obsession. A resolute recluse declares his bequest, a shabby paramour is haunted by his past, and a beleaguered husband attempts a public lecture. Ranging from farce to melancholy, Gillies brings his particular tragicomic affinity to these desperate existential vignettes.
In 'fragmentum', an exhibition by Brenton Hill, abstract and fragmented compositions reveal the unreliability of memory and emotion.
Steve Leadbeater's 'RITUAL OF THE SENSES' immerses viewers in a sensory exhibition experience which celebrates energy, contrast, inner beauty and the process of creation.
BK Opera and Forest Collective present this Australian premiere of American composer Matt Boehler and Australian librettist Miriam Gordon-Stewart’s adaptation of Neil LaBute's award-winning play. Directed by Kate Millet, conducted by Evan Lawson, and featuring sopranos Amanda Windred and Belinda Dalton, baritone Kiran Rajasingam, and tenor Daniel Szesiong Todd, this black comedy examines the nature of beauty and attraction, revealing the operatic reserves of human truth that lie beneath the surface of a workplace rom-com.
‘Drawing Space: minus and plus’ is a collection of small-scale drawings by Perth-based artist Suzanne .k. Franklin (also known as sue.k.). By presenting works that are unhindered by narrative, the exhibition offers a viewing experience focussed on material substance.
'Endless Drawing' is a new exhibition by Michael Fikaris of automatic drawings inspired by a recent trip to the Wakka Wakka regions (Bunya Mountains, QLD). Fikaris will create a mural in the gallery, with the installation viewable while in progress that week until opening night of Friday June 13.
Do you dare join us to descend into James Joyce’s fevered dreamscape? When men fall under the spell of Circe, what can they become? Prepare yourself for a wild carnival ride of surreal hallucinations exploring the outer realms of gender identity and sexuality in Dublin 1904 – an over-the-top world of music, laughter… and vice. Gritty, moving, uproarious and outrageous: you may never be the same!
Athenie Leckey’s acrylic painting series depicts all 79 species of banksias, capturing distinguishing botanical details in an illustrative style.
Powerhouse performer Andi Snelling is in the fight of her life, stuck behind “the fourth wall”. Little does she know, she is about to orchestrate her own rescue and return to the stage with a second chance at life. Based on the true story of a life-changing tick bite, Happy-Go-Wrong is a visceral physical theatre odyssey that celebrates the preciousness of life. Having received numerous awards and five star reviews, this “highlight of the year” (The Age) returns to Melbourne for a very special homecoming.
Step into the awe inspiring and intimate splendour of a 1600s candle-lit playhouse (with lighting design by Lisa Mibus) as acclaimed actor and theatremaker Alexandra Aldrich unveils the first iteration of her radical, female-centric reimagining of John Ford’s wildly controversial work, ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore'.
A razor sharp powerplay about the dark arts of marketing behind climate denial, this Melbourne premiere follows an acclaimed season in Canberra. Playwright Christopher Samuel Carroll performs opposite Damon Baudin, whose performance in 'Boys on the Verge of Tears' earned rave reviews earlier this year.
fortyfivedownstairs is excited to present the tenth Emerging Artist Award, a prestigious award and exhibition showcasing exciting talent from emerging artists.
An affliction known as the RUMBLESKIN is stretching itself across the country. No one knows how it began, but everyone has a story about it. From director Alonso Pineda ('Nothing', fortyfivedownstairs) and playwright Ames May Nunn ('Our Monster's Name Is Jerry', Theatreworks), 'RUMBLESKIN' is a new queer folk tale exploring transformation in a strange and dangerous land.
Gary Smith's exhibition 'Ætheria' will showcase the artist's fascination with discovering the essence of being. Through an arts practice across painting and installation, Smith distills various subjects to reveal their core and dynamic nature.
'Chrysalis + Aberrations' features a series of abstract paintings by Dawn Allmark and digitally manipulated photographs by Michaela Sandberg. Through their respective mediums, each artist embraces a process of evolution and beauty.
In this audacious reimagining of Strindberg’s masterwork set on the eve of Greek Easter, the classic is torn from its 19th-century roots and reborn in the pressure-cooker of modern fine dining, where old hierarchies die hard and nothing stays simmering for long. Director Harry Haynes ('Cygnets', Theatreworks) will collaborate with renowned chef and Masterchef alum Conor Curran to bring the world of the play to life through taste, aroma, and atmosphere.
'Danger Danger Danger Danger Danger & Related Works' is the first solo show devoted to artist Chelsea Hickman’s ongoing textile banner project. A maximalist bombardment of information and image - the banner project unleashes the artist’s frustrations within the fashion industry, queerness, and late-stage capitalism.
'colour.field.echo' will showcase the work of Michele Burder, Susan Watson Knight, and Amanda Johnson. United by their use of bold colours and citational strategies, their practices echo cultural pasts, while ultimately speaking directly to the present.
In 'Going Places', Fiona O'Byrne presents a series of small oil paintings that capture the shared, everyday experience of moving through the city – an essential and uncelebrated part of contemporary urban life.
Following its acclaimed, award winning debut with 'Elegies; A Song Cycle' at fortyfivedownstairs in 2024, Clovelly Fox — one of Melbourne’s most exciting new theatre companies — returns with a fresh take on 'Ordinary Days', the contemporary musical by Adam Gwon. Directed by Green Room Award-winner Tyran Parke (who first brought this gem to life at Chapel Off Chapel), this production promises heart, humour, and a beautifully intimate theatrical experience.
fortyfivedownstairs is now calling out for artists for our fifth annual open-call small works exhibition. The exhibition is open to everyone- and every submitted artwork will be displayed! We welcome a wide variety of styles and media, as long as the artwork does not exceed 20 x 20 cm. Submissions close Monday 3 November.
'Stronger Together' showcases the work of the students at St Albans Secondary College, a co-educational school located in the west of Melbourne. This exhibition is a rare glimpse into the potential that is unlocked when we are able to embrace cultural diversity and share, appreciate, know, collaborate and negotiate cultural divides.
‘Muktoraah’ is a fictional realm of chaos and destruction, developed as part of Braden Howard’s ongoing world-building art practice. This exhibition will delve into this fictional land, showcasing its creatures, worlds, gods, magical beings, and powerful relics.
In her bold and immersive style, renowned director Tanya Gerstle distils Shakespeare’s tragedy to its raw essence, working with a powerhouse ensemble (Christopher Kirby, Dushan Philips, Lucy Ansell, Matthew Furlani and Tanya Schneider) to deliver an intense, deeply human exploration of jealousy, power, and betrayal. With this production, Melbourne Shakespeare Company continues a stellar run at fortyfivedownstairs that includes 'Julius Caesar' in 2023 and 'Hamlet' in 2024.
Drawing from both rural and urban settings, 'Ways Through' features a series of linocut prints by Ballarat-based artist Amanda Western that trace the quiet power of overlooked spaces- laneways, tree lines, and landscapes in flux. This, her first solo exhibition in Melbourne, maps emotional and ecological pathways, asking how we find connection and renewal in the places we pass through.
Melbourne artist Janice Gobey explores the restorative power of nature in her new exhibition, 'The Garden of Life'. Painted primarily in oil, this new body of work, offers viewers a moment of respite - an invitation to rest and reconnect with nature, the subconscious, and the unseen corners of the psyche.
'Naarm Textile Biennale- Social Fabric' is the third biannual exhibition by Naarm Textile Collective at fortyfivedownstairs. This collaborative group exhibition features textile artists from Victoria and will showcase a diverse and progressive range of textile art that challenges traditional conceptions of the medium.