In March 1938 the Mayor of Ballarat chaired a public meeting at which Ballarat citizens chose to form a branch of the National Theatre movement in this city. We have been making theatre ever since, producing more than 275 shows over 84 years.

We are a not-for-profit incorporated company. This means that all participants of our shows are volunteers and must be current members to take part.

We are renowned for ‘straight’ theatre, in that we do not usually produce musicals. We produce multiple productions per year, usually in school holidays as well as for the Ballarat Heritage Festival. Productions include Shakespeare, radio plays, Australian plays, classic British and American plays and original works.

In response to the pandemic, we also began producing free online dramatic audiobooks as podcasts.

We host the quarterly social event: Monologue Karaoke, giving people the chance to try some time on the stage.

Members are able to try out all areas of production from acting, directing and writing to costume, props, sets, lighting and sound. Expressions of interest for involvement in upcoming productions are usually announced on our social media platforms and mailing list.

We have a mixed-age audience attending our productions, which are staged at a range of venues around Ballarat. Members receive discounted tickets to our performances.

We are always working to keep our members involved and to expand our audience into new areas of the community. Visit the Get Involved section of our website for information on different ways to participate in theatre with us.