Ambitious plan to save the Italian Forum breaks ‘golden rule’ of theatre
By Nick Galvin
The owners of the Italian Forum are hoping for an arts-led renaissance at the troubled Leichhardt development with the opening of a new 300-seat theatre staging big-name Broadway and West End shows.
The new theatre, brainchild of industry veterans Nathan M. Wright and Andrew Bevis, will be located in the Italian Cultural Centre at the forum and dubbed Teatro, in a nod to the venue’s Italian roots. The venue has already been fitted out as a theatre, but has never fulfilled its potential as an arts and culture hub. However, the pair intend to improve it and stage shows there.
And they have broken the “golden rule” of theatre with their ambitious venture.
Artistic directors Andrew Bevis and Nathan M. Wright have broken the “golden rule” of show business.Credit: Jessica Hromas
“So, obviously, the golden rule of theatre is never invest your own money,” Wright says. “And we haven’t taken any notice of that. We’ve self-funded to get into this building. We want to be able to create great theatre.”
Wright and Bevis have long dreamt of having their own theatre where they can nurture young talent and stage high-calibre shows, but were unable to find the right space.
“We started looking at venue after venue,” Wright says. “Then Andrew called me in December and said, ‘I found it’. I said, ‘What are you talking about?’ He said, ‘There’s this theatre in Leichhardt’. And I said, ‘A theatre? In Leichhardt?’”
After nearly seven months negotiating with Co.As.It, the not-for-profit Italian cultural organisation that owns the venue, Wright and Bevis sealed the deal and today receive the keys to their new theatre, which they have leased for two years with an option for a further four.
The premiere season will launch in October with a fully staged production of The Addams Family musical, featuring a young cast, many of whom are graduates of the THEatreBRIDGE training program run by Wright and Bevis. They will follow that up with the award-winning musical comedy The Prom in 2026.
In its heyday, the Italian Forum, which sits on a site given to the community in 1988 by NSW Premier Neville Wran, was a bustling centre of Italian culture with thriving restaurants and fashion stores. But it has fallen on hard times, with mostly empty retail units and a general air of dilapidation.
Co.As.It general manager Thomas Camporeale is enthusiastic about the new theatre.
“We see it as a central component of the whole Italian Forum precinct and a way to draw new crowds and new interest, which can hopefully then spark further interest in some of the neighbouring tenancies,” he says. “When I met Nathan and Andrew, we immediately hit it off. I hope the community gets behind them.”
Bevis and Wright are now calling for other industry professionals to help make Teatro a success.
“This is not about our egos or doing it for us,” Bevis says. “We actually want people to come and join us.”
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