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Cultural Capital?

When

Event Status

In 2015, a bevy of bright new brains will make their mark on Melbourne’s cultural scene, as new directors start work at some of our most cherished institutions: Arts Centre Melbourne, Melbourne Festival and Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI).

In an event jam-packed with creative thinkers and big ideas, Claire Spencer (Arts Centre Melbourne), Katrina Sedgwick (ACMI) and Jonathan Holloway (Melbourne Festival) – well known for their work in Sydney, Perth, Adelaide and beyond – will get serious with Wheeler Centre director Michael Williams. Together, they’ll address the most pressing questions, confront the immediate challenges and exercise their keen instincts, as they explore the artistic future of Melbourne.

Are we still a city of big dreams and new voices? Are we maintaining the cultural edge that’s earned us the badge of Australia’s cultural capital? And do we take ourselves too seriously, or is there a sense of humour about our treasured status as the home of black clothes, cafes with crates and the perfect flat white?

We’ll get beyond laneways and trams, in an honest assessment of who we are … and where we’re going next.

Featuring

Michael Williams

Michael Williams joined Sydney Writers’ Festival in September 2020, as the Artistic Director navigating the post-pandemic landscape going into the 2021 festival. He has spent the past decade at the Wheeler Centre for Books, Writing and Ideas in Melbourne; as its founding Head of Programming in 200... Read more

Claire Spencer

Claire Spencer has been Arts Centre Melbourne’s Chief Executive Officer since November 2014. Prior to Arts Centre Melbourne, Claire was at the Sydney Opera House for nearly 12 years, her last role being Chief Operating Officer, a role she commenced in October 2010. In this capacity, Claire was res... Read more

Katrina Sedgwick

Katrina has been Director & CEO of ACMI since 2015. She has a particular interest in supporting cross-disciplinary practice and an extensive background as a commissioner, creative producer and festival director. Her previous roles include Head of Arts for the national broadcaster ABC TV as well ... Read more

Jonathan Holloway

Jonathan Holloway is Artistic Director Designate for the Melbourne Festival, having just completed four successful years as Artistic Director of the Perth International Arts Festival. Previously Jonathan spent six years as Artistic Director and Chief Executive of the Norfolk & Norwich Festival, ... Read more

Location

The Wheeler Centre

176 Little Lonsdale Street Melbourne Victoria 3000

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The Wheeler Centre acknowledges the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung people of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Owners of the land on which the Centre stands. We acknowledge and pay our respects to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and their Elders, past and present, as the custodians of the world’s oldest continuous living culture.