In another blow to Fitzroy Street, the owners of the Alexander Theatre have announced that their last shows will be in December and the venue has gone on the market for an expected $9M.
The venue started in a renovated George apartment complex in 1994 with a multi-screen cinema operated in a variety of guises before closing in February 2014.
Investor and theatre promoters Susan and Aleksandar Vass purchased the venue in 2015 and transformed it into multi-purpose arts venue renamed as the Alex Theatre. They made significant investment in digital technology enabling it to host a variety of performances and internet friendly narrowcast productions such as The Art Hunter.
With Melbourne thriving musical theatre scene, Vass et al were successful in giving innovative productions a out-of-CBD theatre space (in the style of off-Broadway) to take risks.
But last week, after months of theatrical chatter, Aleksandar Vass took to social media to break the sad news.
“There comes a time when every chapter, no matter how vibrant, must come to an end. It is with both gratitude and reflection that we announce the conclusion of the Alex Theatre Project at the close of 2024,” he wrote.
“We still have shows on until the end of the year, don’t forget A Very Naughty Christmas is coming,” he stressed.
“For ten years, the Alex Theatre has been a beacon… a stage for the unheard, a home for the unseen. From humble beginnings, it rose to offer Melbourne something rare: spaces that embraced risk, art, and community.”
And TWiSK agrees. Vass was a ‘white-knight’ supporter of the arts, who put his millions where is heart was. The Alex was brave and brazen at times, but its been a difficult ten years; COVID, the relentless decline of Fitzroy Street, the steady drift of cool to the Northside and the enduring strength of CBD musical theatre scene made The Alex a risky business at best.
Uncertain future: Theatre, conferences, hotel or residential?
Here is what the real estate website Development Ready said:
“The sale of the Alex Theatre and Conference Centre presents a rare and exciting opportunity for a new owner to carry forward its legacy in St Kilda, with the site offering a diverse range of versatile spaces and the flexibility for a variety of performances, events, and community activities. Set to offer additional appeal to a potential purchaser, the site also offers significant redevelopment potential, ideally suited to multi-level residential or hotel (STCA). “
Julian Heatherich, Director at Savills Australia and New Zealand and co-agent for the sale said, “The Alex Theatre and Conference Centre represents a truly unique opportunity to acquire one of Melbourne’s most prominent and well-known properties.
“Its legacy as a home for diverse productions and creative collaboration is unmatched and this sale offers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for an arts entrepreneur, investor or developer, to take the reins of a site that has become part of the very fabric of St Kilda.”
TWiSK understands that ‘exploratory’ discussions are happening behind the scenes for a sale that folds the theatre into a high end arts hotel development.
Lots 1, 30 and 31, 135 Fitzroy Street in St Kilda, known as Alex Theatre and Conference Centre, is for sale by Expressions of Interest, closing Thursday 14 November 2024 at 2 pm (AEST) with offers upwards of $9 million expected.
