Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA)

09/09/2026

By bringing daily student life, public performance and creative education directly into the city centre WAAPA is standing up as a leader of arts/performance education and a cultural anchor for the C*D.

Coming in joint place with Kyoto, Perth has recently been crowned the 20th best city in the world to live in, according to the latest ranking by Monocle. The city’s ranking has improved in large part due to the Perth City Link, a major urban renewal and redevelopment project that reconnects the C*D with Northbridge for the first time in over a century.

“The link’s crown jewel, Edith Cowan University’s city campus, opened earlier this year in a move that has injected youth and learning into a district that has long been crowded with engineers and mining executives.” (monocle.com)

Meanwhile opportunities spanning performance, production, music, dance, acting, musical theatre, design and contemporary creative practice await in abundance. Surrounded by the energy of a vibrant city centre, students have access to a suite of specialist, purpose-built venues and rehearsal rooms designed for professional-standard training and public presentation.

These include eight public performance and rehearsal spaces, featuring a recital hall, playhouse theatre, dance theatre, jazz and contemporary music studio, flex theatre, Aboriginal theatre, and dedicated music and theatre rehearsal spaces. All these venues are supported by advanced acoustics, contemporary production technology and specialist design intended to mirror the expectations of professional performance environments.

The ECU City Campus won the most accolades at the 2026 West Australian Architecture Awards, including the most esteemed honour, the George Temple Poole Award.

The City Campus also took out the 2026 Australian Construction Achievement Award (ACAA), the construction industry’s highest honour – Multiplex was awarded for its construction and delivery, with ECU City recognised as a city-defining education precinct.

The anticipation leading up to the opening of the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts’ (WAAPA) landmark ECU City campus location earlier this

07/09/2026

Thank you to the wonderful and creative Great Southern community for welcoming WAAPA back for another fabulous Community Bank Albany - Radio Active concert last Friday. Thanks to Community Bank Albany, Albany Entertainment Ctr, Albany SHS, Great Southern Grammar, Janet McArtney
and everyone at Albany Light Opera and Theatre Co, and to everyone who came out to support these fabulous young performers. ❤️

06/09/2026

“When he created this story and gave me an example of how the songs could actually work to tell this story, that’s really when it started to come to life,” Martin said.

Songs from Britney Spears (…Baby One More Time, Stronger, Oops I Did It Again), Katy Perry (I Kissed A Girl, Roar), Backstreet Boys (Larger Than Life, Everybody: Backstreet’s Back), Demi Lovato (Confident) and Bon Jovi (It’s My Life) make up just a portion of the hitfest as Juliet finds herself and becomes empowered by her own story.

After debuting in Melbourne in 2019 & Juliet has become a hit itself on Broadway, London’s West End, North America, Toronto, Melbourne, Hamburg, Stockholm and New Zealand.

Performed by WAAPA 3rd Year Musical Theatre and Music students

the production is directed by Alastair Knights, with Musical Direction by Vanitha Hart and choreography by Jodie Bickle.

& Juliet runs at the Regal Theatre from Friday-Thursday, September 11-17, at 7.30pm, with a matinee on Saturday, September 12, at 2pm. Tickets: $89 Full / $84 Concession / $82 WAAPA Friends / $55 Restricted View (booking fees apply). Book through the Regal Theatre (08) 9381 9943 or online at regaltheatre.com.au.

It’s a ponderance at the very heart of the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts’ new production of & Juliet, a jukebox spectacular offering a

03/09/2026

Your WAAPA story starts here. Applications for 2027 are now closing across our courses, with deadlines varying by discipline. Find your course below, get your application in, and take the next step towards a future in the performing arts.

📅 2027 Application Closing Dates
🎼 Music (Round 1) – 7 September
💃 Dance – 15 September
🎭 Acting – 9 October
🎭 Performance Making (BPA) – 9 October
🎨 Production & Design – 31 October
🎓 Arts & Cultural Management – 15 November
🎼 Music (Round 2) – 16 November
🖤💛❤️ Aboriginal Performance – 30 November
�🎥 Screen Performance – 30 November
📚 Bachelor of Creative and Performing Arts Honours – 30 November

Don't leave it until the last minute. Check your audition and application requirements, choose your course, and apply before the deadline.
Apply now.

Head to our website now and download the audition and interview guide for your course!

02/09/2026

The West Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) and the School of Arts and Humanities have long been powerhouses of Australian creative education. Their move into Edith Cowan University’s new city campus in Perth’s C*D presented a radical shift: from a sprawling suburban site to a tightly packed multi-storey vertical campus smack-dab in the middle of the city. Eight theatres of each description, rehearsal rooms, broadcast facilities, an Atmos mixing theatre, surround sound mix suites and edit rooms are now interwoven across multiple levels.

[...]Read More...

02/09/2026

Vasilas trained as a violinist at the WA Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) before winning a scholarship in the mid-1990s to undertake postgraduate orchestral and violin studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London.🎻

For near 30 years, Elisa Vasilas dreamed of taking Australian musicians to Greece. This September, that dream finally becomes reality when the Perth violinist and arts administrator travels to the tiny Dodecanese island of Chalki as Music Liaison and Manager for the Darlington String Quartet, invited to perform at the ‘5th Chalki Music Festival – Dimitris Kremastinos.’

Read the full story ⬇️

From a Perth childhood and a family shaped by Chalki and Kastellorizo to the world stage, Elisa Vasilas is bringing Australian music back to the island where her story began

02/09/2026

We love our new home and facilities giving our students a competitive edge with its state of the art music production facilities and equipment.

01/09/2026

Tickets are selling fast for Community Bank Radio Active this Friday at the Albany Entertainment Centre. Featuring the Contemporary Music students alongside students from the Diploma of Music in Albany as well as students from Albany SHS and Great Southern Grammar performing your favourite recent and classic pop and rock hits.

Experience synergy at Community Bank Albany Radio Active as WAAPA Contemporary Music Students, Albany Senior High School, and Great Southern Grammar talents converge, igniting the stage with eclectic contemporary beats!

28/08/2026

🎻 Vale Alan Bonds

Colleagues at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts are sad to hear of the passing of Alan Bonds. Alan was one of the founding staff members of what was then the WA Conservatorium of Music. Alan was a polymath, a brilliant teacher and an inspirational musician whose contribution to music in WA was profound.

Deepest condolences to Alan’s family and loved

WAYO is honoured to pay tribute to the legendary Alan Bonds, who sadly passed away on the weekend. Alan made an enormous contribution to the music scene of Western Australia, and his loss is deeply felt across our community.

An outstanding and visionary educator, conductor, violinist and violist, Alan played a formative role in the establishment and growth of WAYO, lending his considerable talents in conducting, tutoring and at Board level.

It is perhaps as an inspiring educator that he will be best remembered. As a foundation staff member at the then WA Conservatorium of Music (now WAAPA), Alan made a lasting impact on all who studied there, whether in string and orchestral pedagogy, conducting, orchestration, form and analysis, or through his artistry as a member of the then Conservatorium’s acclaimed Stirling String Quartet (the then-resident full-time string quartet). He also brought his wealth of knowledge and experience to the University of Western Australia, where he taught for many years. His influence extended further still through his role in establishing and co-managing the wildly successful WAAPA Exhibitioners Program, which provided vital mentoring and an unparalleled musical education to countless school-age students with prospective careers in music.

A wise and intelligent man, Alan will also be remembered for his warmth, sharp humour, gift for storytelling and unwavering dedication to the craft, always putting music and the inspiration of others first and foremost.

The current and past WAYO Board and management, which proudly includes Alan's colleagues, friends and former students, extends its heartfelt condolences to his family at this difficult time. We will always be grateful to count him as a friend and colleague.

As Alan always dedicated himself to nurturing young musicians and being part of incredible ensembles, he is pictured here (far right) with the Soloists of Australia project for the Perth Festival in 1986. We think it's a fitting tribute.

28/08/2026

🩰 WAAPA dance student Brady Leong reflects on the journey that led him to ballet, from watching his sister dance as a child to discovering an art form that gave him a profound sense of freedom, purpose and belonging. Through candid interviews and beautiful new footage, Brady shares why classical ballet captured his imagination and why pursuing dance became an undeniable passion.

Filmed at WAAPA's new home within ECU's award-winning, state-of-the-art campus in the heart of Perth, the film offers a genuine glimpse into life as a WAAPA dance student. From intensive studio training and classes to moments of connection between friends and classmates, it showcases the vibrant, supportive and inclusive creative community that defines the WAAPA student experience.

Alongside Brady's personal story, audiences will see the dedication, discipline and camaraderie that underpin professional dance training, as students learn, create and grow together in an environment designed to nurture artistic excellence and individual expression.

Brady is the recipient of the Jamelia Gubgub and David Wallace Classical Ballet Scholarship, which supports talented young dancers pursuing professional training at WAAPA.

If you're ready to challenge yourself creatively, train with some of Australia's leading dance artists and educators, and join a thriving community of passionate performers, WAAPA could be your next step.

CUA51520 Diploma of Professional Dance (Elite Performance)
CUA60120 Advanced Diploma of Professional Dance (Elite Performance)
Bachelor of Arts (Dance)
Bachelor of Creative and Performing Arts Honours (LINK Dance Company)

⚡ Applications close 25 September 🩰
🎭 Auditions commence 27 September

🎥 Thank you .au for the amazing film.
🎶 Fires by Roie Shpigler, Brianna Tam

27/08/2026

West End. Broadway. National Theatre. Perth. ✨

Our Set & Costume Design students have been learning from Minderoo Premier Visiting Artist Jon Driscoll (UK), an Olivier Award-winning and Tony Award-nominated projection and lighting designer whose work has lit up some of the world's biggest stages.

Through a series of hands-on masterclasses, students explored projection design, visual storytelling, project mapping and the creative possibilities of video in contemporary performance.

Thank you to the Minderoo Foundation for making these extraordinary industry experiences possible.

🎓 Interested in a career designing the worlds audiences see on stage?

Applications for WAAPA's 2027 Set & Costume Design courses are now open.
No ATAR needed.

APPLY NOW. 🎭🚀 https://www.waapa.ecu.edu.au/courses-and-admissions/our-courses/production-and-design/set-and-costume-design

27/08/2026

Step into the enchanted world of The Fairy Queen, widely considered to be one of Henry Purcell’s greatest musical works – now reimagined for a contemporary audience.

With its wildly imaginative theatricality, this spectacular production is a fitting choice for the inaugural season in WAAPA’s stunning new Playhouse Theatre at ECU City from 11–17 September.

Featuring the extraordinary talents of WAAPA’s Classical Voice students, backed by the superb musicianship of the WAAPA Symphony Orchestra and the behind-the-scenes expertise of P&D staff and students, The Fairy Queen promises a thrilling showcase of WAAPA’s artistic and collaborative excellence.

Purcell’s semi-operatic adaptation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream was first performed in 1692, a hundred years after Shakespeare’s play was written. Vibrant and colourful, it uses a sequence of musical masques set to a brilliantly inventive score to create a fairytale fantasy.

Like Shakespeare’s play, the score takes us from bewitching beauty and pathos to rowdy, raunchy desire and broad comedy.

Four hundred years later, visiting director Melissa Cantwell and music director Stewart Smith bring a modern revisioning of The Fairy Queen to the stage of Perth’s newest theatre venue.

“Created in collaboration with the immensely talented WAAPA students, we have reframed the work in an urban context to look at all the different ways we find love in the modern world,” says Cantwell. “It is sassy, stylish and full of heart.”

The ensemble cast weave their magic around themes of love and desire, transformation and illusion, and of nature and the supernatural.

“The spirit of Purcell’s adaptation has informed our own, embracing a fluidity of ideas and freedom of interpretation to create a rendition of The Fairy Queen that emerges with astonishing relevance and power for a modern audience,” says Cantwell.

Book now:
https://boxoffice.waapa.ecu.edu.au/Events/The-Fairy-Queen/Fri-Sep-11-2026-19-00

Photo by Emma Matthews

27/08/2026

Next Thursday, some of these incredible WAAPA music students take to the stage in the Paula Huston Auditorium at ECU’s city campus, sharing their own fresh takes on some iconic tracks.

From Rolling in the Deep, Back to Black to Flowers, Firework and Give Me the Night, expect unforgettable performances, creative student arrangements and plenty of musical surprises along the way.

Don’t miss the next generation of artists doing what they do best. ✨

🎟️ BOOK NOW!!!!

MusicPerformance MinderooCentre FutureArtists BookNow

26/08/2026

Ebbs graduated in Musical Theatre in 2024 from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) after being bitten by the acting bug early in life.

"I feel like I was one of those kids that I didn't really see myself doing anything else," Ebbs said.
"My parents met doing amateur musicals.

"So, I definitely got my love for theatre and musicals from them."

Ebbs always felt "free" on stage, but as the youngest of four children, and with both parents working as psychologists, Ebbs didn't realise acting could be a job.

Whenever she went to a show, however, she would read the program and notice that so many of the actors had graduated from WAAPA.

"I was like, 'What the hell is this WAAPA place?'" Ebbs said.

"I remember being, like, 10 and being like, 'Okay, well, the people that are up there went here, so I'm going to go there, because then I can get up there.'

"So that kind of started my dream of going to acting school and going to WAAPA."

Ellen Ebbs has made her main stage debut in Fiddler on the Roof at Theatre Royal Sydney, where she previously cleaned the stalls and made cocktails as an usher.

26/08/2026

🎭✨ A familiar face returns to ECU!

Award-winning actor Mark Coles Smith, a graduate of WAAPA’s Certificate III in Theatre (Aboriginal Performance) in 2004, visited ECU’s city campus to connect with the next generation of storytellers and performers.

Best known for his acclaimed role as Detective Jay Swan in Mystery Road: Origin, Mark’s incredible career spans film, television and voice acting, with credits including Apple C***r Vinegar, Beast of War, The Kimberley and Last Cab to Darwin and much more.

Mark spent time with students from WAAPA’s 11436NAT Certificate IV in Aboriginal Performance and the WA Screen and Media Academy, sharing insights, experiences and inspiration from his journey in the industry.

A huge thanks to Mark for returning to where it all began and inspiring the artists and creators of tomorrow. 🙌

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