The show could be anything from a ballet to a concert with quarries in Queensland and Western Australia already putting on a show – or two.
A multimillion dollar complex, which would include an amphitheatre, is being mooted as the future site of the existing West Burleigh Boral quarry in Queensland after it ceases operation in 2020.
The proposal is the brainchild of Burleigh MP Michael Hart who mooted the development as a replacement for the existing Parklands event precinct, which comprises 74ha of pavilions, showgrounds, a harness area and function centres. Parklands will close in September and its stakeholders relocated ahead of the site hosting the athletes? village for the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Hart?s plan includes building a concert venue as well as event centres at the West Burleigh quarry site. He said he had already held talks with the Gold Coast City Council.
“We need a permanent facility and this would be the perfect site given it is not near any housing, is close to the M1 and future railway stations and would be a huge feather in the southern Gold Coast’s cap,” he said.
“With [West Burleigh?s] closure still a few years away we need to get the planning underway now so it all proceeds smoothly.”
Area councillor Greg Betts said he was tentatively in favour of the project.
“We are on track to get the transport infrastructure needed and now have the population to justify such a site,” Betts said. “However, at the same time we must be mindful of the people who live close to the site and would be disturbed by the noise.”
The Gold Coast can take some solace from the fact that converting an old quarry site into an entertainment arena has worked before ? notably in WA. The picturesque bushland setting of Quarry Amphitheatre, in City Beach, near Perth, has held numerous concerts over the years and this year celebrates its 20th anniversary as a concert venue by playing host to a ballet show lead by emerging choreographer Daniel Roberts.
?It?s a fun environment but a tough one to dance in ? I can?t lie about that ? as the heat is harsh and as a dancer on stage, you get jealous when you hear champagne corks being popped while you?re plugging away,? Roberts said.
The 25-year-old will be watching on as choreographer among the picnicking public while 14 other dancers perspire and pirouette their way through the premiere of his ballet Jubilate.
This forms part of a triple-billed annual ballet at the Quarry celebrating the City Beach venue?s 20th anniversary during the Perth International Arts Festival.
Sources: Gold Coast News, In My Community