The Gallagher Academy of Peforming Arts

Attractive Concert Venue

The Dr John Gallagher Concert Chamber is the largest of the Academy’s five main venues. Its high ceiling, beautiful wall panels and wooden floors are designed specifically for acoustic chamber music and it has established a reputation nationally and internationally as one of the most intimate and acoustically satisfying concert halls in New Zealand.

With a capacity of 340 seats, 289 in front of the stage, the Concert Chamber is also an attractive venue for conferences, lectures and other performances.

Flexible, Multi-Use Venue

The Playhouse Theatre is a flexible, multi-use, flat floor theatre, ideal for a wide range of events including theatre and dance performances, small-scale musical productions, cabaret, live bands, fashion shows, academic and corporate conferences, formal dinners, weddings and business expos.

This venue can accommodate multiple seating configurations including 181 tiered seats (or up to 341 with additional flat floor seating), 180 seats at round tables or 240 seats in banquet style.

Floor to Ceiling Windows with Native Bush and Lake Views

Te Whare Tāpere Iti is an open floor studio space with beautiful native bush and lake views through its 5 metre high ceiling-to-floor windows.

The most intimate of the Academy venues it is designed primarily as a dance studio with a sprung floor for Māori performing arts and dance, but also serves as a unique formal dining and cocktail venue, particularly suited to wedding receptions or social functions for up to 150 people (depending on function and venue configuration).

Fully equipped with a theatre lighting rig and PA system it can also host a wide range of public presentations, seminars, meetings and workshops.

Professional Dance Studio

The Dance Studio is an open studio space with a sprung floor, mirror wall and dance barre. Primarily designed for dance rehearsal it also contains a lighting grid and black curtains on tracks to enable small-scale dance and theatre performances, with a maximum capacity of 120, depending on configuration.

The Upstairs Lounge is situated on the first floor of the Academy and looks out over the tree-lined University campus lake.

It is an ideal executive venue for a wide range of events such as seminars, workshops, cocktail functions and dinners, and is custom-fitted with its own AV projection, sound system, bar, and kitchen facilities. Capacity varies according to layout, but it accommodates up to 40 for a dinner, and we recommend 50 max for a cocktail-type event.

120 Seats

The Lake Stage (120 seats) is a spectacular open-air circular stage extending over the university lake with an arc of amphitheatre seating. Situated in front of the Telecom Playhouse it is particularly attractive for use in the summer months and can support theatre, dance and musical performances, as well as private functions and dining.