Construction has started on a $5.5 million building at USC Sunshine Coast that is set to inspire the study of Creative Industries and enliven the campus as a venue for regular performances by musicians and actors.

In fact, USC believes the state-of-the-art facility will be at the centre of some amazing collaborations for music, theatre, art and screen media projects across the region.

The new building will have an internal performance area for an audience of 80, plus a stage that opens out to a lawn and the USC Art Gallery piazza for much larger crowds.

Designed by Wilson Architects and being built by BADGE Constructions, the facility is on track to open in March 2020.

It will feature professional-quality recording and video studios, a black box theatre production space, and Queensland’s first MIT Fab Lab Maker Space.

All areas of the building will be connected by a high-end audio-over-IP system that will enable recording of high-fidelity, broadcast-quality audio from any part of the building, making it suitable for professionally recording acts as small as a solo artist or as large as an orchestra.

Head of School of Creative Industries Professor Phil Graham, who is also a professional musician, said the new building would become the creative heart of the University and hopefully for creative industries across the Sunshine Coast.

“This is a very exciting development for USC. The performance space will be right alongside the USC Art Gallery, so together they will create a vibrant cultural hub at the centre of campus,” Professor Graham said.

“It will be a centre for engagement for the University with members of the broader creative industries across the region and will provide a professional production facility for not only our students but also the wider community.

“There will be many uses for this building beyond teaching, including hosting creative festivals and collaborations involving our students, staff, and national industry experts that connect the talent of the Coast with the global creative industries.”

Professor Graham said USC would soon announce some exciting new academic appointments for its expanding Creative Industries programs.