HotHouse Theatre is the custodian of two precious and iconic old buildings, the Butter Factory Theatre in Wodonga, and a farmhouse, affectionately known as the GreenHouse in Splitters Creek. These two buildings are in many ways, our company’s heart and soul.
Originally built in 1928, the Butter Factory situated on Gateway Island on the Victorian side of the Murray River is steeped with this region’s history as an important meeting place for its First People, then an operating dairy and now, as home to HotHouse Theatre.
The transformation of a run-down factory into a professional theatre took years of physical slog and commitment by local theatre-makers. When it opened in 1997, the Butter Factory immediately became Australia’s beating heart for vital regionally made, nationally significant theatre. Hundreds of famous Australian actors and musicians have appeared onstage at the Butter Factory.
For the local community, the Butter Factory is a place for storytelling. In 2003, when fires in Victoria’s Northeast tore through the region, part of the community’s recovery process was the development of the award-winning verbatim play Embers, based on interviews with residents by playwright Campion Decent. Embers was co-produced by HotHouse Theatre and Sydney Theatre Company in 2006 and toured nationally.
In parallel, in 2004 HotHouse sought the lease on a dilapidated farmhouse owned by Albury Council near the Wonga Wetlands. The house became an artist’s residency. The program affectionately known as A Month in the Country offered the serenity, escape and focus of a regional residency for artists and creative teams and changed the national conversation around the development of new theatre work.
Today the GreenHouse National Artists Residency continues to welcome and inspire artists from all around Australia and nourish local artists and foster collaborative artistic networks, connecting locals with visiting creatives, and through workshops and presentations.
HotHouse Theatre is empowered by the community, the river and ancient landscapes of this place. The distinctive qualities of these modest buildings, a farmhouse and a small theatre, have given us a unique signature in the national cultural landscape. Here artists are inspired to create bold programming and imaginative new initiatives, responding to and reflecting the rapidly changing world.
