When WAAPA’s 2026 performance program was announced back in March, the general public were able to get their first glimpse of the calibre of not only the Premier Visiting Artists set to visit throughout the year, but further, each new venue set to host the inaugural performances inside the brand-new Minderoo Centre for Performance Excellence at ECU City.
While several venues remain unnamed, venues like the Paula Huston Auditorium, the McCusker Recital Hall and the Derksen Studio made their debuts, carrying with them the legacy of their namesakes and their passion for WAAPA’s artistic mission.
One of the most special stories behind the new ECU City campus venues is Paula Huston’s. Huston grew up in Mount Lawley and would walk from her home to attend WAAPA’s performances regularly. That early connection stayed with her, and she devoted much of her life to the arts, especially enjoying watching students develop and supporting emerging talent.
Upon her passing in November 2025, Huston bequeathed her entire estate to WAAPA, alongside a living gift to fund international opportunities for emerging artists. In naming the Paula Huston Auditorium, alongside pledging $100,000 annually to support student scholarships, Huston ensured that future generations of performers from WAAPA could pursue their careers with fewer barriers. Those who worked with her knew that her focus was to give young performers a chance to step onto the global stage.
The Paula Huston Auditorium opened with the City campus at the beginning of the year, and will be available to experience throughout the rest of WAAPA’s 2026 performance season, including in the upcoming massive ensemble performance of the Jazz and Contemporary Music Students, By Epic Arrangement!
This auditorium isn’t the only city campus venue with a story behind it – a venue that debuted early this year was the McCusker Recital Hall, honouring the McCusker Charitable Foundation and family who have supported WAAPA for two decades. It can accommodate both a full orchestra of 70 performers and almost 400 audience members – but the highlight is the Fazioli piano at its centre, gifted to WAAPA by the family in 2014.
Visiting Artist and ARIA award-winning guitarist Karin Schaupp is set to perform here on Thursday, August 13.
The Derksen Studio is one of ECU City’s most sophisticated venues, and is also named for passionate educator and lifelong supporter of the performing arts, Lesley Joy Derksen.
Derksen was especially committed to supporting WAAPA and backstage practitioners, whom she called the “unsung heroes,” of every production. After her passing in 2024, the Herman and Lesley Derksen Backstage Scholarship was established, reflecting her commitment to arts education. The scholarships, valued at $10,000 each, support full-time WAAPA students within the Bachelor of Performing Arts (Production and Design) major.
Those who knew Lesley spoke of her constant curiosity, and her wish to understand every part of the creative process, from lighting design to costume making. Her deep connection to teaching, theatre and student development is now attached to one of ECU City’s flagship venues, and perhaps the venue that most encourages and supports cross-disciplinary excellence and progress.
The Derksen Studio is adaptable, with high-spec projectors, a sophisticated spatial audio mapping system, and blonde timber panelling for warm acoustics meaning the space can be used for anything from a rehearsal room to an experimental audio-visual environment.
Her bequest not only funds scholarships, but prizes and fellowships across sound production, Aboriginal performance and children’s literature, continuing to support WAAPA students for generations to come.
Several performance spaces at the Minderoo Centre for Performance Excellence remain unnamed and open for recognition, like the Playhouse Theatre, hosting its inaugural performances this season with The Fairy Queen, and other purpose-built venues like the SoundHouse, Dance Theatre, Flex Theatre and Aboriginal Performance Studio.
The new Minderoo Centre for Performance Excellence venues will host the next generation of artists, their names offering a lasting legacy and presence in every step onto the stage for the donors, with the general public also invited to share the spaces with each performance.
WAAPA’s Season 3 performance program opened on Thursday, July 30 and runs until Thursday, September 24. Tickets are on sale now.
