Finally someone has decided to take action and solve one of the local arts community’s biggest problems: we have no venues.

It is absolutely ridiculous that we have so many artists, actors and musicians in the Highlands but no space for them to perform in.

The community is full of arts fans who would happily buy tickets to any number of recitals and productions but the companies are forced to omit us from their touring schedules because we don’t have a decent size space to offer them.

The Mittagong Playhouse is lovely and intimate but the stage is small and the auditorium can’t seat more than 200 people.

And so for bigger events, organisers are forced to turn to privately owned venues such as Frensham’s Clubbe Hall.

It has a much larger capacity, and a more accessible stage, but as it is owned and used by the school, it is only available at limited times.

Wingecarribee Council has lobbied for arts infrastructure funding from the state government but that hasn’t gotten us very far.

Actress Geraldine Turner may have the answer.

She has devised a Southern Highlands arts festival titled The Works, which will unite the many facets of the arts present in the region, help further promote the Highlands as an artistic centre, and possibly best of all, start a fund to finally build a much needed theatre complex (see page 1).

But it can’t happen without community support.

So make sure you get down to the Empire Cinema next Friday for the first of many fundraising events and help make the festival and theatre complex a reality.