Free coffee awaits audiences as La Mama Theatre readies to reopen in 2026. “Everyone said we should charge for it – the margin on coffee is one of the highest around – but I held firm,” says chief executive and artistic director Caitlin Dullard.

It’s a move that aligns with La Mama’s communitarian spirit. The cherished stalwart of Melbourne’s indie theatre scene was founded by Betty Burstall in 1967, modelled on (and named after) the “coffeehouse theatre” she had witnessed in New York.

The venue closed its doors to public performance this year for the first time in its history, after missing out twice on four-year operational funding from the federal government – in 2020 and in 2024.

“It was depressing,” says Dullard. “We received quite a lot of money during the pandemic. Those grants

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