What’s On at 45 Murray St: Events, Tickets and Visitor Guide

Events at 45 Murray St range from weekly ballroom socials to underground dance nights, workshops and community performances in a heritage Perth venue.

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MR Traumatik`s Birthday Bash - Perth

9:00 PM, Sat, 23 Nov 2019

Nov

Gilkisons Dance Studio

Perth

TC & Simula presented by Riddim

9:00 PM, Sat, 31 Aug 2019

Aug

Gilkisons Dance Studio

Perth

Events and Programming

45 Murray St is best known publicly as the home of Gilkisons Dance Studio, an active, licensed ballroom and Latin venue in Perth’s CBD. Its core programme consists of dance courses followed by social dancing, generally on Wednesday and Friday evenings. Current listings describe Wednesday socials as free and Friday sessions as running from 8.30pm until midnight for about $20, although special-event admission is higher. Classes cover rumba, cha-cha, jive, waltz, quickstep, tango, samba, salsa, merengue and progressive social dances.

The room also has a second life as a flexible event hall. Publicly documented bookings since 2021 show an unusually broad mix: Anyplace Records’ Sealed Section and a GARBAGEtv/Backtrack electronic event in 2021; Cassettes For Kids in 2022; the Perth debut of eGirl Nexus in 2023; and Tuesday ballroom classes and socials organised by Empire Dance Club in 2024. These listings illustrate the venue’s continuing crossover between formal partner dancing and Perth’s underground club culture.

Programming expanded again in 2025. Verifiable events included the UK garage and hard-house night A Nightmare on Murray St, a multi-day bachata weekender, cacao-breathwork and sound-journey sessions, and a ticketed Halloween dance party. Prices varied from approximately $40–$50 for the underground electronic event to $79–$99 for the longer wellness sessions. The venue’s scale, open floor and late licence make it suitable for both intimate movement workshops and high-energy dance parties.

During 2026, the programme has included regular ballroom socials, an Australia Day warm-up party, an Easter dance, community singing during the Boorloo Heritage Festival and a two-day meditation and mindset workshop. Additional six-week dance-course blocks were announced for September and October 2026. No dependable schedule of named one-off events for 2027 or later was publicly confirmed, although recurring social-dance listings and the studio’s long-running teaching programme indicate continued activity beyond 2026.

This chronology covers publicly verifiable listings rather than a complete internal archive. The live event list should therefore be treated as the most useful guide to what is currently available. Expect ballroom and Latin socials most often, supplemented by seasonal parties, dance intensives, community performances, private functions, electronic club nights, workshops, lectures and occasional wellbeing events.

Tickets and Booking

For a listed public event, use the authorised booking option attached to that event rather than buying through an unsolicited message or unofficial resale offer. Dance courses normally require advance enrolment, while ordinary social nights may allow payment at entry. Recent course pricing has been about $127 for a six-week beginner-to-advanced block and approximately $195 for longer Bronze or Silver sessions. Private tuition and special workshops use separate pricing.

Typical admission ranges are free to about $25 for regular or themed social dances, approximately $40–$50 for larger electronic events, and roughly $20–$100 for workshops depending on length and format. Popular one-off events often use limited ticket releases and capped capacity. Buying early is sensible for visiting instructors, dance weekenders and rare club nights, particularly when an organiser advertises multiple pricing tiers. Door sales, refunds, pass validity and presales are event-specific rather than venue-wide policies.

About 45 Murray St

The address belongs to the heritage-listed Young Australia League Building on the corner of Murray and Irwin streets. Gilkisons advertises its public venue as being on the basement level. A current venue-hire listing gives a maximum capacity of 550 and describes a large open hall with breakout areas, a licensed bar and flexible arrangements for performances, parties, weddings, meetings, training and community events. The permitted attendance for any particular event may be lower.

No reliable public source supplies exact room dimensions, ceiling height, stage measurements or capacity figures for each seating configuration. It would therefore be misleading to treat 550 as a guaranteed theatre, banquet or concert capacity. What can be confirmed is a very large hardwood dance floor, movable furniture, modular staging and an open layout designed primarily for movement rather than fixed-seat presentation.

Gilkisons itself dates to 1931 and reports having taught more than two million clients. Founder Sam Gilkison promoted sociable, non-examination-based dancing, introduced teaching into schools and presented dance through early Perth television. The studio moved into more spacious Murray Street premises by the 1970s and remains closely identified with generations of Western Australian ballroom dancers.

Seating and Layout

This is not a conventional theatre with permanent numbered seating. Most dance nights use the hardwood floor as general-admission space, with tables or chairs positioned around the perimeter. Seated lectures, workshops, wedding receptions and stage presentations are arranged for the individual booking. Hire inventory includes chairs, banquet and trestle tables, modular two-foot and three-foot staging, projection equipment and a screen.

For dancing, the centre of the floor provides the most space, while perimeter positions are convenient for watching, resting and reaching the bar. At stage-based events, a central position facing the temporary performance area is usually preferable to standing immediately beside speakers or behind production equipment. Historical balconies exist within the wider building, but visitors should not assume they will be open or included in a particular event configuration. There are no verified permanently restricted-view seats.

Sound, Lighting and Production

The venue’s available production equipment includes an in-house PA with subwoofers and top speakers, moving-head coloured lights, moving-head wash fixtures and PAR cans. In-house projection, a screen, modular staging, Wi-Fi, air conditioning, heating, televisions and computer access are also advertised. Large parties may require an on-site technician, venue manager and licensed crowd controllers.

Promoters can supplement the house system: the 2025 A Nightmare on Murray St event, for example, advertised a dedicated Traction sound system. No current public technical rider confirms speaker models, console specifications, microphone inventory, stage loading, power distribution, rigging points or noise limits. Performers and organisers should consequently confirm all production requirements during booking rather than assuming a touring-concert specification.

Getting There and Parking

45 Murray St stands at the eastern end of Perth CBD, at the corner of Irwin Street, near Royal Perth Hospital and the Murray Street East heritage precinct. McIver is the closest practical train station, while Perth Station and Perth Underground are longer walks through the central city. McIver has a steep access ramp, no lifts and no accessible toilet, so passengers with mobility requirements may prefer a different station and an accessible connecting bus or vehicle journey.

Perth’s CAT buses operate free city loops, and ordinary bus travel within the signed Free Transit Zone is also free. Numerous services use Murray, Hay, Wellington and nearby CBD streets, but routes and late-night frequencies change. Allow extra time when travelling after a Friday event and check the relevant service for the night rather than relying on a daytime timetable.

The closest major public parking option is the open-air Fire Station car park at 1 Murray Street, which operates 24 hours and has regular, motorcycle and disability bays. Its published 2026 meter rates include a $5 night rate. Pier Street car park at 87–89 Pier Street is another short walk, with a $5 night rate and two free hours on weekends and public holidays before normal charges apply. Rates and promotions can change.

On-street bays are available in the surrounding east end, but time limits, clearways and payment periods vary by block. For rideshare, arrange collection from a legal stopping point on Murray or a nearby side street and avoid hospital access points, clearways and bus zones. Central taxi ranks include locations at the Town Hall, Mercure Hotel and Duxton Hotel.

Inside the Venue

Entry arrangements depend on the booking. Regular socials are relatively informal, while large club events may use ticket scanning, bag checks, security staff and compulsory identification. Gilkisons is fully licensed and its own classes and social dances are restricted to patrons aged 18 or over. The premises are smoke-free. A staffed bar serves beer, wine, spirits and non-alcoholic drinks, but there is no permanently advertised public restaurant or standard food menu.

The atmosphere differs dramatically by event. Ballroom nights are social, bright and structured around partner and group dances; club bookings may use darker immersive lighting, heavier bass and a standing floor. Recent visitors describe the regular community as welcoming, relaxed and mixed in age. Other feedback praises the building’s old-school entrance and patient beginner instruction, while one local account warns that some internal stairs, particularly towards the toilets, feel narrow and steep.

Toilets, tables, chairs, Wi-Fi and air conditioning are advertised. A permanent cloakroom, cash machine, charging station and merchandise counter have not been confirmed. Merchandise, food service and coat storage should be assumed unavailable unless the individual event says otherwise.

Nearby Amenities

The venue is close to the eastern CBD’s hotels and the dining areas around Pier Street, Barrack Street, Hay Street and Cathedral Square. The heritage European Hotel is at 97 Murray Street, while other nearby accommodation includes city hotels around Irwin Street, St Georges Terrace and Adelaide Terrace. The largest concentration of late-night bars and restaurants lies farther west in the CBD or across the railway in Northbridge.

For a relaxed arrival, allow 30–45 minutes for parking, walking and entry, then eat before reaching the venue if your event does not advertise catering. After late club nights, pre-booking a ride or walking with others to a busier pickup area is preferable to waiting alone in the quieter east-end streets.

What Makes This Venue Special

The Young Australia League purchased the site in 1920–21. The foundation stone for its headquarters was laid on 23 April 1922 by Prime Minister William Morris Hughes, and the building was completed in 1924 as a memorial to League members killed in the First World War. Architects Oldham and Boas produced the final design after an earlier proposal by Walter Burley Griffin was superseded.

The three-storey building is a rare Perth example of Inter-War Free Classical architecture. Its exterior has a two-storey colonnade, Roman-style arches, Tuscan and composite columns, circular and oriel windows, decorative parapets and strong vertical detailing. Inside are tessellated entrance tiles, carved Australian motifs, an imposing rough-masonry fireplace, decorative plasterwork and significant leaded and stained-glass windows depicting prominent Australians and Sir Galahad.

Heritage documentation describes several distinct historic spaces, including a lower-basement gymnasium converted into a hall, band and dressing rooms, and a two-level memorial ballroom with curved balconies. Gilkisons made alterations during the 1970s and 1980s, adding toilets, enclosing a verandah for a bar and offices, combining former writing and library rooms for rehearsal use, and installing mirrors. Stained glass was restored in 1988, security improvements followed in 1993, and conservation planning and parapet works were undertaken in the 2000s.

This combination of formal heritage architecture, a genuine working dance floor and memories of Perth’s ballroom, alternative and electronic scenes gives the venue its character. It has served youth organisations, dance students, wedding couples, community performers and late-night music audiences rather than becoming a static heritage exhibit.

Accessibility and Visitor Information

Despite the venue’s central location, its most important limitation is accessibility. Current venue information explicitly states that disabled access is unavailable because of the historic building, and a 2026 workshop listing also warned of no wheelchair access. No lift, step-free route, accessible toilet or permanent assisted-listening system has been verified. This is not an ADA question—ADA is United States legislation—but the practical result is that wheelchair users should not assume the event space is accessible.

Regular Gilkisons socials require neat smart-casual clothing. Published rules exclude torn clothes, workwear, singlets, casual T-shirts, thongs, bikie colours and insignia. Comfortable dance shoes are recommended; rubber soles can grip the wooden floor, while very smooth leather may slide. Dogs are not allowed except assistance animals. Special club events may set their own themed or relaxed dress expectations.

Venue-hire rules require spaces to be left clean, with prior approval needed for glitter or confetti cannons. Security, technical supervision or an on-site manager may be compulsory for larger functions. There is no confirmed universal public policy covering bag size, professional cameras, reusable bottles or pass-outs, so follow the instructions attached to the event you are attending.

Cultural and Community Impact

No independently verified study quantifies the venue’s annual economic impact. Its cultural contribution is clearer: it sustains one of Perth’s longest-running social-dance institutions, provides paid work and hire opportunities for teachers, technicians and independent promoters, and keeps a major heritage interior in active community use. The wider building also remains associated with the Young Australia League and more than a century of youth development.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is 45 Murray St the same place as Gilkisons Dance Studio?

Yes. Event listings using “45 Murray St”, “Gilkisons”, “Gilkisons DS” or “Gilkisons Dance Studio” generally refer to the event space within the historic Young Australia League Building at the corner of Murray and Irwin streets. The building contains other spaces and occupants, so follow event signage rather than assuming every entrance leads directly to the dance hall.

What is the capacity of 45 Murray St?

The current venue-hire listing gives a maximum capacity of 550. That should be treated as an overall hire figure, not a promise that every concert, workshop or seated function admits 550 people. Production areas, tables, temporary stages, bars and safety plans can substantially reduce capacity, and individual promoters may deliberately cap attendance below the licensed maximum.

Does the venue have numbered seating?

No permanent numbered seating plan has been published. The venue is primarily an open dance hall with a large hardwood floor and movable chairs, tables and staging. A lecture or performance may use temporary theatre-style rows, while club nights normally remain standing. If an event advertises reserved seating, its organiser should provide the relevant plan for that specific setup.

Are events at 45 Murray St always for adults?

Gilkisons’ own classes and public social dances are 18+ because the studio is licensed. Underground electronic events also commonly require patrons to be 18 and present valid identification. Private hires and community daytime events may follow different rules, however, so a family performance or workshop should not automatically be assumed to have the same restriction.

Do I need a dance partner for a social night or class?

No. The studio states that approximately 70 per cent of course participants attend alone, and classes include both singles and couples. Teachers can rotate participants where appropriate, while social nights combine partner, progressive and group dancing. Arriving without a partner is normal, although nobody is obliged to accept a dance invitation or rotate partners if they are uncomfortable.

How much does a regular night cost?

Wednesday social dancing has recently been advertised as free, with Friday admission around $20 for members of the public. Enrolled students may receive complimentary entry to ordinary socials during their course. Special parties typically cost more and may exclude passes or promotional offers. Prices can change between course blocks, public holidays and independently promoted events.

Can I buy a ticket at the door?

Door payment is often possible for regular social dancing, but it should never be assumed for a one-off event. Workshops, visiting-artist events and underground club nights may be advance-sale only or sell out before doors open. Check whether the event listing explicitly mentions door sales, ticket releases, identification requirements and the organiser’s refund conditions before travelling.

Which train station is best for 45 Murray St?

McIver is generally the closest station, followed by a walk towards Murray and Irwin streets. It has no lift and uses a steep ramp, so it may not suit every passenger. Perth Station is farther west but connects with more rail lines and bus services. Allow additional walking time if arriving through Perth Station or Perth Underground.

Where can I park for an evening event?

The Fire Station car park at 1 Murray Street is the most convenient large public option and operates 24 hours. Pier Street car park is another nearby choice. Both have recently offered $5 night rates, while Pier Street provides a limited free weekend period before standard charges begin. Always read the current entry signs because operating periods and promotions may change.

Is 45 Murray St wheelchair accessible?

No step-free access to the event venue is currently advertised. Both the hire information and recent event notices expressly warn that wheelchair access is unavailable, and no accessible toilet or lift has been confirmed. Wheelchair users and people who cannot manage stairs should not purchase non-refundable admission without receiving direct confirmation that suitable alternative arrangements exist for that particular event.

Where are the toilets?

Toilets are available within the venue, but public sources do not provide a current visitor map. Heritage records describe toilet facilities in different parts of the building, and recent local feedback mentions narrow, steep internal steps on the route towards some toilets. Ask staff on arrival if stairs, lighting or wayfinding could present difficulty.

What should I wear to Gilkisons?

For standard ballroom and Latin sessions, wear neat smart-casual clothing and comfortable shoes that will move safely across polished timber. Avoid thongs, singlets, workwear, torn clothing and heavily gripping rubber soles. A themed party or independently promoted club event may use a different dress code, so the instructions for that booking take priority over ordinary studio rules.

Can I bring a bag or camera?

No dependable venue-wide bag-size or photography policy has been published. Small personal bags are the safest choice, and large events may conduct security inspections. Casual phone photography may still be restricted during classes, performances or private functions. Professional cameras, detachable lenses, recording equipment and tripods should be treated as prohibited unless the event organiser has given permission.

Does the venue sell food and drinks?

A fully licensed bar is available and commonly sells beer, wine, spirits and non-alcoholic options. A permanent public kitchen menu has not been advertised, although catering can be arranged for some private functions. Eat beforehand unless your event specifically includes food, a sausage sizzle, supper or catering. Outside alcohol cannot be assumed to be permitted in a licensed venue.

How early should I arrive?

For an ordinary social, 15–20 minutes before the advertised start should allow time for entry and changing shoes. Allow 30–45 minutes when parking, collecting tickets or attending a high-capacity event with security checks. Beginners who feel nervous may find it easier to arrive before the room fills and speak with staff while other guests are entering gradually.

What type of music is played?

Regular socials combine ballroom and Latin rhythms with music ranging from older classics to contemporary chart material. The room can shift completely for private bookings: documented events have featured house, techno, drum and bass, UK garage, hard house and experimental electronic music. The floor has also hosted bachata weekends, community singing, sound journeys and guided meditation.

Can 45 Murray St be hired privately?

Yes. The hall is advertised for weddings, receptions, birthdays, dance parties, performances, conferences, classes, lectures, fitness sessions, religious gatherings and community events. Furniture, staging, sound, lighting and projection can be added according to the booking. Large or late functions may require security, technical staff and an on-site manager, with a minimum hire period applying.

Why is the building historically important?

Completed in 1924, the Young Australia League Building was created as the organisation’s headquarters and a memorial to members killed in the First World War. Its rare Inter-War Free Classical design, stained glass, colonnades, memorial ballroom and long association with youth programmes earned state heritage registration. Gilkisons later added another major chapter through decades of dance teaching and events.

What’s On at 45 Murray St: Events, Tickets and Visitor Guide

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