The Cairns Performing Arts Centre opened its doors in 2006 with a production of La Bohème. Two decades later, it remains the city's cultural anchor—but the ecosystem around it has fundamentally shifted. What was once a town where creative workers fled south for opportunities now has enough galleries, independent venues and production infrastructure that some are choosing to stay, or even move back.
This evolution matters now because Cairns sits at an inflection point. As southern cities grapple with rising rents and oversaturated creative industries, the Far North Queensland capital is actively courting artists and producers. The local government has backed this with funding mechanisms and planning law changes. Meanwhile, a generation of creatives who grew up here—or arrived in the last five years—are building sustainable practices in painting, theatre, documentary and design that would have been nearly impossible to maintain in Cairns in 2006.
From tourism backdrop to genuine cultural destination
The shift is visible in the geography of the city itself. Shields Street, the heart of Cairns's entertainment district, now hosts the Tanks Arts Centre in converted wartime structures—a venue that didn't exist before 2010 and now programs around 80 events annually. Walk down to The Pier Marketplace on the waterfront and you'll find galleries nested between the tourist shops, a consequence of deliberate zoning decisions made by Cairns Regional Council in 2015 that made creative studio space cheaper than retail.
The Cairns Festival, which runs for two weeks every September, has grown from a regional event into a draw that attracts interstate visitors. In 2024, the festival reported 287,000 attendees and generated approximately $8.7 million in economic benefit for the city. That figure has nearly doubled from 2014, when attendance sat around 180,000.
Independent venues have proliferated too. Rusty's Markets, operating since 1984, expanded its programming three years ago to include live performance slots. The Keystone Hotel on Abbott Street hosts theatre and live music five nights a week. The Cairns Dance Academy, established 2009, trains 400+ students annually and has begun producing original works rather than importing choreography from Melbourne.
What's driving the change
Several factors collided to create conditions for this growth. Tourism investment meant Cairns had infrastructure—flights, accommodation, a ready audience willing to spend money on entertainment. The COVID lockdowns of 2020-2021 accelerated internal migration, with some remote workers discovering Cairns offered beaches, lower cost of living and reliable internet. Rent for a two-bedroom apartment in the CBD sits around $350-420 weekly, compared to $550+ in Brisbane.
But infrastructure alone doesn't build a cultural scene. The Cairns Creative Economy Strategy, launched by council in 2019, provided $2.3 million over four years in grants and venue subsidies. The Cairns Regional Gallery on Abbott Street, renovated in 2018, now operates as a contemporary art space rather than a purely historical museum—a shift that signalled permission for living artists to work at a professional level locally.
The evolution remains uneven. Younger artists still often move away in their mid-20s seeking larger networks or higher-level training. The city hasn't yet developed the critical mass of mid-career professionals that defines Sydney's inner west or Melbourne's Brunswick. But the groundwork is there. For the first time in a generation, a painter or filmmaker graduating from high school in Cairns can credibly ask themselves why they'd leave.
If you're interested in the local creative scene, the monthly First Friday night markets on the Cairns waterfront offer direct access to working artists. The Cairns Council website publishes grants calendars for arts practice. The Tanks Arts Centre takes submission proposals quarterly.