5 Eliza

5 Eliza is a creative playground and home away from home for artists and audiences, located in the centre of Newtown, Sydney. For over 120 years we have supported access to creativity and culture, one of the earliest cultural social enterprises.

We were founded in 1899 by a syndicate of visionary and progressive Sydney Inner West leaders in the arts, literature, education, theatre, music and social change. These pioneering leaders financed, founded, and built the Newtown School of Arts at 5 Eliza St Newtown.

We were built by the community, for the community.

In 2024, governed by a Board of Trustees, we remain independent. We remain pioneering. We are known as 5 Eliza.

5 Eliza exists from this legacy, history and ethos of providing access to the arts, cultural education and responsible socialization. This spirit and ethos is imbued in the historical fabric of our building, the Newtown School of Arts.

And we're evolving...

In collaboration with the creative community, government partners and philanthropic support, we will continue to champion this ethos by restoring, revitalizing and renewing the historic Newtown School of Arts building to a contemporary, multi-genre arts, cultural and social hub.

The upgrade will, whilst keeping the historical heritage fabric, expand the building by doubling the existing floor plan and quadrupling cultural output. This will support artists and creatives with spaces to innovate and spaces to create and provide the public with access to art and culture – securing the legacy of the Newtown School of Arts for future generations of artists and audiences.