Melbourne keeps looking north and east for its best nights out. It should be looking at Dandenong.
Tucked inside the heritage façade of the former Dandenong Town Hall, Drum Theatre has spent two decades quietly becoming one of the southeast’s most compelling live performance destinations.
In 2026, Drum Theatre turns 20, and the anniversary season reflects an institution that has grown into something genuinely hard to categorise: part community anchor, part touring house, part experimental incubator, all of it bound together by a stage that truly welcomes everyone.
Walk through the program and the contrasts are part of the appeal. A new Motown work developed with a musical theatre lead. A physical theatre reimagining of a children’s classic. Victorian State Ballet. Stand-up comedy. K-pop showcases. Bluey. Björn Again.
It is not a season built around one genre or one audience, it is a season built around the idea that a great night out should have room for all of them, often within the same fortnight.
If that sounds like a lot, it is, and at Drum, that kind of range is just a regular season.
Drum Theatre Dandenong
- When: Ongoing, various dates from June 2026
- Where: Lonsdale Street, Dandenong
- Full program: drumtheatre.com.au
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Motown Legacy: a hero moment in the making
If one show captures what makes this season special, it’s this one. Motown Legacy isn’t a touring product slotted into the calendar, it’s a new work, built from scratch, with Dandenong itself woven into its DNA.
Created by Artist in Residence Giovanni Adams, this is a performance that treats Motown not as nostalgia but as a living cultural force, tracing the music’s roots through African American history and the civil rights movement that shaped it.
Adams brings serious credentials to the stage, having recently played Ike Turner in the powerhouse musical Tina, and that theatrical precision and emotional depth carry through every part of this production. The work blends storytelling with a carefully curated soundtrack, pulling audiences in through familiar melodies before opening into something deeper: a reflection on the culture and history behind the sound itself.
What makes it a genuine hero moment is how it came together. Motown Legacy was developed in close dialogue with the Greater Dandenong community during Adams’ residency with Greater Dandenong City Council, meaning this isn’t just a show happening at Drum, it’s a show that belongs to Drum.
It premieres at Drum on Thursday 12 November as part of Encore Season 2, 2026, sitting alongside other Encore favourites including a Carole King and Neil Sedaka celebration on Thursday 15 October, and Phantom: A Tribute to Michael Crawford on Sunday 18 October.
For the kids (and the adults who secretly want to come too)
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Physical theatre company Born in a Taxi brings The Velveteen Rabbit to Drum in a staging that takes Margery Williams’ 100-year-old classic somewhere strange and beautiful.
Set within a film shoot and layered with live projections, livestream video and dynamic audience participation, the production asks a deceptively simple question: how does a toy become real? Born in a Taxi answers it with physical theatre, live and recorded music, and visuals that shift scale to reflect a child’s perspective.
Commissioned by Monash University Performing Arts Centre and supported by Creative Victoria, the show has been widely praised, with Triple R’s Smart Arts calling it a beautiful piece of work.
Families are encouraged to bring a favourite toy along, with the foyer of the theatre also coming alive thanks to a playful hands-on experience created by Moon Girle for kids aged four and up. This is a show where toys are very much in charge, and every guest toy is a VIP.
Beyond The Velveteen Rabbit, families also have Bluey and Emma Memma performances to look forward to, alongside the Victorian State Ballet’s Aladdin and high-energy K-pop showcases bringing even more variety to the stage.
Stand-up comedy at Drum
For laughs, Marty Sheargold brings The Red Card Tour to Drum on 18 September. It’s a brand-new stand-up show from a comedian known for his sharp wit and unfiltered takes on everyday life, and a reminder that Drum’s range extends well beyond music and theatre.
A Drum Theatre live music season worth the train ride
The live music program alone makes a strong case for the commute.
The season kicks off with One Night in Memphis: Presley, Orbison and Cash on 27 June.
Björn Again brings the ABBA Forever Tour on 17 July, and Vika and Linda Bull perform Where Do You Come From on 29 July.
K-pop showcases round out a genre spread that somehow makes total sense in context.
And while you’re there
A night at Drum is reason enough to spend the whole evening in Dandenong.
Step outside the theatre and you’re minutes from the iconic Dandenong Market, sweet shops worth a detour in their own right, and Walker Street Gallery and Arts Centre. A growing restaurant and bakery scene makes pre-show dinner an easy win rather than an afterthought.
Getting there is simple too. The nearby Holiday Inn Dandenong offers dining options and complimentary parking for theatre patrons, and Heritage Hill Museum, one of Melbourne’s best kept secrets in its own right, is just around the corner. Between the market, the galleries and the food scene, a trip to Drum is easily a half-day outing rather than a quick in-and-out.
On Saturday 7 November, Drum Theatre marks its 20th anniversary with a community celebration.
Twenty years on, Drum Theatre has earned its place as a genuine cultural anchor for Melbourne’s southeast, a venue where soul sits next to ballet, comedy sits next to K-pop, and there is, quite simply, something here for everyone.
Head to drumtheatre.com.au for the full program.
This article was made in partnership with Arts in Greater Dandenong.
