Walsh Bay sits immediately west of the Harbour Bridge, a short walk from the CBD along the waterfront. The historic timber wharves that line it were built between approximately 1913 and 1920, designed by Henry Walsh — chief engineer of the Sydney Harbour Trust — and named in his honour.

History

The wharves served Sydney for decades as working infrastructure: wool storage and export, general cargo distribution, and the docking of cruise liners. By the 1980s they were locked up, no longer fit for purpose in a port that had moved on.

Wharf 4/5 was the first to be renovated, converted in the mid-1980s to become the home of the Sydney Theatre Company alongside several dance and choral organisations. Pier 2/3 had to wait considerably longer. Renovation was completed in late 2021 and the pier opened to the public in March 2022. Together the two structures now form the Walsh Bay Arts Precinct.

Interior

The brief for Pier 2/3 required creating rehearsal rooms, performance spaces and offices for the Australian Theatre for Young People, the Australian Chamber Orchestra and Bell Shakespeare — while maintaining the heritage character of the wharf throughout.

Architect Peter Tonkin described the separate venues as boxes, each requiring soundproofing from its neighbours. Where new internal walls were necessary, floor-to-ceiling mirrors were used to reduce their visual impact and make the entrance areas read as larger than they are.

Walking through the pier, the industrial fabric is consistently present: timber floors, chunky hardwood support posts, exposed beams used as features in various locations. Ceiling heights shift subtly between areas to accommodate lighting, sound and services equipment. It is a building where the renovation works with the original structure rather than against it.

The Australian Chamber Orchestra's performance space is among the finer rooms in the precinct — timber panelling, considered entrance doors, a ceiling equipped for performance lighting and a flexible seating configuration that allows additional rows to be added as required.

Outside

The west-facing side of the pier has four separate fire stairs — a reminder that this is a timber building. Three of the four staircases lead to viewing platforms described by the architects as a contemporary interpretation of a gantry. The harbour views from the platforms are generous.

Approaching from the east, look up at the entrance facade for a wharf artefact on display — part of a hydraulic hoist or ram retained from the working life of the pier. Heavy-duty mooring bollards remain along the wharf edge near the water.

The Rebel Theatre

The Australian Theatre for Young People is housed in a venue named the Rebel Theatre, recognising a $1 million donation from actor Rebel Wilson — drawn from a court case settlement and providing a critical contribution to the project's funding.

Pier 2/3 Walsh Bay can be included in a custom Sydney private tour for guests with an interest in architecture, heritage or the performing arts.

custom private tour sydney

Pier 2/3 Walsh Bay — Sydney's Heritage Arts Precinct