Queensland arts minister overruled board on naming theatre after Oodgeroo Noonuccal

A Queensland government minister intervened to ensure a new theatre would not be named after Aboriginal poet Oodgeroo Noonuccal, overriding the theatre’s board, documents obtained under right to information laws show. Her name is also set to be stripped from a state electorate in draft boundaries released this week after the LNP lobbied for the change.

An email from a government adviser shows the arts minister, John‑Paul Langbroek, was 'set on [the name] ‘Glasshouse Theatre’' in January 2025 and formally signed off on the name on 3 February 2025, before consultation with the board and months before a public vote that later declared Glasshouse the winner.

The Queensland Performing Arts Centre board had recommended seven names in March 2024 and said Oodgeroo's name 'stands out in our view', calling her 'a profoundly influential storyteller and truth-teller'.

Australia, Queensland

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