The Village Square

The Village Square was a temporary pop-up venue located on the corner of Lyttleton and Frederick Streets, Castlemaine. The project was made possible through the Victorian Government’s COVIDSafe Outdoor Activation Fund and Creative Neighborhoods Partnership Pilot Program.

Through the Village Square project, Council has purchased mobile outdoor event infrastructure to support further outdoor program development opportunities in the future.

The site was chosen to highlight Council’s plans to improve Frederick Street through temporary arts activations (Castlemaine Streetscape Plan and Design Standards 2020).

This pop-up space was closed at the end of June 2022.

Since March 2021, the Village Square project included:

• 160 performers presenting 39 free live music events
• 12 live radio broadcasts by MAIN fm
• 10 festival partnership investments (Castlemaine State Festival; Castlemaine Fringe Festival, Village Festival, Festival of Winemaking, Brewing and Distilling, Castlemaine Jazz Festival, Taradale Mineral Springs Festival, Maldon Folk Festival, Coscar’s Youth Film Festival, Castlemaine Documentary Film Festival and Castlemaine Pride Festival)
• 5 cinema screenings
• 3 circus skills workshops
• 2 outdoor theatre productions by the Castlemaine Theatre Company
• 2 mural commissions
• 2 Christmas late night trading events
• 2 stages (one powered entirely by solar energy)
• 1 garden constructed by 15 children (Village Festival project “Village Garden”)
• 1 youth employment skills program (FreeZA and Youth Advisory Committee).

Village Square – Frederick St car park comes to Life. by Leonie Van Eyk via Vimeo.

2020 Castlemaine Streetscape Plan and Design Standards