THE Blue Room Theatre has opened its doors as a free co-working space for creatives, hoping to de-centre alcohol from the arts scene while “giving Northbridge another life”.

Bar supervisor Ailish Beahan was the driving force behind the decision to open The Blue Room’s upstairs bar and turn it into a co-working space for people in the arts industry after noticing a gap in the market.

Ms Beahan said artists needed a space where they felt comfortable to create, hold meetings and socialise with others in the industry – without the price tag usually associated with co-working spaces.

“I think a lot of people would be like, ‘oh, it’s free? What’s the angle here?’,” Ms Beahan said.

“We’re fulfilling our purpose as an organisation when we are creating spaces for artists to take a leg up into the next step of their career.

“We are a well-known organisation for emerging artists.”

• Blue Room’s bar supervisor Ailish Beahan and CEO Sukhjit Khalsa. Photo by Isla Tomlinson

While located in the bar, Ms Beahan emphasised the space would “de-centre alcohol”, refocus attention on the creative process and provide a place of connection for artists.

“Young people, the arts, and our culture are so centred around going to the pub.

“Here you don’t have to spend money, you don’t have to drink alcohol, you can literally just sit here for hours and write your bloody screenplay,” Ms Beahan said.

CEO Sukhjit Khalsa comes from the Sikh community and said she missed out on opportunities in the arts because she wouldn’t go out drinking with the people who may have offered them.

She said the co-working space would allow different groups of people, both within and beyond the arts industry, to come together and create networking opportunities.

“I think co-working gives you the language to know that you’re not gonna be alone – you’re not gonna get silence,” Ms Khalsa said.

“The philosophy is you come as you are, you bring whatever you need.”

The Blue Room Theatre has since received a $495,000 grant from Lotterywest, which will be used to upgrade the heritage-listed building and facilities, making it “even swankier next year”.

The co-working space is open Wednesday to Friday.

by ISLA TOMLINSON