A new Victorian opera venture presenting up to four high-quality productions a year and touring provincial Victoria has been backed by the Bracks Government as part of a $78.4 million boost to the arts.

Arts Minister Mary Delahunty said the boost also included funding for the development of a world-class performance program for the new Recital Centre.

"The 2005-06 State Budget builds on the Government's significant investment over five years to provide more opportunities for more Victorians to access and enjoy the arts," Ms Delahunty said. She said $7.6 million had been allocated over four years for a new 'boutique' opera venture that would enhance Victoria's reputation for leadership and innovation in the arts and foster new Australian work.

Ms Delahunty said it was on top of funds the Victorian Government currently contributes to the national company, Opera Australia, and would secure Melbourne's position as the home of innovative and accessible opera in Australia.

"Music lovers will be thrilled with this decision, which provides opportunities for Victorian singers, musicians, composers, producers and designers," she said.

Ms Delahunty said the Government had decided to back innovation in opera following an independent review of opera in Victoria.

"It found innovative new opera would increase the number of small and medium scale professional opera presentations in Melbourne and regional Victoria and complement Opera Australia's mainstage program," she said.

She said the process to establish the local venture was underway, with advice being provided by an expert panel.

Ms Delahunty said the Bracks Government's sixth budget provided extra funds for vital cultural institutions like the State Library and the National Gallery so they could continue to be enjoyed by Victorian families for generations to come.

"We see the arts as an integral part of life in a modern, sophisticated State," she said.

"More than 380,000 visitors attended last year's inaugural Winter Masterpieces exhibition of The Impressionists, making it the most popular Australian exhibition ever and among the world's best-attended exhibitions in 2004."

• $21 million to maintain Government-owned arts venues, including Heide Museum of Modern Art, the Victorian Arts Centre and the State Library of Victoria;
  
  
• $4 million for the Australian Centre for the Moving Image for building works to improve access to ACMI from Federation Square;
  
  
• $27.2 million over two years for the building of the Melbourne Recital Centre and Melbourne Theatre Company complex plus $8.2 million over four years to set up a management framework for the Recital Centre and to plan a world-class performance program for the Recital Centre when it opens in 2008;
  
  
• $3 million for sculptural figures as part of the Sandridge Bridge upgrade;
  
  
• $6.9 million for ongoing operational support for the two campuses of the National Gallery of Victoria, St Kilda Rd and Federation Square, plus the State Library of Victoria and Heide Museum of Modern Art; and
  
  
• $450,000 for the VRAP9 program, which supports visits to the Victorian Arts Centre and other cultural venues by regional and rural school students.