Frank van Straten

Frank Van Straten (born 14 May 1936) was an Australian performing arts historian, author and former director of the Performing Arts Museum. He died on 19 April 2024.

Van Straten was the first archivist of the Performing Arts Museum (now Australian Performing Arts Collection), at the Arts Centre Melbourne, and its director from 1984 until 1993.

Between 1986 and 2001, he researched and presented ABC Local Radio's Nostalgia segment, broadcast on Melbourne's 774 and the ABC Victorian Regional Network.

In 2001, Van Straten acted as the Historical Consultant for Graeme Murphy's 'dance musical' Tivoli, performed by the Sydney Dance Company, which premiered at the State Theatre, Arts Centre, Melbourne.

Van Straten served on the board of the National Theatre, Melbourne. He also served on the judging panels of the Green Room Awards and Helpmann Awards. He was a patron of the Cinema and Theatre Historical Society (Victoria), and a founding member and committee member of the Victoria Theatres Trust (now Theatre Heritage Australia). In 1999, Van Straten received the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in honour of his contributions to the performing arts in Australia.

In 2007, Van Straten was appointed Live Performance Australia's Official Historian.

Van Straten was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours.