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Major renovation work will force Adelaide's Festival Theatre to close for five months next year, causing problems for several leading arts companies.

The South Australian Government had previously said the building work would not affect productions at Festival Theatre.

However, Festival Centre management said health and safety requirements mean it has not other option but the close the venue.

Adelaide Festival Centre Chief Executive Douglas Gautier told the ABC “the architects made it clear … that patron safety would be compromised.

"It's a massive project (and it was) our intention, and we worked extremely hard to make sure, (that) the theatre would remain open all the way through, but ultimately it became clear that just couldn't happen."

The venue will close from late July 2017 until Boxing Day next year, as its foyers are renovated, restaurants and bars upgraded and a car park is rebuilt.

The closure will cause problems for several arts companies, including the South Australia State Opera, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and Australian Ballet.

It has been suggested that Adelaide’s Her Majesty's Theatre and the Adelaide Entertainment Centre could be used for some shows, with Gautier adding “for all of us retention of audiences is very important."

Gautier said blame should not be directed at the South Australian Government because updated details of the effects of the renovations had only recently come to light.

However, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra Managing Director Vincent Ciccarello said he would seek compensation from the South Australian Government and expected the figure could reach $100,000.

Ciccarello said the orchestra would have to shift six shows, stating “we're having discussions around (compensation) at the moment, we're still just trying to work out the final cost impact."

South Australian Arts Minister Jack Snelling said the Government was sympathetic to the plight of the affected arts companies, concluding "I have asked the Festival Centre to do everything they possibly can to make sure that those home companies aren't disadvantaged.”

The Festival Centre's Dunstan Playhouse and Space Theatre will not be affected by the renovations.

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