Canberra Theatre
Encyclopedia
Australian Capital Territory
The Australian Capital Territory, often abbreviated ACT, is the capital territory of the Commonwealth of Australia and is the smallest self-governing internal territory...
’s central performing arts
Performing arts
The performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
venue and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
’s first performing arts centre, the first Australian Government
Government of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
initiated performing arts centre to be completed, that opened on Thursday 24 June 1965 with a gala performance by the Australian Ballet.
The Centre is sited in the heart of Canberra's City Centre
City Centre, Australian Capital Territory
The central business district of Canberra, Australia's capital city, is officially named City . However it is also referred to as Civic, Civic Centre, City Centre, Canberra City and Canberra ....
, beside the ACT Legislative Assembly and backing onto City Hill, one of the apexes of the Parliamentary Triangle.
Centre History
The Canberra Theatre was built as a 1,200 seat lyric theatre
Theater (structure)
A theater or theatre is a structure where theatrical works or plays are performed or other performances such as musical concerts may be produced. While a theater is not required for performance , a theater serves to define the performance and audience spaces...
to house national and international touring companies; The Playhouse had 310 seats and was designed for local arts companies and for smaller scale touring companies. The Playhouse also contained a small visual art gallery, a meeting room and a restaurant,
1965: The Playhouse was officially opened on 18 August 1965 with a production of Peter Ustinov
Peter Ustinov
Peter Alexander Ustinov CBE was an English actor, writer and dramatist. He was also renowned as a filmmaker, theatre and opera director, stage designer, author, screenwriter, comedian, humourist, newspaper and magazine columnist, radio broadcaster and television presenter...
’s Romanoff and Juliet, produced by the Canberra Repertory Society.
1971: The covered walkway linking the two venues was enclosed to create more foyer and function space for the Canberra Theatre and improved box office facilities.
1975: The Playhouse was given improved backstage storage space, wardrobe facilities and addition dressing rooms.
1982: The Courtyard Studio - a rehearsal room/cum 90-seat venue, administration offices, and a scene construction workshop including an electrically operated paint frame (used for painting stage set canvases), were completed. The Centre boasts one of the very few paint frames in Australia.
1988: The Canberra Theatre auditorium, foyer and link were extensively refurbished so that the facilities were comparable to those of other major performing arts centres throughout the country.
1998: The rebuilt Playhouse opened.
2006: A new library was built between the Canberra Theatre and the Playhouse, as well as a foyer linking the two theatres.
2007: The foyer and dressing rooms to the Courtyard Studio were refurbished. In addition lift access to the first floor Administration offices was installed
Refurbishment
From the mid-1990s a two year consultation process occurred between the Canberra Theatre Centre staff and the architects leading to the demolition of The Playhouse and its rebuilding as a new venue. It had a 'soft' opening in April 1998. The official opening was 16 May 1998.Instead of a conventional fan shaped auditorium
Auditorium
An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances at venues such as theatres. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens.- Etymology :...
and proscenium arch stage used in most Australian theatres built in the 20th century, the design has the form of a semi circular drum with seating in the stalls and two balconies, with 'boxes'. The capacity is 618 seats. The design is reminiscent of theatres in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
of antiquity and the Elizabethan theatres of the late 16th century.
The theatre has dressing rooms on two levels, wardrobe, a green room
Green room
In British English and American English show business lexicon, the green room is that space in a theatre, a studio, or a similar venue, which accommodates performers or speakers not yet required on stage...
, a reception room and the foyer
Foyer
A foyer or lobby is a large, vast room or complex of rooms adjacent to the auditorium...
(with bar
Bar (establishment)
A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
and cafe
Café
A café , also spelled cafe, in most countries refers to an establishment which focuses on serving coffee, like an American coffeehouse. In the United States, it may refer to an informal restaurant, offering a range of hot meals and made-to-order sandwiches...
), which wraps around the drum.
Canberra Theatre - important performances
Dame Margot FonteynMargot Fonteyn
Dame Margot Fonteyn de Arias, DBE , was an English ballerina of the 20th century. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest classical ballet dancers of all time...
performed with the Australian Ballet at the centre in October 1970. From the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s many international artists performed, including Dame Joan Sutherland
Joan Sutherland
Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, OM, AC, DBE was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano noted for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s....
. Canberra Opera presented a full-scale production of La Traviata
La traviata
La traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La dame aux Camélias , a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The title La traviata means literally The Fallen Woman, or perhaps more figuratively, The Woman...
and the Canberra Theatre Trust presented a performance of Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the librettist W. S. Gilbert and the composer Arthur Sullivan . The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S...
's HMS Pinafore
HMS Pinafore
H.M.S. Pinafore; or, The Lass That Loved a Sailor is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It opened at the Opera Comique in London, England, on 25 May 1878 and ran for 571 performances, which was the second-longest run of any musical...
. Other performers during this time included the Bell Shakespeare Company
Bell Shakespeare Company
Bell Shakespeare is an Australian theatre company specialising in the works of William Shakespeare. It was founded in 1990 by John Bell..Bell Shakespeare is Australia's only national touring theatre company. Its current practice is to tour three mainstage productions to each Australian state in...
, the Black Light Theatre of Prague and the Dave Brubeck Quartet. More recently, The Whitlams
The Whitlams
The discography of The Whitlams consists of six studio albums, two live albums, one compilation album, and eighteen singles.-Studio albums:-Live albums:-Compilation albums:-Singles:-Videos:-Music videos:-Awards:...
used the theatre during their early Australian tours in the early 2000s, and the Aboriginal Bangarra Dance Theatre
Bangarra Dance Theatre
Bangarra Dance Theatre is an Indigenous Australian contemporary dance company founded in 1989 by Carole Johnson, an African-American and founding director of National Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Association . Bangarra is the Wiradjuri word meaning "to make fire".Stephen Page has been the...
performed here in 2006.
The Playhouse - important performances
Local companies to use the Playhouse have included Canberra Opera; Prompt Theatre; choreographer Meryl TankardMeryl Tankard
Meryl Tankard is an Australian dancer and choreographer who has a wide national and international reputation....
's Company; The Theatre Players; Canberra Dance Ensemble; National Music Theatre; Canberra Little Theatre; Canberra Children’s Theatre; Stage Craft for Singers; Canberra Gang Show
Gang Show
A Gang Show is a theatrical performance with a cast of youth members of Scouts and sometimes Guides too, by invitation. Adult leaders and parents help out behind the scenes. The aim of the shows is to give young people in Scouting and Guiding the opportunity to develop performance skills and...
; Canberra Comedy Theatre Company; Jigsaw Theatre Company. For several years the Woden Valley Youth Choir
Woden Valley Youth Choir
The Woden Valley Youth Choir is a performing choir based in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. Its performs not only in Canberra but also across Australia and internationally during regular tours...
presented their annual concert there. The Playhouse has been used for conventions, meetings, including naturalization
Naturalization
Naturalization is the acquisition of citizenship and nationality by somebody who was not a citizen of that country at the time of birth....
ceremonies by the Department of Immigration.
The Playhouse has also housed productions by visiting companies. These included Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead from the Old Tote Theatre Company
Old Tote Theatre Company
The Old Tote Theatre Company began as the standing acting and theatre company of Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art and was the precursor to the Sydney Theatre Company.. It was one of the leading Australian theatre companies of the period.The Old Tote began in a converted tin shed on...
; Dennis Olsen
Dennis Olsen
Dennis Hans Olsen AM , is an accomplished Australian singer, actor, director and pianist.-Professional career:...
in Percy and Rose and Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
; David Williamson
David Williamson
David Keith Williamson AO is one of Australia's best-known playwrights. He has also written screenplays and teleplays.-Biography:...
plays Travelling North and Sanctuary; Melbourne Theatre Company
Melbourne Theatre Company
The Melbourne Theatre Company is a theatre company based in Melbourne. Founded in 1953, it is the oldest professional theatre company in Australia, and has its own theatre, The MTC Theatre – which houses the 500-seat Sumner Theatre and the 150-seat Lawler Studio – located in Melbourne's Arts...
; chamber music concerts by Musica Viva and others; Robyn Archer
Robyn Archer
Robyn Archer AO CdOAL is an Australian singer, writer, stage and director, artistic director, and public advocate of the arts, in Australia and internationally.-Life:Archer was born Robyn Smith in Prospect, South Australia...
in A Star is Torn; Pam Ayres
Pam Ayres
Pam Ayres MBE is an English poet, songwriter and presenter of radio and television programmes. Her 1975 appearance on the television talent show Opportunity Knocks led to a variety of appearances on TV and radio shows, a one woman touring stage show and performing before the Queen.-Early life:Pam...
; Googie Withers
Googie Withers
Georgette Lizette "Googie" Withers CBE, AO was an English theatre, film and television actress. She was a longtime resident of Australia with her husband, the actor John McCallum, with whom she often appeared.-Biography:...
; productions by NIDA
Nida
Nida may refer to:* Nida, Lithuania* Nida in Poland* Nida , an ancient roman town in the northwestern suburbs of today's Frankfurt am Main, Germany* Nida, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, Poland...
; various Bell Shakespeare Company
Bell Shakespeare Company
Bell Shakespeare is an Australian theatre company specialising in the works of William Shakespeare. It was founded in 1990 by John Bell..Bell Shakespeare is Australia's only national touring theatre company. Its current practice is to tour three mainstage productions to each Australian state in...
performances (John Bell
John Bell (actor)
John Anthony Bell, AO, OBE is an Australian actor and theatre director.Bell was born 1 November 1940 in the town of Maitland, New South Wales where he was educated at the Marist Brothers....
); pianist David Helfgott
David Helfgott
David Helfgott is an Australian concert pianist. He is as well known for having schizoaffective disorder as he is for his piano playing. Helfgott's life inspired the Oscar-winning film Shine, in which he was played by Geoffrey Rush....
; as well as various comedians and entertainers.