Page 11 - CinemaRecord #87

first landing. The upstairs foyer was carpeted The theatre was force ventilated halfway along These were in-filled with glass and were used
and furnished with blue leather divans. the ceiling. Evaporative cooling was for special stage lighting effects and spotlight
incorporated in this system. Heating was work. A crying room was included at the back
The theatre was fully equipped for live theatre, provided through piped hot water foot of the stalls, which was entered from the foyer.
including fly tower, orchestra pit, dressing warmers, located in every second row in the
rooms (stage right), scenery storage stalls, each of the four rows of the lounge, but The cost of the building was £19,000
underneath the stage, etc. As is generally the not in the balcony area. The boiler room was ($38,000). Three lots of projectors were used
case with multipurpose facilities, compromises situated behind the left hand side of the stage; in the theatre over time, the original set were
were required in space utilisation; the back brown coal briquettes were used to fuel the C&Ws and were replaced in the 1950s when
stage area and stage width suffered as a result. system. 3D films were screened, and 70 mm units were
The theatre was extensively used by amateur installed in 1968.
and professional groups. Symphony concerts The auditorium was lit by large opaline glass
and operas were also staged at Yallourn lighting pods in a stepped down design, side "The Yallourn Live Wire" of 17 May 1939,
because of its facilities and central location wall cylindrical brackets, and stage lighting. advertised the opening celebrations for
within Gippsland. Four tiers of four lights (on each side of the ''Gippsland's Premier Theatre" which were to
stage) were incorporated in the plaster circles. include the film Sweethearts (direct from the
The interior of the theatre was fairly stark in
the moderne style of the time, and featured a
stepped down ceiling and wall decoration. The
use of curve designs throughout the building
softened its starkness. A feature of the
auditorium was the extensive use of plaster
circles, with concave faces, around the stage.
They were painted cream and extended to the
side walls and ceiling. The stalls seating was
of a flip-up design and was covered in the same
autumn toned, self patterned velvet fabric as
the lounge/balcony chairs. The stalls seating
was later re-covered in blue vinyl. The stage
curtains were of a self-patterned, pale gold
velvet. The auditorium walls were covered
with a patterned plaster to which shellac had
been applied to give an autumn toning effect
Under construction 1939

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