Original auditorium

terry on June 3, 2016 at 1:34 pm

These and other tabs at the Essoldo were ‘travellers’. The house and screen sets were motorised but there were also manual ones used for variety shows.

When 70mm was introduced a large concave screen was installed slightly forward of the proscenium together with ‘sweep round’ draw curtains.

Upon twinning in 1971 the screen was returned to its original position and new silver tabs were lit by ‘T6’ spots from the splay walls; ABC later removed these and fitted footlit gold tabs.

Cinema and theatre curtains are now very much things of the past but,in my opinion,their absence further diminishes that all important ‘sense of occasion’………