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The Colosseum Theatre was opened by General Smuts in October 1933 and became the flagship of African Consolidated Theatres.

PHOTO - “QUEEN IS CROWNED” points to the historic screening of A Queen Is Crowned, the premier 1953 feature-length Technicolor documentary of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation. As the premier theatrical venue in the city, the Colosseum hosted the high-profile South African cinematic runs for major global events of that era,

The Colosseum occupied an entire city block with a west and east wing containing offices. The theatre had a distinct Egyptian motif on the façade. Inside the auditorium, designed by interior designer William Timlin in a “castellated” style with turrets and fairy dragons, the stage opening had a large rouged festoon curtain made from crushed velvet material adorning the proscenium arch in later years.

The theatre could accommodate fully-fledged stage shows as well as movie presentations. A distinct feature was the ceiling of the large auditorium which contained hundreds of tiny concealed lights giving the effect of looking up at a night sky with stars twinkling.

Closed in 1985, it was demolished and an office block named Colosseum was built on the site.

Contributed by Greg Lynch -