Renown Theatre

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Uploaded on: May 16, 2019

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The photo shows the (Old) Great Northern Highway, Midland Junction. The Theatre Renown can be seen on the right hand side of the street.

TIMELINE*

The Theatre Renown and Open Air Pictures

During 1927 Alf Herbert and Gilbert Trefry built the The Theatre Renown and Gardens. The floor was raked floor in both the stalls and circle, with fixed seating throughout. The inside of the theatre was painted pale green with a pink trim. It had large drop down windows. Annie Fahey (later Plews) would play the piano to accompany the picture being shown. Jessie Pearson worked in the ticket box which was set in the middle of the foyer. Miss Nyland ran the ´lolly shop', located within the foyer of the theatre. Talkies were introduced to the Renown on March I5, 1930.

The Gardens

The gardens were built behind the theatre, however were forced to close during World War 2, when blackout restrictions made open air screening impossible. The disused site became run-down and over grown. Early 50’s it was cleaned up, repainted and re-opened. The theatre was equipped with traditional canvas deckchairs for seating. There were aisles both along the outside of the seats and down the centre. It was a great venue to enjoy on hot summer nights.

Consolidated Theatres

Consolidated Theatres (Bob Yelland) leased the venue from 1 July 1954, and redecorated the building with a new paint job/ This featured cream as the main colour detailed with red trim. The front steel grille had been replaced with folding wood and glass doors. Carpet had been laid on the stairs to the circle. At this time, a door-way was opened from the foyer into the sweet shop. With the new renovations and the new look It became necessary to make a booking for Saturday night shows. “Come Back Little Sheba” supported by “Fort Worth” was the opening program on Sat July 10, 1954 while “Bambi” and “Tarzan’s Savage Fury” played the matinee. Consolidated Theatres operated the venue till it closed on 31 January 1968. A variety of traders used the building until it was demolished in 1997 - Contributed by Greg Lynch -