£lO,OOO THEATRE TO BE BUILT AT PT. CHEVALIER

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 403, 11 July 1928, Page 16

£IO,OOO THEATRE TO BE BUILT AT PT. CHEVALIER

TO SEAT 1,000 PEOPLE

BLOCK OF SHOPS INCLUDED Plans have been prepared and contractors are now at work on a block of buildings at Point Chevalier, to include a modern picture theatre and eight shops. When completed the value of the property, exclusive of the section* will be £IB,OOO, the theatre being responsible for £IO,OOO and the shops the remainder. With a frontage of 50ft to the Great North Road and facing directly down the Point Chevalier Road, the building possesses, a commanding situation, and an imposing structure has been designed to take full advantage of it. The facade of the main building includes the theatre entrance and two shops, one on either side. Giving symmetry to the edifice two blocks of three shops each are to be erected — one on each side of the main building. A start has already been made with the first block of shops and the contractors, Beasley and Sons, are making good progress. The theatre is being designed in accordance with the latest ideas in cinema construction. There will be spacious vestibules and lounges, both upstairs and down. From the lower lounge, which is 15ft in width, two broad terazzo staircases with polished oaken handrails will lead to the circle. The auditorium, which will seat 674 people with accommodation for 326 more in the circle, will be decorated with pleasing designs finished in fibrous plaster. The contour of both the ground floor and the circle has been designed so that the seating is “intimate.” In other words, every patron, whether in stalls or circle, is close to the stage. A feature of this type of almost square auditorium is that there are no pillars to obstruct the view. The seats are to be installed in shallow curves, so designed that each member of the audience is looking straight at the stage and does not have to crane round the head of the person in front of him. The theatre, which is 136 ft in depth, possesses a decided asset in a stage 50ft by 20ft with dressing room accommodation below. Public safety and convenience has been well catered for in the ventilating scheme, a fireproof biograph box, and four exits by which means the house may be rapidly cleared. Messrs. Beasley and Punch, for whom the plans were prepared by Mr. A. Sinclair O’Connor, architect, are joint proprietors of the venture. They are convinced that their faith in the progress of the districts for which they intend to cater will be more than justified.