 Astor Theatre, Mount Lawley | |
 | |
| Location | Mount Lawley, Western Australia |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 31°56′03″S115°52′20″E / 31.934062°S 115.87211°E |
| Type | Heritage-listed theatre and retail building |
| Website | |
| www | |
| Designated | 14 May 1999 |
| Reference no. | 2425 |
The Astor Theatre is located at 659 Beaufort Street, Mount Lawley, Western Australia. It comprises a single, two and three-storey masonry inter-war Art Deco style theatre and retail building. [1]
The building was originally known as the Lyceum Theatre and was designed by David McClure, and built by Simon Alexander, whose family owned the premises. The Alexander family also owned the Alexander Building on the south-west (opposite) corner of Beaufort and Walcott Streets. It was constructed in 1914/1915 in a Federation Free Classical architectural style and was designed for a mixture of vaudeville and lantern slide shows. [2]
By 1922, the Lyceum Theatre was advertising "motion pictures and popular orchestra". In the mid-1920s, with the development and popularity of silent movies, the Lyceum was converted to a cinema, and the name was changed from the Lyceum to the State Theatre. [2]
In 1939 the theatre was redesigned in an Art Deco style by William Leighton, and reconstructed by Simon Alexander's son John. [2] In the late 1930s Leighton secured a reputation as a leading cinema designer for his work on several Perth cinemas, including the Piccadilly Theatre and Arcade, the Windsor Theatre in Nedlands, and the Cygnet Cinema in South Perth. He was also behind the refurbishment of the Royal Theatre and Grand Theatre. The remodelling of the State Theatre left it structurally intact but altered its appearance, "dispensing with the arches and pediments and imposing a simple restrained facade". The alterations included the entrance to the picture garden, and made provision for a grocery store on the corner, a millinery shop, and refreshments in the cinema vestibule. Leighton's Art Deco design introduced the Mayan flower to the Theatre. The Art Deco theme runs from the Main Auditorium through the external facades to Beaufort and Walcott Streets. [3] The remodelled State Theatre opened on 12 May 1939. [2]
The Astor Theatre received its current name in 1941 when an Act of Parliament decreed it an offence for a private business to use the name "State". [2] Mr John Alexander's wife, Mavis, renamed the theatre The Astor in memory of a theatre of the same name in New Farm, Brisbane that was the first cinema they went to after their marriage. [3]
With the decline in cinema attendances in the 1950s and 1960s due to the introduction of television, the Astor Theatre became a shadow of its former self, eventually reduced to showing pornographic films. [2] It was also used as a venue for a number of activities including amateur dramatic shows, a dancing studio and bingo. [3] In December 1978, Astor Theatre was purchased by a group of Perth businessmen and families. In 1988 rumours grew that Astor Theatre was to be demolished, and Ron Regan, from Sydney, arranged a five-year lease of Astor Theatre through his company Entrevision Pty Ltd.
In 1989, the 50th anniversary of its Art Deco redevelopment, the Theatre underwent an extensive refurbishment by Philip McAllister, Architect for Entrevision Cinemas Pty Ltd, who wished to return the cinema to its Art Deco glory and provide a quality film experience in a quality environment. [3]
The Astor Cinema was officially re-opened on 26 July 1989 by the mayor of the City of Stirling, Cr. A. A. Spagnolo, prior to a screening of Australian director Peter Weir's film Dead Poets Society . [3]
Since its reopening, the Astor Theatre has undergone further refurbishment in November 2006, with the cinema facilities continuing to be upgraded. In August 2008, the owners announced that the cinema would close because it is no longer profitable, stating that "the cinema had been running at a loss for some time, with just $34 in takings in four hours of trading". [4] [5] A Music Rocks Australia concert (a kid rock band group of schools) was one of the last performances at the Astor. [6]
The theatre reopened in October 2009, and now hosts live music, comedy and other community events.
The Astor Theatre was classified by the National Trust (WA) on 1 August 1988. The building is also included on the City of Stirling Municipal Inventory. [7] and was permanently listed on the State Register of Heritage Places on 14 May 1999. [1]
Inglewood is an inner-city suburb of Perth, Western Australia, 4 kilometres (2 mi) north-east of its central business district. It is located within the local government area of the City of Stirling.
Mount Lawley is an inner northern suburb of Perth, Western Australia. The suburb is bounded by the Swan River to the east, Vincent, Harold and Pakenham Streets to the south, Central Avenue and Alexander Drive to the north, and Norfolk Street to the west.
Edith Cowan University (ECU) is a public research university in Western Australia. It is named in honour of the first woman to be elected to an Australian parliament, Edith Cowan, and is the only Australian university named after a woman. Gaining university status in 1991, it was formed from an amalgamation of tertiary colleges with a history dating back to 1902 when the Claremont Teachers College was established, making it the modern descendant of the second tertiary institution in Western Australia.
Stirling Highway is, for most of its length, a four-lane single carriageway and major arterial road between Perth, Western Australia and the port city of Fremantle in Western Australia on the northern side of the Swan River. The speed limit is 60 km/h (37 mph). East of Crawley, it continues as Mounts Bay Road which links Crawley and the nearby University of Western Australia to the Perth central business district.
The Electoral district of Perth is a Legislative Assembly electorate in the state of Western Australia. Perth is named for the capital city of Western Australia whose central business district falls within its borders. It is one of the oldest electorates in Western Australia, with its first member having been elected in the inaugural 1890 elections of the Legislative Assembly.
"Military Strongmen" is a song by Australian alternative rock band, Jebediah. It was released as a single as the second single from the band's debut studio album Slightly Odway on 11 October 1997 as the and peaked at No. 65 on the ARIA Singles Chart and was voted in at number 33 in Triple J's Hottest 100 music poll for 1997.
Alexander Drive is a major north–south arterial road in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, connecting Perth's central business district (CBD) with Edith Cowan University's Mount Lawley campus and the Malaga industrial area, as well as newer development suburbs to Perth's north. It is used by Transperth bus routes, including the 360, 361 and 362. Alexander Drive was named after Mr S.B. Alexander, a former Wanneroo Road Board member. Alexander Drive runs through the following local government areas City of Wanneroo, City of Swan, City of Bayswater and City of Stirling.
William Street is a suburban distributor and one of two major cross-streets in the central business district of Perth, Western Australia. Commencing in western Mount Lawley, its route takes it through the Northbridge café and nightclub district as well as the CBD.
Beaufort Street is a major road in the inner north-eastern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, connecting the Morley area to the Perth central business district. For most of its length, it is a single-carriageway, two-way road with two lanes in each direction.
Cygnet Cinema is located at 16 Preston Street, Como, Western Australia. It was the first purpose built sound cinema in the suburbs immediately south of the city in the inter-war period. The Cygnet Cinema opened in 1938 and was built by local identity and film entrepreneur James Stiles. It is an excellent example of the art deco style of architect William Leighton and is included on the State's Heritage Register.
William Garnsworthy Bennett was a Western Australian architect, well known for his Art Deco and Inter-War Functionalist style of civic, commercial and domestic buildings, including the Lord Forrest Olympic Pool in Kalgoorlie, the Beverley Town Hall, the Raffles Hotel and Plaza Theatre and Arcade in Perth.
William Thomas Leighton (1905–1990) was a Western Australian architect, well known for his Art Deco and Inter-War Functionalist style of civic, commercial and domestic buildings.
The Piccadilly Cinema Centre and Piccadilly Arcade are located at 700-704 Hay Street, Perth, Western Australia. It is an art deco style cinema and shopping arcade, designed by architect William T. Leighton for mining entrepreneur Claude de Bernales. The theatre and arcade opened in 1938, with the arcade connecting Hay Street through to Murray Street.
The Perth tramway network served Perth, the capital city of Western Australia, from 1899 until 1958. The network was initially run by a private company but was taken over by the state government in 1913. From a single line along Hay Street, the network expanded north as far as Osborne Park, east as far as Welshpool, south as far as Como, and west as far as Claremont. The tramways were gradually replaced by buses after World War II.
The Perth trolleybus system in Western Australia linked the capital Perth's central business district with its inner suburbs on the northern side of the Swan River. It was the first permanent trolleybus network to open in Australia, in 1933, and also the last to close, in 1969.
The Windsor Cinema is located at 98 Stirling Highway, Nedlands, Western Australia. It is an Art Deco cinema designed by the architect William T. Leighton and constructed in 1937. It is currently leased by Luna Palace Cinemas.
Luna Leederville is a cinema complex located at the corner of Oxford and Vincent Streets in Leederville, a suburb of Perth, Western Australia.
The former Plaza Theatre is located at 650–658 Hay Street, Perth, Western Australia. It was the first purpose-designed Art Deco cinema in Perth. The Plaza Theatre opened in 1937 and was built for Hoyts Theatres Ltd.
| Authority control databases: Geographic |
|---|
