Identity area
Type of entity
Corporate body
Authorized form of name
Cremorne Theatre (Brisbane, Qld.)
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
1911-1954
History
The Cremorne Theatre opened 5 August 1911, and was located in Stanley Street, between Peel and Melbourne Streets, South Brisbane. Leased by John N. McCallum it was originally an open air theatre with a bark floor, which closed during winter between Easter and August. It was not until 1926 that the building was fitted with a proper roof and ceiling. The theatre was a venue for variety and vaudevilles shows, drama and local amateur productions. It was the occasional home for the Brisbane Arts Theatre, the Brisbane Comic Opera and the Brisbane Repertory Theatre Society. It was converted to a cinema in 1934 and operated as such until 1940. It then became the venue for Tivoli Circuit shows until the end of the second World War. From 1949 it was home to the Brisbane Opera Society and the Musical and Theatre Guild of Queensland. It was closed in 1952 and burnt down on 18 February 1954. The opening performance in 1911 was Edward Branscombe's Dandies, featuring Maude Fane, Dorothy Gardner & David Lyle. Other featured performances are: The Allen Doone season, The Diggers company, The Tropics of 1925, Snapshots of 1926 and the Cremorne Follies. Artists that performed there in the 1940's included: Morry Barling, Peggy Mortimer, Sid Beck, Ron & Iris Shand, George Wallace, Olga Verona, Buster Fiddess, Inky Williams & Jim Gerald.