The Regent Theatre takes pride of place in the lower half
of Dunedin’s central Octagon reserve. It stands on the site of
Dunedin’s most disastrous fire to date, which in 1879 claimed
12 lives. The remnants of this building make up part of the Regent
Chambers, to which the entrance stands to the left of the Regent
Theatre foyer.
The Theatre itself was built over an astonishingly
swift period of six months, with workers operating twelve hours
a day until completion. Modelled on the Regent Theatre in New
York, and with other ‘sister’ Regents around the country, Dunedin’s
Regent Theatre opened for business in 1928.
For the first forty four years of its life, the Regent operated
as a cinema. The Otago Theatre
Trust was established in 1973 to purchase the Regent, and with the help of the Dunedin community,
saved the site from a potentially dismal fate as either a car
park or furniture warehouse.
In 1979, the Dunedin City Council
acquired the ownership of the theatre buildings, and the Otago
Theatre Trust continued to facilitate the administration of the
Theatre.
The year 1980 saw a dramatic change of face for the
old cinema complex. A stage, dressing rooms and a full size fly
tower where constructed in preparation for the Regent’s rebirth
as Otago’s premier live performance venue.
Over the last
thirty years, the Otago Theatre Trust has ensured a full programme
of films, ballet, musicals and other various productions at the
Regent Theatre. The maintenance of the theatre has remained true
to its historical roots, and boasts the only large live theatre
venue with a proscenium arch in the Otago area. In 1987 the Regent
Theatre was registered as a Category 1 Historic Building.
|
 |
The Theatre
seats 1830 people, and currently provides entertainment to
the purchasers of approximately 50,000 seats per year. With
a staff of just six and a half equivalent full time people,
the Otago Theatre Trust relies on the hard work of over 110
volunteers and various fundraising projects to continue the
success of the Regent Theatre.
The Regent Theatre celebrated its seventy-fifth anniversary in 2003, and the
Otago Theatre Trust maintains its goal of developing, maintaining
and promoting the Regent Theatre as the region’s premier large scale auditorium
for the performing arts and cinema for the people of Otago and visitors to Dunedin.
Inline with this commitment, the Regent Theatre is currently equipped to host
the following events: |
