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The Athenaeum or Melbourne Athenaeum is an art and cultural hub in the
central business district A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...
of
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...
,
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...
, Australia. Founded in 1839, it is the city's oldest cultural institution. Its building on Collins Street in the
East End Theatre District The East End Theatre District is a precinct within the Melbourne central business district, and is bounded by Spring Street, Flinders Street, Swanston Street and Lonsdale Street. The district is home to seven major theatres, including the Princ ...
sits opposite the Regent Theatre, and currently consists of a main theatre, a smaller studio theatre, a restaurant and a
subscription library A subscription library (also membership library or independent library) is a library that is financed by private funds either from membership fees or endowments. Unlike a public library, access is often restricted to members, but access rights c ...
. It has also served as a mechanics' institute, an art exhibition space, and a cinema. The building was added to the
National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...
's Register of Historic Buildings in 1981 and is listed on the
Victorian Heritage Register The Victorian Heritage Register (VHR) lists places deemed to be of cultural heritage significance to the State of Victoria, Australia. It has statutory weight under the Heritage Act 2017. The Minister for Planning is the responsible Minister. ...
.


History


Early history

The first President was Captain William Lonsdale, the first Patron was the Superintendent of Port Phillip,
Charles La Trobe Charles la Trobe, CB (20 March 18014 December 1875), commonly Latrobe, was appointed in 1839 superintendent of the Port Phillip District of New South Wales and, after the establishment in 1851 of the colony of Victoria (now a state of Austra ...
and the first books were donated by Vice-President
Henry Fyshe Gisborne Henry Fyshe Gisborne (1813–1841) was the first Commissioner for Crown Lands of the Port Phillip District, founder of Flemington Racecourse and petitioner for Victoria's separation from New South Wales. Early career Henry Fyshe Gisborne was th ...
. Originally called the Melbourne Mechanics' Institute, it was renamed in 1846 to the Melbourne Mechanics' Institution and School of Arts. The building at 188 Collins Street was completed in 1842. The
Melbourne City Council The City of Melbourne is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the central city area of Melbourne. In 2018, the city has an area of and had a population of 169,961. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. The c ...
met in the building until 1852 when the
Melbourne Town Hall Melbourne Town Hall is the central city town hall of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, and is a historic building in the state of Victoria since 1867. Located in the central business district on the northeast corner of the intersection between ...
was built. The Institution changed its name to the Melbourne Athenaeum in 1872. At that time, as now, a focal point was the library. In 1877, membership was 1,681 and in 1879 there were 30,000 visits to the library. In 1880 it was reported 'that the floor of the large hall was the only one in Melbourne expressly constructed for dancing'. The front of the building was rebuilt in 1885 and 1886. Among the office bearers of the institution in the nineteenth century was the author
Marcus Clarke Marcus Andrew Hislop Clarke (24 April 1846 – 2 August 1881) was an English-born Australian novelist, journalist, poet, editor, librarian, and playwright. He is best known for his 1874 novel '' For the Term of His Natural Life'', about the c ...
who was the chairman of the library committee in 1877.


Theatre and cinema

In October 1896, the first movie was shown in the Athenaeum Hall. This may not have been the first in Australia however, as a cinematograph was being demonstrated at the Melbourne Opera House in August. On 26 January 1901 ''Life in Our Navy'', a 60,000 foot film of life on HMS ''Jupiter'', was shown by G. H. Snazelle, who provided additional entertainment. The Hall became a regular venue for screening films and the premiere of '' The Story of the Kelly Gang'' by the Tait brothers, the world's first dramatic feature film, was at the Athenaeum in 1906. The theatre in its present form, a proscenium arch theatre with 880 seats on three levels, was created in 1924, designed by Henry Eli White. Renamed the Athenaeum Theatre, it was the first venue in Australia to screen talking pictures, presenting ''
The Jazz Singer ''The Jazz Singer'' is a 1927 American musical drama film directed by Alan Crosland. It is the first feature-length motion picture with both synchronized recorded music score as well as lip-synchronous singing and speech (in several isolate ...
'' in February 1929. From the 1920s to the early 1970s, the theatre was mainly used as a cinema. The
Melbourne Theatre Company The Melbourne Theatre Company is a theatre company based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1953 as the Union Theatre Repertory Company at the Union Theatre at the University of Melbourne, it is the oldest professional theatre com ...
(MTC) leased the theatre from 1976 to 1985 when the lease was taken over by various entrepreneurs who formed AT Management in 1997. The upstairs studio theatre ("Ath 2"), created from the former art gallery by the MTC, has been used as a theatre space and the venue for The Last Laugh Comedy Club after it moved from
North Melbourne North Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Melbourne local government area. North Melbourne recorded a population of 14,953 at ...
.


Art gallery

The Athenaeum housed a small museum in its early days and then an art gallery. The gallery hosted the first exhibition of Frederick McCubbin's '' The Pioneer'' in 1904, and in 1918, the Australian tonalists staged their first group exhibition there. 'Jock' Frater held his first solo show there in 1923, marking his break from the Tonalists. The gallery also showed paintings by
Rupert Bunny Rupert Charles Wulsten Bunny (29 September 186425 May 1947) was an Australian painter. Born and raised in Melbourne, Victoria, he achieved success and critical acclaim as an expatriate in '' fin-de-siècle'' Paris. He gained an honourable mentio ...
,
Hans Heysen Sir Hans Heysen (8 October 18772 July 1968) was a German-born Australian artist. He became a household name for his watercolours of monumental Australian gum trees. He is one of Australia's best known landscape painters. Heysen also produced ...
,
Albert Namatjira Albert Namatjira (born Elea Namatjira; 28 July 1902 – 8 August 1959) was an Arrernte painter from the MacDonnell Ranges in Central Australia, widely considered one of the greatest and most influential Australian artists. As a pioneer of cont ...
,
Tom Roberts Thomas William Roberts (8 March 185614 September 1931) was an English-born Australian artist and a key member of the Heidelberg School art movement, also known as Australian impressionism. After studying in Melbourne, he travelled to Europe ...
, John Rowell,
Ernest Buckmaster Ernest William Buckmaster (1897–1968) was an Australian artist born in Victoria. He won the Archibald Prize in 1932 with a portrait of Sir William Irvine. He also served as an Australian war artist during World War II. Life and career Buck ...
,
Constance Stokes Constance Stokes (née Parkin, 22 February 1906 – 14 July 1991) was an Australian modernist painter who worked in Victoria. She trained at the National Gallery of Victoria Art School until 1929, winning a scholarship to continue her study at ...
and
Arthur Streeton Sir Arthur Ernest Streeton (8 April 1867 – 1 September 1943) was an Australian landscape painter and a leading member of the Heidelberg School, also known as Australian Impressionism. Early life Streeton was born in Mt Moriac, Victoria, so ...
, before closing in 1971. The gallery also hosted talks by the Melbourne Society of Women Painters, including one in 1935 at which Mary Cecil Allen spoke.


Subscription library

Membership of the Athenaeum's subscription library peaked at 7,579 in 1950, after the
State Library of Victoria State Library Victoria (SLV) is the state library of Victoria, Australia. Located in Melbourne, it was established in 1854 as the Melbourne Public Library, making it Australia's oldest public library and one of the first free libraries in th ...
ceased lending of its books in 1939. Membership reduced over the subsequent decades to 1,600 by the mid-1980s, and 750 by the late 2000s. Membership is now increasing.


Today

Today, the Athenaeum Theatre is used for theatre, comedy and music performances, including as a principal venue for the
Melbourne International Comedy Festival The Melbourne International Comedy Festival (MICF) is the largest stand-alone comedy festival and the second-largest international comedy festival in the world. Established in 1987, it takes place annually in Melbourne over four weeks, typical ...
and
Melbourne Opera Melbourne Opera was founded in 2002 as a charitable not-for-profit company dedicated to producing opera and associated art forms in Melbourne, Victoria. With philanthropic assistance it has also toured to outer-suburban and regional Victorian thea ...
. The Wheeler Centre for Books, Writing and Ideas presents discussions and talks at the theatre. The subscription library has a 30,000-strong collection and hosts regular events, talks, book clubs and a screen club.


See also

* List of theatres in the Melbourne City Centre *
List of heritage listed buildings in Melbourne This is a non-exhaustive list of buildings in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and surrounding suburbs listed on the Victorian Heritage Register. This the highest level of protection afforded to a building in the state of Victoria. A far greate ...


References


Time-Line History of the Melbourne Athenaeum
*''The Melbourne Athenaeum, a short history'', 2001.


External links


Athenaeum Theatre website

Melbourne Athenaeum website

Melbourne Athenaeum archives website
* {{Authority control Libraries in Melbourne Theatres in Melbourne Heritage-listed buildings in Melbourne Organisations based in Melbourne Victorian architecture in Victoria (Australia) Subscription libraries in Australia Collins Street, Melbourne Buildings and structures in Melbourne City Centre Landmarks in Melbourne