The Comedy Theatre is a 1003-seat theatre in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
's
East End Theatre District. It was built in 1928, and was designed in the Spanish style, with a Florentine-style exterior and wrought-iron balconies. It is located at 240
Exhibition Street
Exhibition Street is a major street in the Melbourne central business district, Australia. The street is named after the International Exhibition held at the Royal Exhibition Building in 1880, and was previously known as Stephen Street from 183 ...
, and diagonally opposite
Her Majesty's Theatre
His Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated in the Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The building, designed by Charles J. Phipps, was constructed in 1897 for the actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who ...
.
It typically hosts commercial seasons of plays and smaller-scale musicals, as well as comedy and other entertainment events.
History
The site at the corner of
Lonsdale and
Stephen
Stephen or Steven is an English given name, first name. It is particularly significant to Christianity, Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; he is w ...
streets was from June 1842 to October 1854 an entertainment venue, "
Rowe's American Circus", where
George Benjamin William Lewis gained his foothold in Australia. In December 1854 it was licensed as the "Royal Victoria Theatre", then demolished, to be replaced by a prefabricated iron building imported from
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
, England for
George Coppin
George Selth Coppin (8 April 1819 – 14 March 1906) was a comic actor, a theatrical entrepreneur, a politician and a philanthropist, active in Australia.Sally O'Neill,Coppin, George Selth (1819–1906), ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', ...
. Tentatively named "New Theatre", it was christened on 11 June 1855 as "Coppin's Olympic Theatre", and held its first theatrical performance on 30 July.
One of Melbourne's earliest play-houses, it was the venue of some of
Gustavus Vaughan Brooke
Gustavus Vaughan Brooke (25 April 1818 – 11 January 1866), commonly referred to as G. V. Brooke, was an Irish stage actor who enjoyed success in Ireland, England, and Australia.
Early life
Brooke was born in Dublin, Ireland, the eldest son o ...
's greatest triumphs, but the "Iron Pot", as it came to be known, was hot in summer and cold in winter and was soon displaced by architecturally superior theatres, and was abandoned in 1894.
Opened on 28 April 1928,
the Comedy Theatre was built and operated for fifty years by
J. C. Williamson's. Paul Dainty purchased the theatre in 1978 for $800,000. Since 1996 the theatre has been owned and operated by Marriner Group.
Previous productions
Previous notable productions and performers at the Comedy Theatre include:
Gallery
File:ComedyTheatreMelbournefresco1.JPG, Fresco
File:ComedyTheatreMelbournefresco2.JPG, Fresco detail
File:ComedyTheatreMelbournefresco3.JPG, Fresco detail
File:ComedyTheatreMelbournewindows.JPG, Windows
File:Comedy Theatre in December 2012.jpg, Theatre in December 2012
References
External links
*
Comedy Theatre, Melbourne Victorian Heritage Database
{{Melbourne landmarks
Theatres in Melbourne
Buildings and structures in Melbourne City Centre
1928 establishments in Australia
Theatres completed in 1928