The Perth Entertainment Centre was an indoor arena and cinema complex in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Western Australia, located on Wellington Street at the northern edge of the

Perth central business district Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

. It was demolished as part of the

Perth City Link Perth City Link is an urban renewal and redevelopment project in Perth, Western Australia. The projectbounded by the Mitchell Freeway, Wellington Street, the Horseshoe Bridge and Roe Street is on land that was once the Perth/City railway ya ...

project in late 2011, with its replacement,

Perth Arena Perth Arena (known commercially as ) is an entertainment and sporting arena in the city centre of Perth, Western Australia, used mostly for basketball matches. It is located on Wellington Street near the site of the former Perth Entertainment ...

, opening the following year.

History

The venue was conceived and championed by the late Brian Treasure, then General Manager at Perth television station TVW 7 and theatrical entrepreneur

Michael Edgley Edgley International is a theatre and concert promotions company from Australia, first started in the 1930s and run by several generations. It has also been known as Edgley & Dawe Attractions, Edgley Ventures, and Michael Edgley Internationa ...

. Their interest was principally that their two organisations had mounted large stage shows which toured the country in circus tents; a process that created major logistical challenges. The venue was designed by

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

s Hobbs, Winning and Leighton and was forecast to cost $5 million, but its construction coincided with a period of intense industrial action. Delays and interruptions, including strike action which was timed to coincide with concrete pours, led to a cost blow-out. The final cost was $8.3 million and interest charges put immediate financial pressure on the venture. ''State Records Office: A guide to cabinet papers of 1976'' Accessed 7 June 2008 The venue opened on as the Channel 7 Edgley Entertainment Centre with the Australian debut of the second ''Disney on Parade'' show. In around 1975 the owners approached the State and Federal governments for assistance and the

Government of Western Australia The Government of Western Australia, formally referred to as His Majesty's Government of Western Australia, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of Western Australia. It is also commonly referred to as the WA Government o ...

took ownership of the building, renaming it The Perth Entertainment Centre. With a capacity of 8003 seats, the Entertainment Centre was Perth's primary large concert venue from 1974 until its closure in 2002. It was listed in the

Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

as the largest purpose built regular theatre (containing a

proscenium A proscenium ( grc-gre, προσκήνιον, ) is the metaphorical vertical plane of space in a theatre, usually surrounded on the top and sides by a physical proscenium arch (whether or not truly "arched") and on the bottom by the stage floor ...

arch) in the world. The venue also played host to a number of theatrical

extravaganza An extravaganza is a literary or musical work (often musical theatre) usually containing elements of burlesque, pantomime, music hall and parody in a spectacular production and characterized by freedom of style and structure. It sometimes also ...

s, as well as a range of other events including

musicals Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

, circuses, corporate functions and international beauty pageants (

Miss Universe 1979 Miss Universe 1979, the 28th Miss Universe pageant, was held on 20 July 1979 at the Perth Entertainment Centre in Perth, Australia. Margaret Gardiner of South Africa crowned her successor Maritza Sayalero of Venezuela. This marks as the firs ...

). The Entertainment Centre was home to NBL team

Perth Wildcats The Perth Wildcats are an Australian professional basketball team based in Perth, Western Australia. The Wildcats compete in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at Perth Arena, ...

from 1990 until 2002. It was also home to the Perth Breakers of the WNBL from 1988 to 1989. At the front of the Perth Entertainment Centre (west side) was "The Academy Twin Cinemas" which opened on 17 January 1975. The name changed to "Academy West End Alternative Cinemas" in June 1986. The name changed again to "Lumiere Cinema" in 1989. The "Lumiere Cinema" closed on 28 June 1996. The theatre remained empty, and was demolished along with the Perth Entertainment Centre.''Lumiere Cinema.''
Accessed 19 March 2018

Concerts

Demolition

The venue was owned by the

Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...

and was officially closed in August 2002. In 2005, the

unveiled plans for a new entertainment centre to be built on the site of the carpark for the existing centre. In 2006, the new centre was officially given the name of

. Demolition of the disused venue began on 11 May 2011 and was completed in December 2011, in preparation for the State Government's

project and included tentative approvals for new residential and business towers on the site.

References

External links

6000TIMES : photo series inside Perth Entertainment Centre prior to demolitionNorthbridge LinkNorthbridgeLink.comBrian Treasure
* {{Authority control Defunct indoor arenas in Australia Sports venues in Perth, Western Australia Defunct National Basketball League (Australia) venues Defunct basketball venues in Australia Former music venues in Australia Seven Network Perth Wildcats 1974 establishments in Australia Defunct tourist attractions in Australia Wellington Street, Perth Former buildings and structures in Perth, Western Australia 2011 disestablishments in Australia Sports venues completed in 1974 Sports venues demolished in 2011 Demolished buildings and structures in Western Australia