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Bendigo and Districts Weekend TourOur annual country jaunt was held on Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd April, 2000 with a record attendance including a number of first timers. In fact, two motels had to be used.
Damp drizzle greeted us around Daylesford until lunchtime after which perfect weather prevailed. The former Rex Theatre houses Daylesford's Spa Centre Variety Store at 49 Vincent Street. Opened in 1929 to replace the Alpha Hall, the original Spanish decor is mostly intact, despite the ravages of times. We were unable to visit the Alpha Hall and Galleria, used until recently as a dinner venue combined with 16mm screenings of nostalgia films. A member of the Daylesford and District Historical Society escorted us to their museum for an interesting talk on the town's colourful past. Continuing on to the Daylesford Town Hall, now part of the Hepburn Shire Council, this building is a true Victorian-style auditorium dating from 1883 and little altered. Due to the slope of land, street entry is at balcony level with stairs down to the ground floor. A U-shaped balcony is fitted with an early type of seating long rows of padded benches with no dividing armrests in the middle, just a number indicating your allotted space. The very last is No. 250 in the top left-hand corner. Too bad if several heavyweights arrive before you can claim your section! A small projection booth has been built onto the balcony, suitable for one machine and a diminutive operator, judging by the outside dimensions. The venue was used for silent films but no evidence remains of where more substantial equipment was located. An early afternoon arrival brought us to the Theatre Royal, Castlemaine where the proprietors had graciously deleted a matinee screening to allow us to see this historic building and let a team of helpers prepare for a major cabaret event that evening. The present proprietors took over the Royal in July 1999, rather than let it remain idle. The building dates from 1857, one of the oldest surviving theatres on the mainland. It was remodelled in 1938 in a basic art deco design and although they did not have a show-business background, the owners have expended all their energies in essential repairs, on-going maintenance and a policy of alternating films with live-show events. We wish them every success for the future and it is pleasing to report their ice-cream counter was enthusiastically patronised by our members. An unofficial visit was offered to the Royal Theatre Cafe and Gallery in High Street, Maldon. This delightful little hall has been fully restored, including a beautiful ceiling and small stage. Dating from the 1860s when hotels could have an entertainment venue attached, it is believed to have survived dances, church services, music hall, a Masonic Lodge and pictures until the 1960s. The projection room can be seen from the opposite side of the street, built out over the front
veranda
with access by ladder, apparently. The operator must have been hardy, juggling the nitrate films up the ladder on a hot night! Our keen shoppers reported that the quality of the antiques stocked was excellent.
The Eaglehawk Town Hall or Star Cinema as it is now known was built in 1901 and has returned to films after a break of almost fifty years. A solid, substantial building, it has recently been re-decorated. Programming is a mixture of art films and popular attractions and there is an optional meal arrangement. A single Chinese-manufactured projector, platters and a conventional sound system made the bio-box tour of particular interest. 'Gone With The Wind' was being shown at 7pm and when we saw the lavishly comfortable couches provided in the stalls, it would have been tempting to stay.
After checking in to the Oval Motel and the nearby Barclay on View Motel, we set out for the Bendigo and District RSL Services Club on the north side of the city. Bendigo's street signs are not all that easy to identify by day and even harder by night, but eventually we all arrived safely. After a bit of table juggling (36 at one table is not really practical!) and a long pause between the soup and the main course due to another big group in the next room, a delicious meal was served.
A return to the Oval Motel saw the presentation of an hour of 'selected shorts' and hopefully a good night's rest after a busy day in the clean country air. Sunday morning saw us arrive at the Bendigo Cinemas Complex before sessions commenced. Located at 107 Queen Street, it is on the border of the city and the suburbs where car parking is easier. It was originally built as the Golden Town and has been expanded to seven screens by absorbing adjoining properties. Linked to Village Cinemas as a joint venture, the fittings and equipment are current state-of-the art throughout and equal to any city installation. Complete computerisation calculates everything down to the last bag of sweets, so different to the old manager-operator ventures where the lolly money helped balance the short-collection at the box-office! A most impressive country enterprise.
Continuing back across the city, we assembled at the Bendigo Regional Arts Centre which contains the splendid Capital Theatre. Passing through massive columns which flank the entrance, this imposing building was originally constructed for the Masonic Lodge. Our expert guide first showed us two beautifully restored rooms, one suitable for small concerts and/or lectures and one for weddings and functions. The Capital Theatre had fallen on hard times and seemed mostly closed and unusable in the seventies. Having presented almost everything including silent films over the years, restoration as now replaced the original flat floor with stadium seating and excellent sight-lines. The magnificent plaster work on the walls and ceiling is a tribute to the craftsmen's art of the nineteenth century, now re-painted and lit with modern lighting. All available space behind the proscenium has been utilised for the stage and new dressing rooms below, however the size of the stage limits the scale of the shows that can be presented. Plans are afoot for a new, larger theatre to be built immediately behind the Capital, in the future. All in all, a visit to remember.
A walk down View Street and past the fountain brought us to the former Lyric Theatre, which dates from 1913. Closed in the 1960s and destroyed by vandals and a fire, the building now contains commercial premises but the Lyric name remains proudly at the top of the facade. Around the corner to the former Plaza Theatre, last of Bendigo's city theatres to close in the 1970s. The Royal Princess, a stage and screen venue was lost to demolishers soon after television commenced about 1960. The Plaza, opened in 1934 with it's striking Spanish decor, must have been an impressive sight. The dress circle area is now used as a Lifestyle gymnasium known as the Bath Lane Health Club. The proprietors are proud of the building's heritage and the remaining Spanish-style wall panels, upper proscenium and ceiling decorations have been repainted in attractive colours.
We concluded our tour at a home theatrette where a tasty barbecue lunch was waiting to be cooked in the bright sunshine. Two film sessions were presented (due to the crowds!) and also included community singing with slides and live organ accompaniment! Our presentation plaques were given by the President of CATHS to Daylesford Town Hall, Castlemaine Royal, Eaglehawk Star, Bendigo Cinema and the Bendigo Regional Arts Centre, concluding a most enjoyable weekend.
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