Wintergarden Action Committee records, 1980-1987

MLMSS 8922

fonds

1980-1987

Textual Records, Graphic Materials, Architectural and Technical Drawings, Objects, Clippings, Ephemera, Photographs

411703

1.17 metres of textual material (7 boxes)

The Wintergarden Theatre, in the Sydney suburb of Rose Bay, opened on 24th February 1928. Designed by architect Henry White in the ‘picture palace’ cinema style, it had a seating capacity of 2,094. The following year it became the first Sydney suburban theatre to install sound equipment for the ‘talkies’. Over the next 40 years, cinema-going was a major popular activity, but by the late 1970s, increasing costs and falling patronage made the theatre economically unviable. Following its sale to an international hotelier group in 1980, local residents and others commenced a campaign to prevent its demolition. The Wintergarden Action Committee (WAC) was formed on 2 June 1982 with seven founding members. It campaigned vigorously in support of the building’s retention as an entertainment venue, making an extensive submission to the 1985 inquiry into objections to the making of a permanent conservation order in respect of the Wintergarden Theatre. The inquiry recommended that a permanent conservation order not be made and in 1987, the theatre was finally demolished. A retirement apartment building, Rose Bay Towers, now stands on the Wintergarden’s site overlooking Sydney Harbour.

References:
Compiled from the collection
Cinema Treasures: Wintergarden Theatre, http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/1275 (accessed 15 April 2013)

Wintergarden Action Committee records relating to the campaign to prevent the demolition of the Wintergarden Theatre and promote its retention as an entertainment venue.

BOX 1
Material concerning the Australian Theatre Historical Society, including issues of its journal ‘Kino’, 1981-1985
Papers relating to a 1985 Inquiry pursuant to Section 41 of the Heritage Act 1977 into objections to the making of a permanent conservation order in respect of the Wintergarden Theatre, including submissions and reports from previous inquiries, 1983-1985
Correspondence and architectural drawings relating to a Marks and Spencer store in Truro, UK, 1986

BOX 2
Papers relating to the 1985 Inquiry into objections to the making of a permanent conservation order in respect of the Wintergarden Theatre, including the submission by WAC and the Commissioner’s Report, 1985
Solicitor’s file relating to the WAC and the ‘Save the Wintergarden Theatre’ campaign, including correspondence, meeting minutes, press releases and reports, 1982-1983
Newscuttings, 1984-1987, and notebooks (2), undated
Letters of support and other documents supporting the WAC’s submission to the Inquiry, 1983-1985
Photocopied reports, minutes and correspondence from Woollahra Council, 1983-1984

BOX 3
‘Wintergarden Action Committee documents’ including correspondence relating to the proposed redevelopment of the Wintergarden site, 1982-1985
Draft of WAC submission to inquiry with supporting papers, 1983-1985
Proposals and feasibility studies for potential uses of the Wintergarden Theatre, 1983-1985
Papers relating to the 1985 Inquiry including various submissions, 1983-1985

BOX 4
Minutes of Woollahra Council meetings and related papers, including a Local Environment Study for the Wintergarden site, 1982-1986
Copies of various Acts relating to heritage and environmental planning, 1981-1982
Folder labelled ‘Correspondence etc FROM WAC’ containing correspondence, 1982-1986

BOX 5
Folder labelled ‘Correspondence TO WAC pending’ containing correspondence, 1982-1987
WAC chronology of events, 1980-1985
Minutes of WAC meetings and related papers, 1982-1985
WAC correspondence, newscuttings and other papers arranged chronologically in 5 folders labelled ’80/’81, ’82, ’83, ’84, 1985/some ’84 and in a folder labelled ‘Miscellaneous’

BOX 6
Petitions and letters of support, including letters from Patrick White, Jim Sharman and John Bell, 1983-1986
Completed survey questionnaires concerning the future of the Wintergarden Theatre, arranged by ward within Woollahra Municipality, 1985

BOX 7
Woollahra Council meeting minutes and reports, 1982-1984
Various proposals for preservation and re-use of the Wintergarden Theatre, including architectural plans and drawings, 1982-1985
Advertising material for Rose Bay Towers, undated
Photographic prints and negatives, including a protester and exterior and interior views of the Wintergarden Theatre, undated
Placards and badges used in the ‘Save the Wintergarden’ campaign
Memorabilia from the Wintergarden Theatre: Certificate of registration of business name for ‘Winter Garden Theatre’, 1965; ‘Wintergarden next Saturday’ rubber st decorative plaster fragment; programme for the Wintergarden Theatre Grand Opening, 19 Mar 1928; ‘The Wintergarden Theatre Magazine’ Vol. 1 No. 1, 14 May 1928

This collection includes pictorial material at PXD 1338.

Copyright status:: In copyright - This collection has multiple rights owners
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Please acknowledge:: Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales

Information upgraded as part of the Manuscripts Unprocessed eRecords Project 2012-2013