73-77 Victoria Street

The former Lyric Theatre in Bunbury, located at 73-77 Victoria Street on the southwest corner of Symmons Street and Victoria Street, was opened on 3rd April 1905, when the population of Bunbury was only 2,670. The theatre was built by Hyman, Benjamin, Solomon and Israel Weiss who arrived in Bunbury from Manchester, U.K in the 1890’s. The architect was F.W Steere. The original building facade had a post-supported verandah. It was a a two storey building with a small verandah balcony standing proud of the main building mass. At the lower level corrugated iron covered verandahs extended either side of the balcony, supported on slender wooden posts. In 1910, iron lace verandahs were added which complemented the neighbouring Grand Central Temperance Hostel. Inside, a gallery supported by pillars, once extended around the sides and back of the hall. These allowed an uninterrupted view of the stage, as well as forming the least possible encroachment on the dancing space, when the theatre was used as a dancehall. The gallery was reached by a broad staircase leading up from the left of the principal entrance, and had seating accommodation for 250 persons. The bold moulded proscenium opening measures 20 x 18 feet, and the stage measured 40 x 20 feet. Stage and backstage facilities were provided on a level quite lavish for a provincial theatre, and it was obviously intended to be the venue for visiting companies as well as for local dramatic groups, dances and other community occasions. In addition to live theatre performances, the building was used for silent films, talkies, dances, balls, band contests, skating and public functions.

In April 1909, King’s Pictures began a weekly circuit that brought their programmes to the Lyric every Thursday and a month later, West’s initiated a similar circuit, which screened in the Lyric every Monday till August 1912, when they shifted to Thursday. Competition came from Bunbury’s Princess Theatre, which opened on 31 October 1923, but this was closed in 1937 and used as a dance hall until demolished and replaced by the Mayfair Theatre, in Stephen Street, Bunbury, (built in Art Deco Style), which opened on the site on 4 August 1939 (The Mayfair Theatre was demolished around 1969). Compared to the Princess Theatre, the Lyric used the superior Western Electric movie sound equipment (installed in 1929), with the best programs from the largest Hollywood studios, and with the occasional high-class supporting live entertainment.

The Lyric Theatre was sold to Nelson Bros Goldfields Pictures Ltd in 1936 and a fire on 5th April 1937, caused extensive damage and controversy. The fire severely damaged the front section and the rear was affected by smoke and water. There had been two other outbreaks at the theatre, within a month previously. Following the fire, the theatre was closed. It had to be extensively rebuilt and the theatre space was remodelled as a cinema theatre. This necessitated raising the auditorium roof trusses to allow for the projection lines. The cast iron verandah and imposing entry gates were removed at this time. The stage was removed, the proscenium enlarged, and additional seating provided in the stalls, in the extra space thus opened up. The pillars holding the gallery were removed, and girders were added to take the weight of the upstairs section. The wings of the gallery were demolished, and the rest of the gallery turned into a sloping dress circle.

A career in cinema in the ‘early days’ could be quite dangerous as the owner-manager of Bunbury’s Lyric Theatre, Mr Don Swansen, found out one Thursday evening in November 1920.

Mr Swansen had just concluded the showing of the advertising slides and was about to switch to the programme when a loop of film hanging from the large spool to the top of the lamphouse caught on fire. Mr Swansen tried to douse the flames by grabbing the burning film in his hands - a recognised operator's practice – but to no avail. He then removed the pin holding the spool in place and, depositing the burning film on the floor, covered it with a wet blanket, believing he had extinguished the flame. However, after a few seconds, the whole mile of films including the pictures ‘The Overland Motor Co’ film, Larry Semon comedy and Charlie Chaplin in ‘A Dog's Life’ were aflame. The operator, seeing that there was no hope for the film and was breathing in the toxic fumes rising from the burning celluloid, jumped through the flames to escape. The fire brigade was soon on the scene, and luckily beyond the operating room, where the fire commenced, practically no damage was done.

“The theatre was naturally filled with smoke, but the test the operating room received should be sufficient to convince people in future that there is absolutely no danger to the general public witnessing a show.” - South Western Times November 1920

Mr Swansen received bad burns on his hands and to the back of his neck where the film became entangled, while an attendant named Donovan fell over the balcony owing to the weight upon the firehose he was endeavouring to carry. He was seen by a doctor and was soon back at work. It was deemed advisable not to continue the Thursday show, with the theatre opening to the public free of charge the following night, and patrons watching the programme "The Thoroughbred” without mishap. The theatre staff were praised remaining at their posts as the drama unfolded, in particular Miss Lyla Hands who “throughout the incident rendered musical items.”

It reopened on 6 July 1937, after a facelift with a new Art Deco facade, designed by the prominent Western Australian cinema architect William T Leighton. The work included the remodelling of the street frontage of the theatre and shops, design of the projection box, the application of decorative grillage to the arched windows of the mezzanine and the installation of a fibrous plaster proscenium arch. The whole interior was repainted and refurnished, including carpets in the lounge foyer. Outside, the alterations were equally dramatic. The verandah was replaced with a cantilever structure, the facade modernised and simplified, the entrance provided with swinging glass doors with chromium fittings, and the shopfronts altered in keeping with the general design. The turret tower, however, was retained, and was used to hold the new neon sign for the cinema. The work, including the Art Deco façade, cost £3,000 and was Leighton’s first cinema project in Western Australia. He then went on to specialise in this area.

Leighton worked on a number of Western Australian cinemas including the Windsor Cinema in Nedlands, the Cygnet Cinema in South Perth, the Princess in Fremantle,and the Piccadilly Theatre and Arcade, Metro, Grand (1938 reconstruction) and Plaza Theatre (later modifications) in Perth. He also redesigned in an Art Deco style, the Astor Theatre in Mount Lawley. He was also involved with the modernisation of the Theatre Royal in 1939.

The refurbished Lyric re-opened with Sonja Henie in “One in a Million” on 6 July 1937. Bunbury's Lyric Theatre closed in December 1939, a few months after The Mayfair Theatre opened. The Lyric Theatre building was first leased to Colin Smith as a dance hall, then converted into shops, and was sold by Goldfields in 1946. In addition to live theatre performances, the building had been used for silent films, talkies, dances, balls, band contests, skating and public functions.

In the fifties the building was used as a dance hall, and in the eighties and nineties by Browns Furniture, when the theatre and shops were sold to William Brown in 1962, for use as a furniture store. Brown installed the staircase to the mezzanine floor in the 1980s – apparently the staircase came from the Cottesloe Picture Theatre. Mr Brown is also credited with inserting the first floor within the auditorium, which serves as a second showroom. Some alterations have been made to the rear of the stage to allow furniture deliveries to both floors. Bill Brown’s Furniture Store ceased operation by 2012/13.

The former theatre building is now State Heritage listed and has received funding for repairs and maintenance under a State Government’s Heritage Grants Program. The building, which now houses retail outlets on the ground floor and a creative hub in the loft, was granted $100,000 to undergo important works to revitalise its historic look. This went towards the $206,000 program of repairs. Mike Honeybell and Stewart Binnie bought the building in 2015, which now houses a botanical boutique called "Green Depot" (florist and gift shop), "Sweeney Todd Barber Shop" and the creative group, "Maker + Co".

Written by Ken McKay and first appeared on the Pictures in Motion Museum of Film and Television Group Facebook page.

Reproduced on the Streets of Bunbury website with permission.

Additional article on the Lyric Theatre Fire by Christine Hunter incorporated into Ken’s work.

Information was primarily retrieved form CinemaWeb, Heritage Council and the State Library of WA.