Crystal Palace Theatre

The Crystal Palace Theatre was a cinema in the central city of Christchurch, New Zealand, standing in the north-west corner of Cathedral Square from its opening in 1918 until its demolition in March 1986. The land, originally the eastern part of Town Section 707, changed hands several times between 1851 and 1902. By 1904 it was owned by William Roper, who in 1917 leased it to William Quill for the purpose of building a theatre. The theatre opened in February 1918, and during construction a reporter from The Press described it as "beautiful and imposing" with "every consideration given to the most minute details". The building featured a 32-metre tower overlooking the square, lit by seven floodlights modelled on the 1915 Tower of Jewels built for the Panama–Pacific International Exposition. The first film shown was Heart and Soul on 4 April 1918. For the first few years, the theatre only showed movies by Fox Film, before switching to Universal Pictures. In December 1920 an orchestra pit was added to accompany silent films, and the cinema was renamed Greater Crystal Palace. Just before the end of the decade the theatre was equipped to screen "talkies". In 1932 the cinema became an "All-British Cinema", showing only British films, in line with a policy of the British Empire; Christchurch was chosen as the first city to host such a theatre in New Zealand, on the basis that it was the "most English" city. The cinema changed hands in 1935. Beginning in the mid-1940s, the "Chums' Club" started at the nearby Liberty Theatre, a special Saturday-morning session for school-aged children with cartoons, movies, and a comic book swap in the foyer. In 1953 the Chums' Club moved to the Crystal Palace theatre, where it remained a fixture of life for local children until the cinema closed for renovations in 1963. In 1963 the theatre was modified and renamed the Carlton Cinema. The Government Life Insurance Building was built directly next door, and during this period the iconic tower was enclosed in modern metal cladding to match the neighbouring building. The theatre hosted the local film festival for many years. The building was finally demolished in 1986, with the last film screening on 24 March of that year. The cinema was replaced with a pedestrian shopping mall named "Crystal Plaza" as a nod to the theatre. The mall was demolished in September 2012 following the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes, and the land became the southern part of the site for Te Pae Christchurch Convention Centre. When built, the theatre had capacity for 1,088. The auditorium was five storeys high, with a domed plaster ceiling, a dress circle that seated 400 people, and three private box seats on either side of the screen. The renovation in the 1960s reduced the capacity to 804, of which 304 seats remained in the dress circle. The entrance was enlarged, and a verandah added to the front of the building. A false roof was installed in the auditorium to improve the acoustics.

The Crystal Palace, later also known as the Greater Crystal Palace, the All-British Theatre, and the Carlton Cinema, was a cinema in the central city of Christchurch, New Zealand. The cinema stood in the north-west corner of Cathedral Square from its opening in 1918 to its demolition in March 1986. Te Pae Christchurch Convention Centre now has its southern footprint on this land. The land on which the cinema stood, originally the eastern part of Town Section 707, changed hands several times during the early years of Christchurch, between 1851 and 1902. The plot was originally owned by Benjamin Lancaster, who leased it to Isaac Luck. By 1904 the land was owned by William Roper, who in 1917 leased it to William Quill for the purpose of building a theatre. The theatre was opened in February 1918. During construction, a reporter from The Press described the theatre as "beautiful and imposing" with "every consideration given to the most minute details". The building featured a 32 metres (105 ft) tower overlooking the square, lit by seven floodlights modelled on the 1915 Tower of Jewels built for the Panama–Pacific International Exposition. The first film shown was Heart and Soul on 4 April 1918. For the first few years, the theatre only showed movies by Fox Film, before switching to Universal Pictures. In December 1920 an orchestra pit was added to accompany the silent films that played at the cinema, and this resulted in a name change to Greater Crystal Palace. Just before the end of the decade the theatre was equipped to screen "talkies". In 1932 the cinema became an "All-British Cinema", showing only British films. This was in-line with a policy of the British Empire, and Christchurch was chosen as the first city to host such a theatre in New Zealand, on the basis that it was the "most English" city. The cinema changed hands in 1935. Beginning in the mid-1940s, the "Chums' Club" started at the nearby Liberty Theatre. This was a special session for school-aged children on Saturday mornings. The theatre would show children's cartoons and movies, and there would be a comic book swap in the foyer. In 1953 the Chums' Club moved to the Crystal Palace theatre, where it remained a fixture of life for local children until the cinema closed for renovations in 1963. In 1963 the theatre was modified and renamed the Carlton Cinema. The Government Life Insurance Building was built directly next door, and during this period the iconic tower was enclosed in modern metal cladding to match the neighbouring building. The theatre hosted the local film festival for many years. The building was finally demolished in 1986, with the last film screening on 24 March of that year. The cinema was replaced with a pedestrian shopping mall, named "Crystal Plaza" as a nod to the theatre. The mall was demolished in September 2012 following the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes, and the land became the southern part of the site for Te Pae Christchurch Convention Centre. When built, the theatre had capacity for 1,088. The auditorium was five storeys high, with a domed plaster ceiling, a dress circle that seated 400 people, and three private box seats on either side of the screen. The renovation in the 1960s reduced the capacity to 804, of which 304 seats remained in the dress circle. The entrance was enlarged, and a verandah added to the front of the building. A false roof was installed in the auditorium to improve the acoustics.

• 2012

  Crystal Plaza mall demolished in September following 2011 Christchurch earthquakes.

• 1986

  Building demolished in March; last film screening on 24 March.

• 1963

  Theatre modified and renamed Carlton Cinema; cinema closed for renovations.

• 1953

  Chums' Club moved to the Crystal Palace theatre.

• 1935

  Cinema changed hands.

• 1932

  Cinema became an "All-British Cinema", showing only British films.

• 1920

  Orchestra pit added in December; name changed to Greater Crystal Palace.

• 1918

  Theatre opened in February; first film Heart and Soul shown on 4 April.

• 1917

  William Roper leases land to William Quill for building a theatre.

• 1904

  Land owned by William Roper.

• 1902

  Land changes hands several times between 1851 and 1902.

• 1851

  Land (eastern part of Town Section 707) begins changing hands during early Christchurch years.

A historic central-city cinema and landmark in Cathedral Square, Christchurch, known for its tower, silent-film orchestra, all-British film policy, and children's Chums' Club.

• Cinema screenings

• Silent films with orchestra

• Talkies

• British films (All-British Cinema policy)

• Chums' Club children's Saturday sessions

• Local film festival screenings

1. 1Crystal Palace Theatre - Wikidatawikidata.org
2. 2Crystal Palace, Christchurch - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org