Decades of cultural heritage

Wed Sep 29, 2010

Charlotte Woodfield - NZ Herald

When the St James Theatre opened and played its first movie with sound the Herald reported that "seldom has an Auckland audience been roused to the appreciation of such a galaxy of colour, music and movement".

That was 1929 and the Orpheus Overture was playing.

Since then countless audiences have been "roused" by entertainers including Sir Howard Morrison, Sir Lawrence Olivier ... and Motorhead.

Sir Harold Marshall, a specialist in concert hall design, was a 16-year-old King's College student when he went to St James Theatre with his 6th form English class in September 1948.

Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier performed Richard Sheridan's School for Scandal while touring with the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Sir Harold, group consultant for Marshall Day Acoustics, recalled students queuing outside Her Majesty's Theatre (now a carpark) for tickets.

"The whole culture was so deprived of artistic experiences in those days.

"I should be really sad if it disappeared. Auckland really has needed that theatre. Her Majesty's Theatre has gone, The Mercury [theatre] is still there but has been closed for several years."

As well as acting royalty, the St James has hosted a variety of music including Sir Howard Morrison, the Finn brothers, Pearl Jam, Radiohead and legendary guitarist Johnny Marr.

British punk pioneers the Buzzcocks played in 2006 - more than 30 years since starting out - while that same year Brit rockers Arctic Monkeys played on their trajectory to success. Motorhead played in December 2005 for their 30th anniversary tour.

But for many the theatre will be forever remembered for the Queen's visit in 1981.

Former chief projectionist Doug Harley revealed the Queen's night could have been far more eventful.

Directly over her head, large stage lights hung from chains. "The royal people said we had to move them."

Actress Ginette McDonald performed that night as her infamous alter ego Lyn of Tawa - Ms McDonald's agent Kathryn Rawlings said the "gum-chewing, vowel-challenged" act was clearly satiric.

But St James Theatre producers seemed unaware. "They thought I was really an uncultured lass from Tawa," said Ms McDonald.

Converted for the "talkies" in 1929, St James was also the first cinema in New Zealand to show Gone With The Wind.

A Herald report after that first talking movie night said: "It was a splendid talking programme, and one which was produced entirely by the technicolour process."

Heritage lovers line up to save the St James

Tue Sep 28, 2010

Yvonne Tahana - NZ Herald

Council candidates, promoters back Herald plea to save decaying theatre.

EXPAND

Council candidates and music show promoters are making pleas for the historic theatre to be restored to its former glory. Photo / Salmond Reed Collection

Super City candidates and music-show promoters believe there's life in the old St James Theatre yet.

The site has been languishing for three years after a fire left it closed to the public because of safety concerns.

The Herald has this week launched a campaign to debate the future of the 82-year-old grande dame, which is in serious need of an overhaul.

Owned by property developer Paul Doole, who has said he would consider selling it, the St James is included in The Edge's bid to the Government as part of a proposed national convention centre.

Auckland City Mayor and Super City mayoral candidate John Banks has said refurbishment could cost more than $50 million.

Heart of the City business group chief executive Alex Swney, who is standing for the new Auckland Council in the Waitemata and Gulf ward, said there was no question the theatre should be restored. If private ownership continued, ratepayers might have to consider subsidising the work.

"There will be some benefits to the owner. But the majority of the benefit lies with the public, [so] the majority of the cost of the restoration should rest with the public, with Aucklanders."

However, Mr Swney would prefer the new council buy the site and pay for the restoration.

Auckland Regional Council chairman Mike Lee, also standing in the ward, said the theatre was one of a number of historic buildings which needed attention from the new council.

"There are a number of rundown buildings, and they've got to the point where they're becoming chronically neglected. There needs to be some sort of pressure from the new council that those buildings are repaired.

"There needs to be constructive engagement with owners to get the things repaired and reopened. It needs to be transformed back into a living, breathing space. It's just rotting away."

Veteran Auckland promoter Manolo Echave said the venue, which held more than 2000, allowed music lovers to experience outstanding acoustics.

EDITIORIAL: Edge's plan to save the St James merits Govt tick

Mon Sep 27, 2010

Nz Herald

Today's Cabinet meeting is scheduled to dwell for the first time on the international convention and exhibition centre proposed for Auckland. This cannot come soon enough for the five bidders, who have waited expectantly since submitting their plans to the Ministry of Economic Development more than three months ago. Those in the building sector are equally interested. While the Canterbury earthquake will provide plenty of unanticipated work, that does not detract from the importance of this project. The wait for a final decision should not be a long one. One of the bids is utterly compelling in the way that it would add shape and significance to the centre of the Super City, not least through its incorporation of the vintage St James Theatre.

This proposal, by The Edge, would see a massive building constructed on the flat site now used for car parking on Mayoral Drive alongside the Aotea Centre. Additionally, a refurbished St James would complement the convention centre, the Civic and the Town Hall and supplant the Aotea Centre as the main venue for theatre, opera and ballet. The Aotea Centre's main role would be linked to the convention centre.

There is a strong win-win element in this. Crucially, in terms of transport and hotel accommodation, the centre would be at the very heart of the city. Equally, a theatre that, while protected by heritage laws, has slipped into decay would be saved. This would draw particular applause from the likes of English theatre luminaries Sir Ian McKellen and Dame Judi Dench and New Zealand actor Sam Neill, all of whom have joined a group dubbed the St James Saviours. If many Aucklanders have been more circumspect about the building, that may largely be because it has been concealed by a bland and poorly maintained facade since 1953.

Refurbished, the 1928 Spanish Mission building would undoubtedly add a striking dimension to Queen St, while its ornate colonial-style interior would provide a relatively intimate 1300-seater facility. Only the question of access has hung over The Edge's visionary plan. The theatre's owner has planned to build a 39-storey apartment tower on the site behind it. However, the problems arising from this now seem to have evaporated. While no offer is on the table, a sale appears on the cards.

If the Cabinet has doubts about the merit of this bid, or of the others, it can always turn to guidance provided by the Auckland City Council. The council stepped into the issue even before some of the bids were known, saying it was vital the convention centre was located in the city centre. That is a reasonable conclusion, given that top-quality hotels and easy access to transport are key requirements for those attending conferences and exhibitions. On that basis, the ASB Showgrounds bid centred on unused land at Greenlane is a non-starter. A Ngati Whatua proposal for Quay Park, alongside the Vector Arena, and an Infratil bid for the Wynyard Quarter are flawed for the same reason.

That suggests the main opposition for The Edge proposal comes from SkyCity's plan to bridge Federal St to expand meeting areas, and build an airbridge to a site the company already owns at 101 Hobson St, developing the venue as a multi-level building. Yet as ambitious as this project is, it does not have the advantages inherent in a scheme that would see the convention and exhibition centre built in the right place for the Super City, while casting an eye back in saving a building that has been graced by the likes of Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh.

Too often, Auckland has adopted a cavalier attitude towards its heritage. The Edge's bid offers a welcome counterpoint to that and much more. It should get the Cabinet's seal of approval without undue delay.

Restore St James and make Auckland NZ's arts capital

Mon Sep 27, 2010

Brian Rudman - NZ Herald

My challenge to the mayoral candidates a couple of weeks back, to embrace Auckland's role as cultural capital of the country, had a predictable enough response. Total ignore from Auckland mayoral front-runners Len Brown and John Banks, and squawks of outrage from Wellington.

Wellington Mayor Kerry Prendergast not only gave me a blast in a letter to the editor, she also made Wellington's "arts culture status" a big issue in a subsequent Wellington mayoral candidate debate on National Radio's Morning Report. Admitting that her city's claim to be arts capital was "at risk", she said if Wellington was to maintain its cultural status, it needed to copy Auckland and introduce a Regional Amenities Act to ensure a larger and more equitable funding base for its arts organisation.

What I envy is that unlike here, arts and culture is such a natural and important part of the Wellington election dialogue. In contrast, the leading Auckland mayoral candidates seem to go out of their way to avoid embracing the finer things of life for fear of appearing elitist - or possibly, effete. The only chink in this culture-free armour is a token shared love of "heritage".

Both Mr Banks and Mr Brown list their desire to save the St James Theatre as proof of that.

Desire is all very well, but with the St James Theatre on its last legs during both Mr Banks' terms as Auckland mayor, what voters deserve before the polls close on Saturday week is something rather more concrete than a vague promise.

If ever there was a symbol of this town's cavalier approach to its past, it's the sad, neglected St James. Somehow we did get around to giving it a top level heritage listing according to both the criteria set down by the Historic Places Trust and Auckland City Council. But that done, we just walked away and let it decay.

Only good luck saved it from death by fire, and for several years it has sat abandoned, unsafe for human use, while vague plans for it being entombed inside a residential tower block wax and wane.

As a reminder of the city's rich theatrical past, it needs to be preserved, but to me there's an even more important and practical reason for it being resurrected. Auckland needs a 1300-seat lyric theatre to host drama, opera and ballet, shows that currently risk getting lost in the oversized 2200-plus ASB Theatre and Civic auditoriums.

In this economic climate, St James' present owner, property developer Paul Doole, has indicated the theatre is available, presumably at or around the government valuation of $11 million.

What we need to hear from the candidates is whether they're committed to buying the property as stage one of a restoration programme.

Auckland City Council's bid for siting the government's planned national convention centre around the existing Aotea Centre, cleverly incorporates the restoration of the St James in the package. In return for the ASB Theatre becoming the main convention centre auditorium, the St James, just across Queen St, will be revived as the city's premier lyric theatre. It's a pragmatic solution which satisfies both the government's desire for a centrally-sited convention centre with the urgent task of saving the old theatre.

The Cabinet is reportedly considering a report from its advisers this morning, and hopefully the chance to deliver not just a convention centre but a bonus theatre for Auckland appeals not least to Prime Minister John Key and the other Auckland ministers. But if it doesn't, that shouldn't be an excuse for Auckland's local politicians to walk away.

As our elected representatives - or soon to be so - they have inherited a responsibility to protect and restore this 1928 vintage theatre. Unfortunately, despite it being declared a city treasure, the local council has no power to force the owner to do anything.

Under the resource consent for the proposed, but now stalled, apartment tower, all that is required is that it be sealed watertight.

Some earthquake proofing and the restoration of the Queen St tower is also required if the high-rise proceeds.

Convention Centre or not, the St James needs saving now.

It will enhance Auckland's position as the cultural and arts capital of the country.

What we need is a candidate to stand up and not just declare he would be proud to lead such a city, but tell us how he plans to do that.

Historic theatre's future in spotlight

Mon Sep 27, 2010

Yvonne Tahana - NZ Herald

The future of the St James Theatre - once one of Auckland's premier venues but now sliding into decay - will be highlighted today as the Government weighs up national convention centre bids.

Auckland City Council's The Edge is one of five contenders for the proposed centre, which could cost between $200 million and $500 million.

Under The Edge's plan, the St James would become the main venue for theatre, opera and ballet instead of the Aotea Centre, which would be incorporated into a new convention and exhibition centre.

Today, the Herald opens a campaign to save the St James, which has been closed since a fire in 2007 and is listed by the Historic Places Trust as category one.

Built in 1928, the ornate Spanish colonial-style building was once considered so beautiful that the man who commissioned it, Sir Benjamin Fuller, pronounced it "the theatre perfect".

Theatrical immortals Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh trod the boards there, and successive generations of Aucklanders knew it as a cinema and a music venue.

Documentary maker Richard Hodges, a long-time admirer, is making a film about the theatre.

"I was in town recently and I just happened to wander past. It was all boarded up. There was a jewellery guy [selling] on the side. I went out the back and all the marble steps had been chipped and the foyer on Lorne St has become a sort of toilet and it's really horrid. It just struck a chord with me - how the mighty have fallen."

Much of what made the St James so stunning is hidden behind a facade which SPCA executive director Bob Kerridge's father, Sir Robert, put up in the 1950s, designed specifically for a visit by the Queen.

The family once ran the Kerridge Odeon theatre circuit, which at its peak owned 133 cinemas, the largest chain in Australia and New Zealand.

Mr Kerridge calls the false front "horrible". He is responsible for gaining heritage status for the St James in 1988, and started the lobby group St James Saviours last year.

"My father didn't make many mistakes, but he did on that occasion, because he wanted to modernise the theatre so he put up a false front. I don't think the Queen would have noticed it, really. Behind that horrible front exists that lovely facade. We're hopeful it'll be restored."

He supports The Edge's plan.

"Aucklanders are longing to see that theatre come back to life again. It is certainly a very compatible marriage. I'm absolutely in support of it because it's a mechanism by which the theatre can be saved."

Mr Kerridge said there was something wrong with the heritage laws if a protected building could lapse into a state of disrepair.

Owner Paul Doole has previously indicated the property could be for sale.

The Government valuation is about $11 million.

Mr Doole has permission to build a 39-storey apartment complex on the site but, because of the venue's status, he must leave the St James standing and build around it.

He could not be reached yesterday.

St James Theatre restoration would be music to the ears of many

Mon Aug 9, 2010

by Brian Rudman - NZ Herald

A couple of months ago, I argued in favour of The Edge/Aotea Centre as the best home for the new international convention centre.

One of the points in its favour was that it matched the Ministry of Economic Development and Auckland City's feasibility study conclusion that "proximity to a critical mass of appropriate standard hotel rooms is the single most important attribute for conference buyers because of the convenience this provides conference organisers and delegates".

ASB Showgrounds in Greenlane, another of the five contenders for the Government-led contract, later sat me down and politely pointed out the error of my conclusions. As they saw it anyway.

Their argument was that distance was an illusion, and with a fleet of shuttle buses operating after the morning rush-hour traffic had disappeared, delegates could be wafted back and forth from downtown hotels in the blink of an eye.

Whether the promise of a speedy shuttle service, combined with a site looking out on lambs gambolling in adjacent Cornwall Park is enough to persuade the experts from the ministry, we should know in a month or so when their preliminary report is released.

My support for The Edge site was, as I admitted earlier, driven by the proposal within it to trade making the existing ASB Theatre the main auditorium for the convention centre in return for the restoration of the neighbouring historic St James Theatre into a 1300-seat venue, ideal for opera, ballet and drama.

This win-win scenario surfaced again in Saturday's Weekend Herald. The St James' property developer owner, Paul Doole, indicating the property could be for sale and the government valuation was about $11 million.

He said he would think of selling "because I think having the building done up will enhance future development on the site". In his eyes, that was a "win-win" situation too. Indeed, it would be a win on many levels. A win, as far as the convention centre project was concerned.

A win for Mr Doole, who is saddled with a rapidly decaying, but much loved, theatre with top-level heritage protection listings from both Auckland City and the Historic Places Trust, slap bang in the middle of his Queen St development site.

It's also a win for Auckland theatregoers, finally providing a long-needed venue for "unplugged" song, dance and drama.

And while the ASB Theatre would become the auditorium for the convention centre, it would also be available for large performing arts productions that don't want to use the adjacent Civic Theatre.

The ASB Theatre has been such an acoustic disaster that I don't imagine any tears will be shed at its demotion from its role as the city's main - or more accurately and shamefully - only, commercially sized lyric theatre.

Building a substitute from new seems an unlikely pipe dream, which makes the transmogrification of the St James such a vital project.

And linking it into the Government-led drive to build a national convention centre means it will escape the paralysis that may well beset the Super City as politicians and bureaucrats struggle to set up their new email passwords and fight for the best office space, car parks and the like.

On Saturday, Herald property editor Anne Gibson weighed up the pros and cons of the five bids for the convention facility that the Government says New Zealand needs to capture our share of the 15,000 business conferences held annually around the world. Currently we get just 38 of them. Such a facility could bring in 22,000 extra overseas visitors and $80 million.

The Government is so keen on this facility that it's prepared to pay a significant, though as yet unspecified, proportion of its cost. There is talk of 50 per cent to 75 per cent funding. More details of this are expected in September when the shortlist, or outright winner, of the bidding process is announced.

However, by offering the ASB Theatre and adjacent Aotea complex as part-payment in kind, Auckland will be in a good bargaining position vis a vis the complementary redevelopment across Queen St at the St James.

Short of finding a multimillionaire benefactor with very deep pockets, this could be the St James' only hope of survival. It also fits the bill as far as a national convention centre site is concerned. In a world of compromises, this is as close to perfect as we're likely to get.