Princess Theatre (Sydney)

Princess Theatre in 1925

The Princess Theatre was an entertainment venue on George Street, Sydney's Broadway.

History

Several Sydney theatres were named "Princess" in the 19th-century:

  • The Princess Theatre on George Street was well enough established in 1867 to be regarded as a local landmark.[1][2]
  • The old Masonic Hall in York Street was renamed "Princess Theatre" in 1886,[3]

In August 1908 J. F. W. Thiel (also spelled Thiele)[a] and his Australian manager Jack Gavin opened the Bijou Theatre on George Street, on Railway Square opposite the railway station, to show moving pictures.[6][7] Thiele's Star Pictures opened a theatre at Rozelle and another on King Street, Newtown in 1910[8] and in 1911 a tent theatre in conjunction with Brennan's Amphitheatre.[9] Business was brisk, but arson attempts and thefts of film[10][11] resulted in diminished patronage and huge losses.

West's Pictures purchased the theatre in 1911 and, after some refurbishment, reopened it as the Princess[12] The first film shown was Oberammergau and the Passion Play.[13]

In 1911 the theatre was sub-let to James C. Bain to be the headquarters of his vaudeville company.[14]

The property was sold in 1925[15] and became a store for Marcus Clark & Co.[16]

Notes

  1. ↑ Johann Friedrich William Thiele petitioned for bankruptcy in 1914.[4] He became a naturalised citizen of Australia sometime before September 1914. His bankruptcy was not due to motion picture losses but a debt he incurred with the Sydney council.[5] No more has been found.

References

  1. ↑ "Advertising". The Mining Record and Grenfell General Advertiser. Vol. 1, no. 3. New South Wales, Australia. 29 June 1867. p. 1. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  2. ↑ "Advertising". The Mining Record and Grenfell General Advertiser. New South Wales, Australia. 28 September 1867. p. 3. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. ↑ "Advertising". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 15, 038. New South Wales, Australia. 5 June 1886. p. 2. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ↑ "In Bankruptcy". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. No. 118. New South Wales, Australia. 8 July 1914. p. 4024. Retrieved 27 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. ↑ "In Bankruptcy". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 23, 922. New South Wales, Australia. 10 September 1914. p. 4. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ↑ "New Bijou Theatre and Picture Palace,". The Newsletter: An Australian Paper for Australian People. Vol. 11, no. 51. New South Wales, Australia. 5 September 1908. p. 9. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ↑ "The New Bijou Theatre". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 22, 040. New South Wales, Australia. 5 September 1908. p. 18. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ↑ "Thiele's Star Pictures". The Sunday Sun (Sydney). No. 374. New South Wales, Australia. 29 May 1910. p. 1. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  9. ↑ "Thiele's Pictures". Truth (Sydney newspaper). No. 1040. New South Wales, Australia. 25 June 1911. p. 3. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  10. ↑ "Picture Show Fire". The Sun (Sydney). No. 1206. New South Wales, Australia. 9 May 1914. p. 9. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  11. ↑ "Biograph Films Stolen". National Advocate. New South Wales, Australia. 9 September 1909. p. 2. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  12. ↑ "The Princess Theatre". The Daily Telegraph (Sydney). No. 9933. New South Wales, Australia. 29 March 1911. p. 13. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  13. ↑ "The Theatrical Gazette". Referee. No. 1280. New South Wales, Australia. 17 May 1911. p. 16. Retrieved 26 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  14. ↑ "New Vaudeville Circuit". The Evening News (Sydney). No. 13, 786. New South Wales, Australia. 15 August 1911. p. 8. Retrieved 24 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  15. ↑ "Sold for £40,000". The Sun (Sydney). No. 4574. New South Wales, Australia. 2 July 1925. p. 12. Retrieved 24 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  16. ↑ "Old Stars Honor "Tent Man"". The Daily Telegraph (Sydney). Vol. XIII, no. 80. New South Wales, Australia. 23 June 1948. p. 9. Retrieved 24 March 2026 – via National Library of Australia.

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